"A Chorus Line" has been so frequently produced, most recently last July and August at Castle Performing Arts Center, that the touring production now at the Hawai'i Theatre won't be the show's first exposure to many in the audience.

With its distinctive Marvin Hamlisch music and Michael Bennett choreography, the musical is relatively easy to take on tour since, aside from its large upstage mirrored panels, the show plays on a bare stage with only one costume change for everyone in the cast.

But technical problems marred the opening night of the touring production at the Hawai'i Theatre and ranged from easily correctable to downright annoying.

Try not to sit in the lower orchestra because a row of footlights blocks the view of the dancers' feet, an unforgivable affront to an audience for a dance show. The best seats are in the lower balcony, where the choreography can be freely enjoyed.

But the full stage view is marred by splotchy lighting that has the cast dancing in and out of shadows and an over-reliance on follow spotlights that need more rehearsal.

Everyone in the cast wears a body microphone, making for some curious battery-pack bulges in the lower back of their dance tights. The sound mix ranges from painful on the ears to muffled familiar lyrics.

Possibly the most unfortunate combination of poor lighting and sound falls on Jessica Brokowsky as Diana. Her opening solo on "What I Did for Love" has us raking the stage with our eyes, peering to identify anyone in the immobile cast who might be moving her lips. Only when Brokowsky steps out of the perimeter do we identify her as the source of the lyric.

A basic directorial rule is to put your actors where the audience can see 'em and hear 'em. And once we get past those sporadic shortfalls, we can enjoy some good performances. Everyone in the cast creates their character quickly and definitively.

Justin Wilcox sets the tone with the show's first solo, "I Can Do That," and packs it with the pre-adolescent energy of a boy who takes his sister's place at dance class. Abbie Brady and Genson Blimline follow it up as a married couple who complete each other's lyrics because the wife can't "Sing."

Jamie Buxton extols the virtues of plastic surgery with "Dance: Ten; Looks: Three" and Catherine Kammler stalks the stage as the aggressive Sheila.

The only out-of-place characterization is Charles Linden as Zach, who spends most of the performance as the disembodied voice that directs the dancers through auditions. When he appears on stage, Linden's cadaverous makeup and chilling presence make him too forbidding and weaken his character relationships with Cassie and Paul.

Kiira Schmidt is Cassie, the experienced professional who is starting over her stalled career by auditioning for the chorus. She sings and dances well, making "The Music and the Mirror" the necessary set piece in the show.

Joey Murray has the right emotional moments as Paul, recalling his desperate struggle to learn how to be a man while dancing as a girl in a nightclub act.

If you have never seen "A Chorus Line," there may be enough good moments in this version to warrant the price of a ticket. But if you have a favorite memory of a definitive production, this one may call up more favorable recollections.