17
May
2011
New Era Dinner Theatre's Once Upon a Mattress is flat-out delightful. It's not the perfect production, but it's so amusing and well-sung that I left Saturday night's show with a giddy feeling that's sticking with me even as I write this review a day later.
For the past 15 years, Muscatine's New Era Lutheran Church has staged an annual musical fundraiser, and I was moved to catch this year's offering for two (or rather, three) reasons: the casting of Jason Platt and Tracy Pelzer-Timm - two of our area's most entertaining character actors - in leading roles, and New Era's decision to produce Guys & Dolls, my all-time favorite musical, and certainly the least intimidating Great Musical ever written. Even at its worst, I reasoned, it would likely be a night well spent.
