Without outdoor theaters, stage fans would be deprived of sunshine spotlights and the amusing spectacle of woodland creatures collectively gasping during taxidermy musicals. Experience unconfined family fun with today's Groupon: for $20, you get a Section-A ticket to any 2010 performance at the Starlight Musical Theatre in Balboa Park (a $45 value). You can buy up to six tickets; the 2010 season concludes on September 5. To receive seats, just present your Groupon at the box office and then head toward Section A, also known as "the splash zone" during killer-whale performances. There are three different shows being performed this summer:

• SUDS: The Rocking 60's Musical tells the tale of a teen that gets tutored on true love by her guardian angels at the Laundromat, soundtracked by classic ’60s hits. The show runs from June 17 to July 4, Thursday through Sunday at 8 p.m.
• The Pajama Game highlights the comedic perils of workplace romance in a pajama factory. Shows begin July 15 and end August 1, with performances scheduled Thursday through Sunday at 8 p.m.
• Hello, Dolly! is the beloved story of matchmaker Dolly Gallagher Levi, who is hired to arrange a wedding but unsuspectingly falls in love with the groom. Performances are August 19 to September 5, showing Thursday through Sunday at 8 p.m.

The prime seats put spectators in the forefront of the drama, where notes ring higher, frenetic dialogue emits sparks, and poodle skirts appear well groomed. In performance-based eye candy, the beauteous Balboa Park setting presents an ideal opportunity for a picnic or museum trip before the show. Post performance, frolic through the park's gorgeous botanical gardens until the cows come home and politely ask you to leave their property.

For 64 seasons, theatergoers have absorbed classic musical theater accompanied by a bombastic live orchestra and the ambient noise of a nearby zephyr launch pad. The 4,200-seat outdoor amphitheater is infamous for its actors pausing as planes whir loudly overhead, creating freeze-frame fight scenes, silly pauses in dialogue, and an opportunity to open a can of soda without drawing attention.

Reviews

The Starlight Musical Theatre won a San Diego Theater Critics Circle Award in 2004 for Music Direction on Sweeny Todd. The theater was also nominated for a CityVoter Best Theatre Award in 2009:

• Outstanding shows, performers/cast, artistic director and management! I personally enjoyed all the performances 2009 and looking forward to 2010 season. My friends and I have gone there to watch the wonderful shows. I highly recommend this theater. – Zucette L., CityVoter
• I have seen several productions at the Starlight and I am always impressed with the caliber of performers and the high quality of the productions. – crissyg1, CityVoter