By Patric Hedlund

You’ll want to grab some friends and call to reserve tickets right away to see Lend Me a Tenor in its last two days.

The dinner theater production is a sharp (and silly) farce of love, aspiration, ego and mayhem. Surprisingly focused performances are offered by talented local actors, directed by Bill Fair.

Janine Tominaga provides a tough and vulnerable Maria Merelli, the long-suffering wife of opera star Tito ‘Il Stupendo’ Merelli, played by the always energetic David Stenstrom. Cam Acosta nails the president of the opera guild with hilarious intensity. Dale Sheldon plays aspiring tenor, Max, demonstrating a talent for singing Italian arias with a startling familiarity. David Mack gives a crisp performance as the brusque manager of the Cleveland Grand Opera. Beans Morocco once again charms the audience with precise comic timing. Bridget Rago as Max’s love interest and Jill Hackett as the opera company’s ambitious soprano provide sometimes side-splitting moments.

Kat Fair produces, Bobbie Ladin is stage manager, Mike Cram and Stacey Havener handle lights and sound. Alexa Hamilton and Gael Bailey assist with props and costumes.

This is another successful collaboration between the Mountain Theatre Alliance and the Pine Mountain Club POA’s Bistro on the Greens, offering dinner, dessert and delightful entertainment in the Condor Room.

Call 661-242-3788 for tickets at the PMCPOA office, $30. Dinner is at 6 p.m. Curtain at 7 p.m.

Photo captions:

Left, Beans Morocco, Cam Acosta and Bridget Rago, David Stenstrom (on bed), David Mack and Dale Sheldon in a key scene when the plot thickens after Il Stupendo passes out and cannot perform.

Below left, Mack and Sheldon as Cleveland’s Grand Opera Manager and dogsbody assistant Max (Sheldon) who dreams of being recognized as an opera singer.

Below right, Rago plays the ingenue hoping to have a fling that will make her ‘hear bells ring,’ and Morocco as the bellhop who speaks Italian and is an avid opera fan.

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This is part of the November 22, 2013 online edition of The Mountain Enterprise.

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