It's good to have "Hello, Dolly!" back again, in a bold, beautiful and loving Muhlenberg Summer Music Theatre (MSMT) production through July 26, Baker Theatre, Trexler Pavilion for Theater and Dance, Muhlenberg College, Allentown.

Director Charles Richter has lavished affection on the classic musical, with music and lyrics by Jerry Herman and book by Michael Stewart as based on the play, "The Matchmaker" by Thornton Wilder.

Richter has an acute understanding of the milieu of "Dolly" and he has marshalled a fine cast and production team, led by Choreographer Karen Dearborn, who puts the cast through its paces, in the lavish MSMT production.

The set design by Scenic Designer Campbell Baird is clever, varied and efficient, beginning with a scrim with a super-graphic on it and several set pieces throughout the show that move fluidly and are assembled effortlessly. Lighting Designer John McKernon perfectly matches mood to action.

The costumes by Costume Designer Dustin Cross are stunning, including Dolly's opening number pumpkin-colored outfit, to a lavender-themed frock to a fabulous gown for the finale. The female company is a confetti blast of pastel costumes, hats and umbrellas. The male company is outfitted in nifty vests.

The show is fun, fun, fun, exemplified by two actors in a horse costume pulling a surrey.

It wouldn't be "Hello, Dolly!" without a great Dolly. Mia Scarpa is that in this vibrant production (running about two and one-half hours including a 15-min. intermission).

Scarpa sings in a Mermanesque voice and has a magnanimous stage presence, with a wide smile and sweeping gestures that seem to embrace the entire audience.

The title song, "Hello, Dolly!," is the show's signature number and it's a show-stopper. It is the show, really. It feels so nice, they do it twice. Music Director Michael Schnack conducts the 11-piece orchestra, which plays with panache.

Dolly is a matchmaker, a meddler. She "arranges things." Call it "heavy meddle." If she wouldn't be so charming, she'd be off-putting. Scarpa finds the balance.

The repartee between Dolly (Scarpa) and Vandergelder (Yuskauskas) is priceless. Scarpa broadcasts brassy charm opposite Yuskauskas, a master of the double-take and exasperation.

Several numbers are especially standouts: "I Put My Hand In," where we're introduced to the power of Dolly (and Scarpa's powerful voice), "It Takes A Woman" (despite dated lyrics, the male vocalists and Yuskauskas as Vandergelder pull it off), "Ribbons Down My Back" by Mrs. Molloy (Eileen Veghte, who has a stunning voice of vocal purity), "The Waiters' Gallop" (with acrobatics, juggling and three-ring circus-like choreography as choreographer Dearborn pulls out all the stops), and "It Only Takes A Moment" (with impressive and lovely choral work).

Standouts in the supporting cast include Cornelius Hackl and Barnaby Hackl (Ryan Skerchak and Nick Picknally, respectively) and Minnie Fay (Erica Morreale with her cutesy-pie voice).

"Hello, Dolly!" is a superb paean to the Golden Age of Broadway. It's ambitious, sumptuous and high-energy. If you're a fan of the show or traditional Broadway musicals, don't miss MSMT's "Hello, Dolly!"

Tickets: Muhlenberg College box office, Trexler Pavilion for Theater and Dance, 2400 Chew St., Allentown; muhlenberg.edu/SMT; 484-664-3333.