BWW Reviews: BREAKING UP IS HARD TO DO at Gaslight Dinner Theatre

Remind me someday to tell you my Connie Francis story - although, in retrospect, it probably veers dangerously close to the realm of "you had to be there," but then again, who among you has a Connie Francis story to tell? The Italian-American songstress, who was such a presence in American pop culture in the middle of the last century, has been on my mind a lot since seeing Breaking Up is Hard to Do, an appealing, if slight, musical revue featuring the hits of Neil Sedaka, now onstage at The Gaslight Dinner Theatre at The Renaissance Center in Dickson.

Performed by a talented six-member ensemble under the direction of Pacer Harp, Breaking Up is Hard to Do features a veritable soundtrack from the lives of countless Baby Boomers, including "Where the Boys Are" and "Stupid Cupid," two of Connie Francis' biggest hits (which are terrifically rendered by Tawny Frey and Bryan J. Wlas), "Laughter in the Rain" (which immediately transports me to high school - and that certainly was no dance party at the time) and "Love Will Keep Us Together" (which brings to mind memories of The Captain and Tenille's televised variety show). Therein, my gentle readers, may you find the secret to why a musical revue like this can be so successful: It makes you feel younger, you remember old friends and lovers, and you find yourself wrapped in a warm cloak of nostalgia. Say what you will about revues or jukebox musicals (or whatever the hell you want to call them), but anything that evokes such strong sense memories as does a show like Breaking Up is Hard to Do is A-OK in my book.

Riffing on what might best be described as a take-off on Dirty Dancing (don't even get me started on the hot mess the stage version of that movie is!), Breaking Up is Hard to Do takes place at Esther's Paradise (owned by widow Esther Simowitz, played by Amy Scott), a Jewish resort in the Catskills, the kind of place with mambo lessons, Wednesday night bingo games, a smooth headliner named Del Delmonaco (Wlas) and a comic named Harvey Feldman (Greg Frey), cracking wise about brisket and Mount Sinai. (I should probably also tell you about a summer vacation I spent at Mountain Lake, Virginia, the place where Dirty Dancing was filmed - Oy! I'm awash in memories as a result of this show!)

Into this stereotypical vacation spot comes a jilted bride named Marge Gelman (Holland LeDelia), dragged on the remnants of her honeymoon weekend by her best friend Lois Warner (Tawny Frey). Lois believes that only if Marge can have three days of weekend fun will she be able to get over the putz who dumped her at the altar. However, Lois' plan for Marge is problematic, to say the least, and the stage is set for romantic hijinks (in the dueling persons of Del Delmonaco and the brains behind the star, the schlubby, nebbishy Gabe Green, played by Nathan W. Brown) and the arrival of a producer from American Bandstand who is in possession of the Holy Grail of American Pop Music: the chance to appear on Dick Clark's daily, Philadephia-based, teenaged dance party show.

The plot, however slight and predictable, nonetheless provides the perfect showcase for Sedaka's musical hits, including the title tune, "Happy Birthday, Sweet Sixteen," "Calendar Girl," "Oh, Carol" (inspired by Sedaka's one-time girlfriend Carole King), "The Diary" (which he wrote after Connie Francis refused to allow him to read her diary) and "Solitaire," the 1972 song that was updated by none other than American Idol near-champion Clay Aiken, and many of his other best-known songs (but where, I ask, is "Bad Blood" in this compendium of work?). Harp's wonderful ensemble give each song its due and each member of the cast has his or her moment in the charmed spotlight.

Wlas is all smarmy charm as the oily nightclub headliner at Esther's Paradise and he delivers the goods in his musical moments. LeDelia is delightful as Marge, mousy and dejected in the early going, but confident and ballsy when she comes to her senses. Tawny Frey is sexy and elegant, even as the Malapropisms fairly drip from her lips, and she delivers a knock-out version of "Where the Boys Are." Scott is all bluster and hot-air as the doyenne of the Paradise, but sweetly sentimental when the plot calls for that. Greg Frey displays good timing and a lovely sense of pathos as the fading comic Harvey Feldman and his scenes with Scott are surprisingly understated.

But clearly, it's Brown who takes top honors in this consistent and capable cast. His voice is nothing short of glorious - as clear a tenor as you could ever hope to hear - and he performs Sedaka's songs with an effortless grace (the fact that he bears a slight resemblance to Sedaka doesn't hurt either) that is certain to please even the most discerning of audience members.

Breaking Up is Hard to Do doesn't break any new barriers or set the bar any higher for the jukebox musical, but what it does give you is two hours of good music and memories brought to life by a very appealing group of entertainers (and there's pecan pie to top it all off) and that will always work for me.

- Breaking Up is Hard to Do. Written by Erik Jackson and Ben H. Winters. Music by Neil Sedaka. Conceived by March Hanson and Gordon Greenberg. Directed by Pacer Harp. Music direction by Nathan W. Brown. Choreography by Bryan J. Wlas. Presented by The Gaslight Dinner Theatre at the Renaissance Center, Dickson, through March 19. For reservations, call (615) 740-5600; for furthe details, visit the website at www.rcenter.org.

Pictured: Nathan W. Brown and Hollad LeDelia (front) and Amy Scott, Greg Frey, Bryan J. Wlas and Tawny Frey (back)

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