Dinner theatre is no new concept, but dinner that is theatre? Performance in five courses is served during Teatro ZinZanni, Seattle's new dinner-theatre piece, opening March 15 at San Franciso's Pier 27/29 on the Embarcadero.

Combining comedy, food service and the circus arts in an art nouveau “spiegeltent” imported from Belgium, ZinZanni's evening of "Love, Chaos & Dinner" is presided over by Madame Zinzanni herself (French comedienne Doloreze Leonard), who has staffed her restaurant with the world's most dominating Maitre d'Hotel (illusionist Eugeny Voronin), an emotional Chef de cuisine (Kevin Kent), a tap-dancing waiter (Wayne Doba) and the puckish dishwasher Juliette (Nathalie Tarlet). Singing for their supper are the Diva (San Francisco Opera's Kristin Clayton) and the Chanteuse (jazz singer Kim Nalley). Live music and trapeze artists, clowns, jugglers and contortionists round out the entertainment.

Teatro ZinZanni, using many of the same players assembled for San Francisco, ran 14 months in Seattle after opening October, 1998 near the Seattle Center.

Among the gourmet offerings on the menu are antipasto, roasted fennel parsnip soup, salad with a champagne vinaigrette, Cabernet Chicken Chasseur with Lyonnaise potatoes and asparagus and lemon-strawberry trifle for dessert. A vegetable entree is available on request.

Tickets are $125. For reservations, call (415) 438-2668. Teatro Zinzanni is on the web at http://www.teatrozinzanni.org. -- By Christine Ehren