Saturday performance slated for old Masonic Hall

AUGUSTA -- A little bit of Broadway is coming to downtown Augusta -- bringing dinner, dessert and wine.

A dinner theater production of the Broadway show "Love Letters" takes the stage Saturday in the old Masonic Hall, 313 Water St.

Organizers hope the event will draw people and attention to the city's historic downtown waterfront.

"We were talking about how to get more people downtown, especially in the evening, get them excited, help some businesses here and just get people talking about stuff happening downtown," said Ed Cervone, program director for the Maine Development Foundation.

The evening begins at 6 with a cash-bar reception and live music, followed by dinner with wine and a dessert bar catered by Augusta's Riverfront Barbeque and Grille. The performance of "Love Letters" will begin at 7:45. The evening concludes with a postshow cocktail reception at the Gin Mill across Water Street from Masonic Hall.

The event is hosted by the Capital Riverfront Improvement District, the Maine Development Foundation, the City of Augusta and Cynergy. Cervone said the common link between those groups is an interest in seeing downtown Augusta succeed.

The evening is part of an effort to revitalize Augusta's Water Street area, officials said.

"The combination of a cultural event supported by downtown businesses, spotlighting an elegant historic building is very exciting," Dan Nichols, one of the coordinators and an associate developer for the city, said in a news release. "We hope this will be the first of many dinner theater presentations in this setting."

"Love Letters" is a show that follows the long-standing romance between two people, Andy and Melissa, as seen through the letters that they wrote to each other through their lives.

The show will be performed by husband-and-wife actors Dan and Denise Marois, of Poland Spring. The Maroises are owners and producers of Main Street Entertainment and Mystery for Hire, a theater troupe that has performed stage plays, musical revues, improvisational comedy and nearly 450 mystery dinner theater productions since 1995.

Tickets are $50 per person, which includes the dinner buffet, wine, dessert bar and the performance. Ticket sales are limited to 100.

More information, and tickets, are available by calling Amanda Roggio at Maine Development Foundation at 626-3121. Only a few tickets remained as of Tuesday afternoon.

The building is owned by the Augusta Masonic Bodies. Cervone said the Masons donated the space for the event.

Keith Edwards -- 621-5647 -- kedwards@centralmaine.com