Great Little Show in San Francisco

"Statistics show that of those who contract

The habit of eating, very few survive." 

— George Bernard Shaw

Everybody does it….we all look forward to breakfast lunch and dinner….and unless we are anorexic, we indulge in all three, every day.  But in the Bay Area, eating and the food experience have been elevated to a pretentious and elaborate ritual. Morris Bobrow pokes fun at it all in "Foodies: The Musical," a new, delightful and all too real spoof about what advertising, heath addicts and the medical community have managed to do to our eating habits. 

The show opens with a full cast presentation “I Like to Eat” (and who doesn’t?) and works its way through pompous waiters, falling in love with the food truck guy and trying to keep it kosher.  Who cannot see themselves and blush when the cast is so excited about a new place to eat that they simply cannot choose. “OMG” they sing, and that is exactly what we say when we find a new and different restaurant. 

We all have been put off by the pompous waiter who not only gives you dining suggestions but tells you his life story.  We have been smothered in the friendly restaurant atmosphere where you meet everyone involved in creating your meal.  Who can forget Deborah Russo ‘s brilliant smile when she announces, ”I’m your dishwasher!”?  It is almost too real to be funny.   

The hour is filled with many memorable moments, but unforgettable is the song, “Taking the Waters” that discusses the different types of water we drink these days in the same lingo that wine connoisseurs evaluate wine (and that in itself is about as affected as you can get.)  Gone the days when you could walk up to a counter and ask for a cup of coffee.  Now you have so many choices and so many decisions, it is almost easier to forget the whole thing and buy a tea bag. 

All the habits we have adopted, the hang ups that guide us, the foolishness in the name of health we read about and hear about every day are lampooned in this tuneful, energetic, beautifully paced little musical.  We smile; we tap our feet; and we love every minute of this performance because each person in the audience has experienced the frustration of worrying about what the food we are eating ate, and the humiliation of cooking a wonderful meal that no one likes.  It has happened to all of us, but in "Foodies: The Muscial," we don’t throw pots and pans at one another, we laugh.

Don’t miss this opportunity for a  unique, laugh-filled hour filled with unforgettable tunes by the very talented Morris Bobrow, composer of “Shopping! The Musical!” And “Party of 2-The Mating Musical.”  The cast work together as a team and yet each one shines in his own way. The music is hummable and never detracts from the movement on stage.  The show is as marvelous to watch as it is to hear.  It doesn’t get much better than that.     

Where: The Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter (at Powell), 433-3040
When: Preview performances Sept. 28-29, Oct. 5; show runs Fridays and Saturdays from Oct. 6-Nov. 17
Cost: $30 for previews; $34 general (purchase via Brown Paper Tickets)

"To eat is a necessity, but to eat intelligently is an art."
— François de La Rochefoucauld