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Starlight Theater
3376 Edgewater Drive, Orlando 32804
(407) 843-6275
www.starlightorlando.com
Prices: Matinees are $45, evening shows $49. Price includes three-course dinner.
Times: Performances Wednesday through Sunday; matinees Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Matinees: Dining 11:00 a.m., Curtain 1:00 p.m. Evenings: Dining 6:00 p.m., Curtain 8:00 p.m. Sundays: Dining 4:30 p.m., Curtain 6:30 p.m.
Directions: I-4 to Exit 86, then west on Par Street, which dead ends into Edgewater. The theater is at the back of the mall in front of you.
Of all the dinner attractions in Orlando, this is the only one that is a “dinner theater” in the classic sense of the term — you have dinner and then watch a Broadway musical. The Starlight is somewhat off the beaten tourist track, tucked away in the College Park neighborhood of Orlando’s northeast. It is open year round and presents about nine shows a year, each running about six weeks. Every show is a musical with the repertory drawn from familiar recent hits and old favorites, everything from Cabaret and Pirates of Penzance to Grease and Fiddler on the Roof. Every December, the theater mounts a “Holiday Spectacular.” The shows I’ve seen here have been very good indeed.
The theater is at the back of a former retail mall. While the space was obviously intended for other uses, it has been cleverly converted to a 300-seat theater with tables arrayed on tiers around three sides of the stage floor; ramps slope gently down to the stage. Thanks to the use of ramps, every part of the theater is wheelchair accessible. The entire space is decorated in subdued black and red, with large Broadway posters ringing the walls. The tiny lamps on each table add a touch of elegance and intimacy. The lobby is equally attractive, with a cascading sheet of water serving as a curtain on the wide front windows. Small tables and chic seating give it the air of a smart cocktail lounge, which is what the lobby becomes on Friday and Saturday after the show.
Most dinner theaters offer a none too fancy buffet dinner. Starlight ups the ante with a three-course meal served at your table by a team of attentive servers. The good news is that the food is excellent, easily the best dinner theater fare I’ve ever had. The menu changes every few shows and might include entrees like fennel-crusted pork tenderloin served over “Dixie polenta” with an apple and Vidalia onion compote. The desserts are first rate, too.
Dinner is served for about two hours prior to showtime. Dessert is brought to your table during the intermission. There is a bar in the lobby and drinks are also served at your table. Wine is available by the glass and by the bottle.
The Starlight draws its talent from Orlando’s broad pool of Disney, Universal, and cruise line performers, as well as from local college drama departments. The performers are non-Equity (that is, they are not members of the actors’ union), but the standards are obviously high and you just might get a chance to see a star in the making. So save that program!
Tip: Tables have two or four seats. If you are a couple, request a two-seat table. If none is available, you will be seated at a four-seat table and may be joined by another couple (unless you purchase every seat at the table).
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