Musical Theatre West brings audiences back to the 1960s in its latest show, "Summer of Love." The performance showcases popular songs and events from the hippie era.

"Summer of Love" — directed, written and created by Roger Bean — premiered last weekend at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center.

Like the "Summer of Love" phenomenon, the musical is set in the 1967 Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco. The musical begins with runaway bride Holly (Melissa Mitchell), who arrives at the scene while the hippies sing and dance. At first, Holly resists the lifestyle of the flower children, but through '60s hits like "Everyday People," "Somebody to Love" and "One Tin Soldier," she opens her heart to a new lifestyle.

Mitchell is a small girl with a big voice. She aces her renditions of classics like "Valley of the Dolls," "Make Your Own Kind of Music" and "Let Me Be." These songs showcase Holly's progress as she moves away from the idea of settling down in an "ugly house" on Mulberry Street, and gears toward a life of political rebellion and individuality.

Before Holly's fiance Curtis (Doug Carpenter) shows up, the amazing Coyote (Michael J. Willett) delivers one of the best numbers of the night. Willett, an actor on the Emmy Award-winning series "United States of Tara," does a stand out performance of "Somebody to Love." He's also of small stature, but his voice is larger than life and he also possesses strong comedic talent.

Carpenter steals the show with his rendition of "Darkness, Darkness." As he sings his version of the Vietnam War anthem, a screen behind him displays significant images and videos from the '60s, including the famous photo of flowers in a gun barrel.

What is interesting about "Summer of Love" is that it is not only about one person changing her views of life. The beginning might suggest that the play centers on Holly, since the audience doesn't see Curtis until the end of the first half, but the musical takes one young couple, from the "beige" city of Sausalito, and shows their different journeys during the "Summer of Love" in San Francisco.

Holly and Curtis are great central characters. However, most of the entertainment comes from the hippies. Saige (Christine Horn) is a sassy black woman with long legs. Her storyline is brought to the forefront when she sings "Piece of My Heart" to ladies man River (Eric Anderson). Horn has the soul of Erma Franklin, but the edge of Janis Joplin to make her performance one of the best of the show.

River is one of the main hippies, and he's the first one who lures Holly into the scene. His swinging hips make him one of the more eccentric stars of the night, even among hippies.

Janis (Callie Carson) brings sweetness to "Summer of Love." She's a real dim-wit, but it's exactly that quality that makes her character stand out, and Carson plays that character strongly to the very end.

Mama (Victoria Strong) oversees all of the hippies. She's the oldest, but also the kindest. She's wise, making her character somewhat god-like because she's there to protect the younger hippies, but also to tell them what's right and wrong.

While it's nice to listen to '60s songs in a Broadway kind of way, and see people dressed as hippies, "Summer of Love" also sends a message of individualism and the importance of fighting for freedom.

"Summer of Love" will run at the Carpenter Performing Arts Center through April 17. Ticket prices begin at $30 and can be purchased online at musical.org.

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