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Rodriguez is polished and cool, gradually showing underlying vulnerability as Casey unbends a little. Casey interacts in her head with her still-alluring, bad-boy ex-boyfriends and her know-it-all big sister Lauren (Sara Chase), among others. Performing "Safer," Casey's lovely lament wondering why she can't find the right guy, Rodriguez delivers with emotion and class. One of the funnier bits is a fevered performance by Kristoffer
Cusick as Casey's best friend Reggie. He calls her several times to
offer variations of "The Bailout Song," so she can get out of the
date if necessary with an excuse. Blake Hammond is quite
entertaining in a variety of roles, primarily as a waiter who
encourages the daters toward success. While many of the songs are harmlessly humorous, a religion-themed
number, "The Girl For You," veers toward simplistically offensive, as Jewish
stereotypes clash with Roman Catholic ones (Aaron's Jewish, Casey is not).
Aaron brings up the subject of a treasured letter from his deceased mother
(played by Chase) which seems oddly downbeat for a date, but leads into a
poignant duet between Chase and Levi about a mother's love and regrets,
called "The Things I Never Said."
"Something That Will Last" is Casey and Aaron's final duet, about the
uncertainties of falling in love. Never mind love, will they even make it to
a second date? The point is that after just 90 minutes with this mismatched
couple and their comical parade of demanding advisers, we still care how it
turns out. ___ Online:
[Associated
Press;
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That's the entertaining idea behind the sassy new musical comedy, "First Date." The overall tone is satiric, but there's a sneakily persistent undercurrent of optimism in the fun, fast-paced production that opened Thursday night at the Longacre Theatre.
