THE CROWD:

He entered from the back of the theater as the lights dimmed. Lorenzo Lamas, the tall and handsome star of the former television drama Falcon’s Crest (which he refers to as “Dallas with grapes”), meandered through the full house in the Samueli Theater at the Orange County Performing Artscenter singing “Amore.”

The spotlight chased him as he made a serpentine swash through the audience shaking gentlemen’s hands and kissing a pretty lady or two on the way to his stage.

Reminiscent of the glory days of the old world of night clubbing — long gone but still remembered by an older generation that participated and a younger generation that lives vicariously through film and television reenactments and images, Lamas struck a pose in his tailored tux that brought back memories of his late dad, Fernando Lamas, to many in attendance.

Newport social activist Eve Kornyei attended the performance with good friends Kathie Porter and Harriet Sandhu.

The trio swooned at their table in the dark as Lamas passed by. Kornyei whispered, “He’s so handsome and so thin.”

At that moment Lorenzo made a right turn to kiss the cheek of a woman at the next table, narrowly missing the triad of Newport admirers. Sandhu chimed in, “Darn, we missed him by one table.”

It didn’t matter, for after the performance the ladies were invited backstage for a little meet and greet; more on that in a moment.

First, let’s talk cabaret. Reaching the stage, Lamas joined his band for a cabaret show singing songs about love.

Borrowing from the classic American songbook, the new age crooner delivered renditions of “Night and Day,” “Embraceable You” and other familiar love songs.

His strength however was demonstrated more acutely in some of the offbeat and unusual material, especially including songs with Spanish lyrics, which he delivered with style.

In a charming moment following a whimsical introduction about the importance of guys, their cars and dating rituals in California, Lamas segued into a version of the Broadway show tune “The Surrey With the Fringe On Top.” The audience was delighted.

His show also encompasses plenty of nostalgia as a big screen backdrop behind the band projected images of his late father Fernando Lamas and his mother Arlene Dahl, alive and well, living in New York.

Lamas waxed poetic on his celebrity childhood and the profound influence of his very glamorous parents.

The spell of sweetness was broken, however, when he told the audience that he’s on his fourth marriage and is the father of six children including several young daughters, as he turns 50 years of age.

A wave of harrumph ran through Samueli Theater at the announcement of multiple marriages. A number of ladies who shall remain nameless raised their hands and called out, “I’ll be No. 5.”

Lorenzo was quick on the uptake, responding, “There will be no No. 5, I have children to raise.” The audience was then back in the palm of his hand.

Of course the women would not have been so quick to volunteer for the No. 5 position if their husbands or boyfriends had been with them that night.

The party at the Samueli was billed as “Ladies’ Night Out,” and while there were a few stalwart gents in the crowd including yours truly, it was by all accounts a sorority party.

Spotted in the feminine parade were the lovely Fran Cashen, Martha Green looking very chic in a gray wool suit trimmed in rhinestones, real estate saleswoman to the stars Patty Lance, pretty blond Cathy Lowden, Lori Loftus, Pat Poss, Grace Thelen, Carol Dalton, Sarah Corrigan, Laura Baretta, Donna Anderson and the glam Shelley Elam.

As the performance ended, the crowd was invited upstairs to a private reception room in the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall where Center staff members had prepared an elegant dessert reception and staged photo opportunities for the ladies with Lorenzo.

Center PR exec Tim Dunn stood at the ready beside an enormous vase of long stemmed pink roses handing each guest a flower as she was introduced to the current star of the CBS television daytime drama, “The Bold and The Beautiful.”

Shades of The Bachelor in The O.C. as the women swooned getting their pink roses — just another star-studded evening on the Orange Coast.

THE CROWD runs Thursdays and Saturdays.