“A LITTLE GEM” -Theater Pizzazz
A Delightful Throwback to the Great Romantic Comedy Musicals!
“A great date musical for an audience that might not want the typical musical theater experience. Its focus is on the dating scene for thirty-somethings, but any adult could relate to the heart of the show. It’s a witty how-to for establishing lasting relationships.”
Broadway World
A sweet, lighthearted look at one millennial navigating the ups and downs of relationships through trial and error. The ever-engaging Max Crumm brings all of the emotions to his central character – the hurt and angst, hopes and desires, awkwardness and flaws – in his belated coming-of-age story.
That ballad for the hapless Christine, titled “It’s Only a First Date,” marries a thoughtful lyric to a pleasantly melancholy melody. Gwen, whose own marriage went south, thanks to her cheating, gets a nicely introspective eleven o’clock number, “The Unromantic Things,” about the mundane details that provide the glue in any relationship. “Keeping My Eye on the Ball,” sung by a sadder-but-wiser Henry, is an attractive show closer, cleverly applying the basketball to the dating game.
Catchy music by Douglas J. Cohen…The songs that tell the cumulative story are the best part of the show. Henry (Max Crumm) partakes in most of the numbers, whether soloing with “She’s My Wife” and “Keeping My Eye on the Ball,” or teaming with the two women in “The Year of the Weddings” and “Settling Down,” and also “The Tale of the Otter” and the erotic “Hard.” (Allie) Trimm takes the spotlight soloing as Christine with “It’s Only a First Date” and Hiatt as Gwen makes the most of her solo number, “The Unromantic Things.
Some stand-out songs are “It’s Only A First Date,” sung touchingly by Allie Trimm. Leslie Hiatt sings a lovely song, “The Unromantic Things” which could easily work as a stand-alone song in a cabaret.