By Janelle Gelfand
The Cincinnati Enquirer

This musical show was all about the lyrics.

Erich Kunzel continued his love affair with Broadway musicals Sunday, when the Cincinnati Pops presented the music of Loesser and Loewe. Although there were empty seats in Music Hall - it was, after all, up against the Super Bowl - a good-sized crowd relived some of the great Broadway moments of the '50s and '60s, and stayed for a sing-along at the end.

Kunzel opened with the music and witty lyrics of Frank Loesser. With the May Festival Chorus flanking the stage all evening, a trio of excellent soloists crooned love songs, prayed "Luck Be A Lady" and stood on the corner, watching all the girls go by.

It was entertaining, but the first half was slow to warm up. Staging or a few props might have helped us envision great Broadway scenes from, for instance, Guys and Dolls, the 1950 comedy about a hard-boiled gambler and a Salvation Army missionary.

Soprano Kathleen Brett came out to the charming "Thumbelina" from Hans Christian Andersen, and charmed some more in "A Bushel and a Peck" (Guys and Dolls). The Vancouver native projected a lyrical, sweet soprano, and had an expressive way with words, such as the romantic, "My Heart is So Full of You" (The Most Happy Fella), with Richard Troxell.

A high point was the classic "Fugue for Tinhorns," with Troxell, baritone Daniel Narducci and tenor Geoff Packard.

The show picked up steam in the songbook by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe after intermission. Narducci, who sang from the heart all evening, was a knockout in "Gigi" and staggered through "Get Me to the Church on Time" with humor.

Noted tenor Troxell displayed a ringing lyric voice in his impassioned "If Ever I would Leave You" (Camelot). For "I'll Go Home with Bonnie Jean" (Brigadoon) he danced a jig and hit the high notes thrillingly. The show climaxed with tunes from My Fair Lady. Brett's Cockney accent missed the mark in "Wouldn't It Be Loverly," but her expression was engaging.

The May Festival Chorus shone in tunes like "There's a Coach Comin' In" (Paint Your Wagon), but the screechy introduction to "Gigi" was a serious miscalculation. Kunzel and the orchestra provided a colorful, flawless backdrop all evening.

The show repeats at 7 p.m. Sunday. 381-3300; www.cincinnatipops.org.

E-mail jgelfand@enquirer.com