Stars Theatre Restaurant put on a production of “Camelot” on Sept. 29. 

The musical tells the story of a young King who dreams of a better kingdom. He and his wife make his ambitions become a reality, but it all begins to unravel when she falls in love with someone else. The theatre was filled with community members, most of whom were older, as they enjoyed a lunch prepared by the venue.

Prior to the start of the show at 2 p.m., the restaurant staff served lunch and refreshments to the packed crowd. Just as everyone was finishing their meals, the lights dimmed a few minutes after the anticipated start time. The stage, decorated with faux stone, was simple and only housed a few props and set pieces. 

As the musical carried on, the lights changed the ambiance and emphasized the mood of the scene. The orchestra was located to the right of the stage in a small, sectioned off area. The music was live and filled the whole room. 

The cast of nine sang alongside the classical music and stayed on pitch throughout the entire production, even while dancing. They were all equipped with a mic to ensure all three levels of seating could hear them clearly. The production lived up to its description as a musical because there were more musical numbers than there was dialogue. After every song, the audience responded with applause.

Though there was a lot of singing, there was not much dancing, and the small amount of choreography was simple. The greatest amount of movement came toward the end of the play when a set of characters engaged in a stage combat sequence. The first act lasted a little more than an hour and a half, and a 30-minute intermission followed. During that time, waiters cleared the tables, brought out desserts and boxes, and settled the bills for the lunch.

The second act moved much more swiftly and held the audience’s attention much better than the previous act. The production seemed to be well-received as the audience enthusiastically cheered the cast on as they gave their final bows.

Monique Polk brought her daughter Claire Michael, a child actor at the Empty Space, to the show. They see productions at Stars sporadically and thought the cast did a very nice job.

Their friend Maria Martin, an avid theatre-goer, was equally impressed with the show even though she had already seen it once before.