Buddy Holly is alive and rocking in Overland Park, Kansas

Here’s a news flash: Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens are NOT dead—in fact, they’re playing a gig together this summer in Kansas. That plane crash on February 3, 1959 never actually happened.

Sound like a headline from the National Enquirer?

Well, you’ll be pinching yourself to make sure you’re not dreaming when you witness these bright young stars from the ‘50s, in the flesh, in Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story at the New Theatre Restaurant in Overland Park.

It’s not just a Blast from the Past—it’s practically Reincarnation.

But then, nothing about a night at the New Theatre Restaurant is just “ordinary.” Your evening starts with a buffet meal that is as memorable as the music in the show. Side dishes include fresh green beans, sautéed with sweet onions and toasted almonds; romas romano (oven-roasted tomatoes drizzled with a lemon-garlic-infused olive oil); steamed fresh broccoli; pasta tottole (zucchini, onions, parmesan cheese and fresh oregano tossed with pasta in a light tomato cream sauce); roasted garlic potatoes (anyone who’s ever tried these signature mashed potatoes never fails to go back for a second helping); and polenta.

The main entrees consist of Asian pork (the Hawaiian-style barbecue sauce is especially savory), pan-seared basa (light and flavorful, and served with a white wine and dill aioli), fried chicken tenders (NOT the overly-salted, recently-frozen kind you get in bars—these are plump and really tender), and grilled hanging tender (served with a mango veal reduction that is good enough to lap up by itself.)

Dessert is optional—however, based on my own experience, I strongly suggest that you save room for the chocolate chip cookie sundae.

Is your mouth watering yet? Well, it should be. Everything served at the New Theatre Restaurant is sublimely delicious, and the presentation of each dish really whets the appetite.

After dinner, the lights dim and anticipation builds as you settle in for your evening of entertainment. And, Oh Boy, will you ever be entertained.

Let me put it this way…Bennett Dunn is Buddy Holly. He channels Holly so well (with boyish enthusiasm plus all the rough edges) that, by the intermission, you will be firmly convinced that you’re actually watching “the Father of Rock ‘n’ Roll.” His musical numbers, from the boisterous Peggy Sue to the sweetly-crooned True Love Ways (sung during an intimate scene to his bride, Maria Elena—played by Mandy Morris), are incredibly true to the originals. Close your eyes, and you’ll go backward in time.

There’s not a missed beat among the other cast members, either, but special mention must be given to Anthony CeFala (Ritchie Valens) and Ryan Dunkin (Big Bopper), a pair of rockers whose dynamic energy nearly goes through the roof in the final numbers of the show.

Damron Russel Armstrong provides side-splitting laughs in his over-the-top performance as an emcee at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, where Buddy and his band are mistakenly booked.

I really can’t say enough good things about this show. The music alone—songs like That’ll be the Day, Chantilly Lace, and La Bamba—will lift you up until you’re literally dancing in the aisles.

Don McLean’s classic song American Pie was inspired by the moment he learned of the death of Buddy Holly—“the day the music died.” Judging by the well-deserved popularity of this musical, that line in the lyrics was a mistake. This music will endure forever.

The Fine Print
You can catch Buddy Holly: The Buddy Holly Story through August 29 at the New Theatre Restaurant. Call 913-649-7469 or go to www.newtheatre.com.