The absolute terror and uncertainty of that first date is one things that steer people away from this awkward time.

Idaho State University’s School of the Performing Arts opened recently opened its first performance of the season, "First Date" by Austin Winsberg, Alan Zachary and Michael Weiner.

This production follows a couple on a blind date and their insecurities. Insert the romantic comedy tropes which populate every romantic comedy and add in the fun of social media and musical numbers and you have the fun of First Date!

For an opening night, the entire place was sold out! This musical follows experiences some of the creators had experienced over the course of their dating life.

First Dates are traumatic and Aaron hasn’t been on one in a while. He is set to meet Casey who is a vivacious girl who loves to put on a confident air. Over the course of the evening, they discover some things about each other that they didn’t know they were missing.

Joel Shura is the new professor of directing at ISU and for his first foray in directing on this campus, he did very well. Aaron was played by Kyler Chapman. He had a great voice and for playing the part of the quirky, unassuming blind date.

Casey was played by Hannah Romney. She had an amazing voice and during “Safer,” her passion came through in the singing. The friends, family, exes, and waiter were played by Tristan Berg, Austin Baum, Nicole Bremmer, and Brittany Hooper. They all did an incredible job playing alongside the main characters. They harmonized well and during “The Girl For You” their facial expressions were hilarious.

The stage was crafted as a restaurant with the New York skyline behind it. The entire stage is crafted on side and the shop and tech crew made the restaurant look chic. I especially loved the costumes.

Even though they were modern, there was a sense of the character in the clothing. Casey had a low cut, sexy dress which showed off her figure but was paired with a cardigan which she pulled around her to hide herself.

Aaron was wearing a blue suit and tie, but as the evening wore on, he rolled up his sleeves and removed his tie. The song numbers added some extra costuming depending on the genre: groovy for “The Awkward Pause,” over the top and lit up for “The World Wide Web is Forever,” and of course the bad boy ripped shirt and long hair for, “Can’t Help But Love Me.”

The production is not recommended for everyone. If you get easily offended over innuendo and strong language, please do not attend. The topics are definitely relevant for this day.

Personally, my favorite song of the evening was “Safer” which is sung by Casey revealing her self-consciousness and why she struggles with relationships.

The other which made the audience cheer was, “In Love with You” which gives Aaron the closure he needed over his ex. I highly recommend seeing this production if you can handle the innuendo. The cast and crew did an exceptional job and it was enjoyable to watch.

Emily Thornton is currently working on her Masters in Communication at ISU. She enjoys writing, racing after her son and playing games with her husband.

If you go:

Stephens Performing Arts Center: Black Box Theater

Oct 4, 5, 6 and (19, 20-in Hailey, ID)

7:30 pm

Tickets at isu.edu/tickets