Cinderella gets disco fever

Fashion was a mixed bag in the 1970s, and some of it was very, very bad. That’s bad bad, not bad good. Ugly prints, polyester pants, platform shoes and those really awful squiggly psychedelic mixes of brown, ochre and avocado.

The Falcon Theatre’s newest family musical, “Cindy and the Disco Ball,” has sly fun with retro fashion in its retelling of the Cinderella tale, circa 1975, dressing the cast in wide collars, big belts, bell bottoms and leisure suits, and the set in fake fur and lava lamps.

The show, with book and lyrics by Lori Marshall and director Joseph Leo Bwarie, music by Rachael Lawrence and a professional cast of adults, is hit or miss, but thoroughly enjoyable in patches.

Its youthful zing and unexpectedly thoughtful messages -- some people are late bloomers and that’s OK; it’s cool to care about school, read real news and seriously pursue something like photography -- add considerable appeal.

True, these messages don’t go very deep, but they’re refreshingly woven into the fabric of the simple plot, not added as an afterthought.

It’s a well-cast show too, led by Christine Lakin as Cindy, who has become her stepsister’s maid-of-all-work while her photojournalist father is on assignment in Vietnam (this passing reference, lacking any resonance, is one of the show’s awkward elements).

Lakin, best known for her many years on the 1990s “Step by Step” TV series, offers a well-considered balance between sadness and spunk, and her lovely, assured pop soprano is a pleasant surprise. (And the way Cindy loses one of her boots is one of the show’s best sight gags.)

In the Prince role, Jaron Lowenstein, one half of pop duo Evan & Jaron, is another plus. Lowenstein plays handsome, studious Tommy Royal, the editor of the school paper, who’s more interested in his college application and in the impressive photos that Cindy has been turning in anonymously than in dating.

Tommy’s best friend is vain but nice track star Buddy, capably played by Chris Prinzo, a Broadway veteran.

Melissa Strom has fun as selfish stepsister Eleanor, whose contribution as a self-proclaimed great artist-in-the-making is her macaroni-and-paste re-creation of the “Mona Lisa.” In what is more the fault of the script than Strom’s performance, Eleanor’s instant attitude adjustment doesn’t ring true when Cindy is revealed to be the disco queen of the school dance.

At the center of things is Regan Carrington. She’s uneven at times but offers likable sassy attitude and large vocals as narrator and magical Soul Sister, who makes Cindy a disco queen with the help of hair dryer, hairspray, sparkly mini-dress, platform boots and a roll of enchanted film.

Where the show needs the most work is in its many songs. Some, like the “Back in Time” theme song and Cindy’s “Dark Room” pop ballad, work like a charm; others, like the group number “Fab-u-lous,” feel like rush jobs, lyrically weak and unmusical, without a convincing sense of the era.

The look is low-budget clever. Costume designer Lou Carranza did the fun fashions; Sherry Santillano did the simple but effective set. Nick McCord’s nicely complementary lighting design includes a big, glittery disco ball. Jim Williams’ sound needed volume adjustment opening weekend.

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Lynne Heffley can be reached at weekend@latimes.com.

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‘Cindy and the Disco Ball’

Where: Falcon Theatre, 4252 Riverside Drive, Burbank

When: 1 and 3 p.m. Saturdays, 1 p.m. Sundays

Ends: May 8

Price: $10 and $12

Info: (818) 955-8101, www.falcontheatre.com