This glorified concert, billed as "a musical celebration of class, sass and style," showcases a trio of female vocalists, sometimes singing together, sometimes striking off solo, backed by a small onstage orchestra. Due to the vocally taxing nature of the piece -- opera, jazz, blues, soul, R&B and gospel are all fair game -- there are two alternating casts, both well-credentialed. And to judge by a jubilant and soaringly tuneful (if painfully overamplified) performance by one of the casts on opening weekend, it's a sextet that has talent to spare.

Since the revue's artistic blueprint seems to take no risks, "Divas" is likely to appeal to a wide audience and will perhaps inspire future digit-themed variations along the lines of "3 Mo' Basses," "3 Mo' Contraltos," "3 Mo' Choirboys." ("Divas" was created and directed by Marion J. Caffey, who also masterminded "Three Mo' Tenors.")

Dale F. Jordan's gleaming art deco set, with its blue panels and swooping arches, made a snazzy platform for Cast 1: Andrea Jones-Sojola, Nina Negri and Vivian Reed. Exiting periodically to change into a different scrumptious outfit -- the costumes of Toni-Leslie James -- the trio glided easily along the Puccini-through-the-Weather-Girls gamut, with enough energy left over to sashay through Caffey's playful, low-key choreography. Behind them, beyond a thin scrim, the band sat silhouetted against a backdrop that flushed with deep colors, underscoring the music's varying moods.

The production's uncomplicated framework clusters the songs by style. Over the course of Act 1, the pure cadences of such classical standards as "Quando m'en vo" (from "La Boheme") pave the way for Broadway show tunes, including "Seasons of Love" (from "Rent") and "Let the Sunshine In" (from "Hair"). The jazz/blues program that launches Act 2 -- including "Lady Sings the Blues" and "Harlem Nocturne" -- yields to a potpourri of soul and R&B, and then to gospel numbers.

This format allows plenty of room for the chanteuses' individual talents to ignite. Jones-Sojola, who has an opera background, delivered a moving and achingly melodious rendition of "Your Daddy's Son" (from "Ragtime"). Reed, a theater veteran who has a fasten-your-seatbelts charisma, infused "God Bless the Child" (featured in the musical "Bubbling Brown Sugar") with an air of worldly-wise fervor. Negri, who has racked up credits in musical theater and opera, let out all the stops for her seductive solo "Hit Me With a Hot Note (and Watch Me Bounce)," in which music, metaphor and sinuous dance steps were all in sync.

Less satisfying were the "Broadway/Movies Medley" and the "Divas Soul Medley," which made the theater feel a little bit like the inside of a car when the radio's scan button has been pushed. A few seconds from "Hello, Dolly!," a few seconds from "Little Shop of Horrors," a few seconds of the title track from the film "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy of Company 'B' " -- this approach does not really enhance the material.

Audiences who experience the other cast should expect a significantly different song list, catering to those singers' strengths. (Cast A is Gretha Boston, who scored a Tony Award for "Show Boat" and was seen in Arena's "Crowns"; N'Kenge, who has performed in concert and opera settings; and Jamet Pittman, whose credits include Baz Luhrmann's Broadway production of "La Boheme.") Cast A's potential offerings include the Jewel Song from "Faust," numbers from "Ain't Misbehavin' " and "The Wiz," and the gospel tune "His Eye Is on the Sparrow" (the casts vary their repertoire a little from performance to performance).

Golden oldies; glamorous attire; nothing offensive or adventurous. As a wide-appeal work, the motto for "Divas" could be: "The mo' the merrier." 3 Mo' Divas, created, directed and choreographed by Marion J. Caffey. Musical supervision, orchestrations and arrangements, Joseph Joubert; musical direction, e'Marcus Harper; lighting, Richard Winkler.

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