The Spectrum's blind date series culminated with an evening of dinner and mystery at the Central Station Dinner Theatre, part of the Old Red Mill Inn restaurant located at 8316 Main St., where daters Steve and Carmen were scheduled to enjoy a meal and participate in an interactive murder mystery titled, "Death for Dessert."
The evening began at about 6 p.m. on Valentine's Day when Steve picked Carmen up. Steve, in true gentlemanly fashion, brought Carmen a single peach rose, for which she thanked him with a smile, saying, "This is really nice."
Conversation began with speculation as to what was to be expected for the night at the dinner theater.
"It sounds like it will be really fun; it's interactive, right?" Carmen asked.
"Yeah, it'll be cool, and I could go for some dinner," Steve answered.
The 20-minute car ride was a bustle of light-hearted conversation as the two talked about how they spent the earlier part of their Valentine's Day.
"I liked it because when I got up this morning all the girls in my hall were up, and I had these little Valentine's Day blow pops and I gave them all out to them. It was really cute because everyone was really excited about it," said Carmen. "I got tons of those little cards that we used to give out back in elementary school. I was excited."
The breezy flow of conversation continued as the daters played a ride-long game of "padiddle," which Steve and Carmen explained as a game where participants punched the ceiling of the car whenever they spotted a vehicle with one headlight.
"You're cheating," Steve said.
"No, I'm not, it was over there," said Carmen.
"Well, I can't look all the way over there. I have to pay attention to the road," said Steve.
"You're supposed to be aware of your environment," she retorted.
The daters arrived at the Old Red Mill on Main Street at about 6:30 and were sent over to the dinner theater where they were seated at a table reserved for them.
The theater was a cozy dining area holding about 12 tables, each seating about eight people. The patrons were mostly middle-aged couples with a few younger people out for an evening of Valentine's Day celebration.
The daters sat down to some appetizers, and the waiters, one of whom was a member of UB's own Buffalo Chips, brought the two fresh salad, bread and water, which sustained them until dinner was served at about 7:30.
Carmen and Steve kept the pre-dinner conversation flowing with topics varying from a recap of their previous date and poking fun at the reporters to a discussion of which of the three forks goes with which course.
"So what's the big one? I never remember when to use which. And isn't there supposed to be a really little one at the end?" Steve asked.
"Oh, that's the shrimp fork, we don't get one of those tonight," Carmen said.
"I like these hardcore butter knives that they have," Steve joked.
Carmen showcased her eating skills and said she ordered the sirloin for a little taste of home.
"I miss steak, my daddy always cooks me steak," she said.
They both ordered sirloin, which they enjoyed, though Carmen was full from the appetizers and couldn't finish her meal.
"I stuffed myself with everything else," she said.
After dinner, which took about an hour, everyone was ready to watch the show.
"What time is this show?" Carmen asked. "I wanna get interactive!"
The show opened when an oddly dressed man in a bow tie with flashing lights came out and began telling jokes. He was followed by other characters whose names were familiar from the outline of the show previously given to the audience.
The show revolved around two murders and set the stage for a "whodunnit" mystery that the audience was encouraged to try to solve. Characters in the murder mystery had eclectic names such as Sal Monella, an Italian chef, and Morte D'Kay, a maitre d' who continually tried to "kill" the patrons of Chez No More and consume their body parts.
The humor was colorful and abundant, with the characters making jokes about celebrities like J-Lo and Anna Nicole Smith and public figures like Trent Lott and John Wayne Bobbit. When trying to figure out the murder, the audience was allowed to question the suspects. Steve and Carmen tried their hands at guessing, but they came up empty.
Carmen said she enjoyed the show.
"The show was pretty cool, I liked it," she said.
The car ride back to campus was filled with more fun conversation, and the two exchanged goodbyes.
The date on Valentine's Day was the third and final date in The Spectrum's blind date series. Steve and Carmen both had good reviews for the over-all dating experience.
"It was an interesting experience - a little awkward at times, but it was fun," said Carmen. "It was awkward being put in a situation with a total stranger, and having people follow you around and document your every move was kind of odd."
"It was great that I got to go and do things that I probably wouldn't have done on my own here at college, like the (lacrosse game) and the dinner theater, and it was cool getting to know someone," Carmen continued. "Steve's a really nice guy, and we had fun."
Steve thought the experience was a worthy one, as well.
"It was a good time, the dates were really fun. My favorite was the lacrosse game just because I'm a sports guy," he said. "She's a fun girl, she's cool to hang around."
Steve made a suggestion for any future dating series.
"They could have made it one date long in case the first date doesn't work out, or have other people to switch with so that you could enjoy the other dates that were a good experience," he suggested. "It was new, and I'd probably do it again. I would totally recommend it to other people."
While both said they enjoyed the experience, the two will not continue dating.
Photo: Meredith Forrest Kulwicki
