Live Theater in Orange County California

North Orange County California has many theatrical venues, and over the past few weeks I've had occasion to go to the theater twice. One visit was a rousing success and the other a dismal failure. Just because a show is sold out, that doesn't guarantee it's good.

First the good news! What used to be called Elizabeth Howard's Curtain Call Dinner Theatre in Tustin, California is still the place to go for a wonderful evening of live entertainment.

The Curtain Call Dinner Theatre opened its doors on Friday, April 6, 1980, and quickly distinguished itself from other dinner theaters. It was the first and only dinner theater to offer its patrons a menu and waiter service. For a single price, you're now served a two-course dinner, along with a professional quality Broadway show. The current ticket price, including dinner starts at $35. Can't beat that.

Originally run by Elizabeth Howard with her brother John Ferola as Director, the theater was recently bought by Main Place Christian Fellowship. It is family oriented and currently showing THE SOUND OF MUSIC, an all-time favorite.

True, there are no helicopters flying over the stage -- no live camels to clean up after, but the cast of this show is marvelous, with the Mother Abbess lifting us all up with the inspiring "Climb Every Mountain". What a glorious voice! The entire cast is first rate with nary an embarrassing moment for the audience.

The food is amazingly good. Cooking for large numbers of people who will be eating in a theatrical venue is not an easy task. Jimmy, the Executive Chef, who has been with the Curtain Call since the beginning, does a wonderful job. I'm really picky about my food, and I was delighted.

Thumbs way up for The Curtain Call Dinner Theatre.

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In contrast, I hated my visit to The Dinner Detective in Santa Ana at the Embassy Suites Hotel.

The Dinner Detective is a four course sit down dinner. In between courses the staff presents another part of the show, which lasts about 2 1/2 hours. It is an interactive and improvised comedic murder mystery set in present day. None of the performers are dressed in costume and are dressed just like everyone else, therefore you don't know who is a part of the show and who is not.

There is supposed to be a dress code of Business Casual / Dressy Casual required, but most people were dressed in an extremely casual fashion. No T-shirts, shorts, or baseball caps allowed, and the minimum age is 15 with adult supervision is required.

The show is supposed to start promptly, with check-in time 15 minutes ahead of the start. The night I attended nothing started on time and there were close to 100 people milling around in a hotel lobby wondering if and when somebody would arrive at the check-in table.

The concept is a great idea, and that part of it went well. The show takes place throughout the entire room and in many instances the performers are actually seated at your table, so part of the fun is trying to figure out who's involved in the show and who's not. Throughout the night, murders and mayhem occur, hidden clues are revealed and Detectives help everyone try to solve the crime.

No subtlety here. The performance style is reminiscent of the Marx Brothers, but that's what would have been part of the fun, if the air conditioner had been working.

100+ people crammed into a windowless 500 square ft room without air conditioning in the middle of July is brutal. I can't tell you how many times I was tempted to simply go home. But the price per ticket and the fact that we were celebrating a birthday and an anniversary made us stay.

Maybe if we had started drinking before the show like many of the other patrons, paying $6.50 a glass for cheap wine, we would have been lubricated enough to have not minded the heat, but the HORRIBLE quality of the food was the last straw.

Hint: If there is steak as a choice on the menu and nobody asks "How do you want that cooked?" avoid the steak at all costs. Nothing can save it. The salmon wasn't overcooked, but mine wasn't seasoned, although it was covered in sauce. The vegetables were al dente to the max, verging on the raw, and this wasn't the salad! Luckily the dessert was prepared somewhere else so it was edible.

There is no cancellation policy, so buyer beware. The current ticket price is $64.89. We were robbed!

Thumbs way down for The Dinner Detective.