The Last of the Red Hot Lovers

Release Date: 1/14/2001. Expired: 3/9/2001

Hot Line Up Ignites Gaslight Dinner Theatre

The Renaissance Center’s Gaslight Dinner Theatre has a red-hot lineup for February and March. Neil Simon’s Last of the Red Hot Lovers, a hilarious comedy, will be the dinner theatre performance on Fridays at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 2-March 9 with a special Valentine’s Day show Feb. 14. Tickets for dinner and the show are $25.

Mild mannered Barney Cashman, the main character, has a nice life. His wife of 23 years, Thelma, is a faithful companion. He has three wonderful children. He has a successful career as a restaurant owner. It would seem that Barney is a lucky man indeed. Except that at the age of 36, he finds himself in the grips of a mid-life crisis. Thoughts of his own mortality place him in pursuit of a purpose to his life, a life that is irritatingly predictable.

Co-directed by Pacer Harp and Hal Partlow, Last of the Red Hot Lovers is an amusing analysis of a stage of life called middle age. Barney begins to yearn for a little danger and excitement in the midst of his mundane and predictable existence. As Barney says during one monologue, “Life has not only been very kind to me, it goes out of its way to ignore me...” He wonders where the excitement is and seeks to find it by planning affairs with three different women, arranging to meet each of them in his mother’s apartment, but his well-laid plans don’t materialize.

“This is a lighthearted look at the age-old adage ‘the grass is always greener on the other side,’” states Harp. “Audiences will love this play not just for its delightful comedy, but because it also sends the message about valuing who and where you are in life.”

Partlow adds, “Pacer and I work very well together. We coordinated our efforts with the dinner theatre productions with great success. We work off each other well.”

In search of his one red-hot fling, Barney meets three women. The cast of four portrayed by members of The Renaissance Repertory Company includes Joe Leavitt, Erin Calvert, Amy Arrington and Erica Rowlett.

Leavitt, who recently portrayed Elvis in Christmas Seasonings, Charlie Brown in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown and Tom in The Glass Menagerie, has been with The Renaissance Rep since fall of 2000. A native of Michigan, Leavitt studied theatre at Austin Peay State University where he received a performance scholarship from The Center of Creative Arts and was also the first recipient of The Roxy Regional Theatre’s performance scholarship. He is also the co-founder of The People’s Playhouse, a non-profit theatre in Clarksville, Tenn.

Having completed her role as Emily Dickinson in The Belle of Amherst, veteran Renaissance Center actress Erin Calvert plays Elaine, one of Barney’s potential affairs.

She is a graduate of Austin Peay State University with a degree in Theatre and English. She has been a member of the Renaissance Repertory since its inception in June 1999. Other most recent roles include Snoopy in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, and Dover in Bar-B-Q for Two. This production of Last of the Red Hot Lovers will be her fourth performance in the Gaslight Dinner Theatre.

Playing the part of Jeanette is newcomer Amy Arrington. A Tennessee native, Arrington studied theatre at Austin Peay State University. After a hiatus as a welder, legal secretary and professional picture framer, she returned to her first love -- the theatre. She has been active both on stage and off, costuming shows for the Renaissance Repertory, Mockingbird Public Theatre and Nashville Shakespeare Festival.

Belmont graduate Erica Rowlett has the role of Bobbi. She most recently appeared in A Christmas Carol at the Ryman alongside Jamie Farr, star of the critically acclaimed television series MASH. She was also in the Gateway production of The Wizard of Oz in New York City. Other credits include Hope in Anything Goes, Carmen in Fame, Felicity in The Real Inspector Hound and Alice in Alice in Wonderland.

Last of the Red Hot Lovers will run each Friday at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 2 through March 9. The Italian menu includes pasta, salad, rolls and tiramisu. Tickets are $25 per person and reservations must be made by noon on the Friday of each performance. Set furnishings for Last of the Red Hot Lovers have been provided by Leader Furniture Showrooms in Dickson.

A special Valentine’s Day presentation of Last of the Red Hot Lovers is scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 14, at 6:30 p.m. In the romantic spirit of the day, guests will be treated to a long stem red rose, compliments of Dickson Florist. The menu includes prime rib, salad, baked potato and dessert.

Private dinner theatre parties can be booked for groups of 25 or more for only $25 per person plus a 15% special performance fee. Contact LeAnn Polk, (615)740-5503, for more details. To make reservations for Friday night’s dinner theatre or the special Valentine’s Day performance, call (615)740-5600 or come by the center at 855 Highway 46 South in Dickson.

Visit the Gaslight Dinner Theatre page for more about dinner theatre.

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