SOPHISTICATED LADIES

VINTAGE THEATRE:  JANUARY 27 – MARCH 5

 

                                                     Mykai Eastman

                       photo credit: RDG Photography

Dazzling!Dizzying!Delicious!

 

Christopher Page-Sanders is a force of nature! His choreography is beyond breathtaking! It’s astounding to the Max! If this sounds a little or a lot hyperbolic, please know that it’s not! Page-Sanders’ work is in a realm of artistry one seldom sees in a lifetime of theatre going. (This from a reviewer who has seen thousands of plays.) A melding of jazz, ballet, tap and modern dance techniques, his work is also peppered with a modicum of acrobatic athleticism. Please do not miss this or any show this genius directs and/or choreographs. We are so blessed to have his work on display here in Colorado at this time. Last season’s spectacular choreography for Performance Now Theatre Company’s “Nice Work if You Can Get It” (Marlowe Award for Best Choreography) was exceptional. With his work on “Sophisticated Ladies,” the artist has risen to new heights.  There really are no words to describe the elation of a theatregoer lucky enough to attend this show. 

    Beyond the exhilaration of the dancers and their spellbinding work, there is more!

    The cast of singers, led by the incomparable Mary Louise Lee, is remarkable. Cha’Rel Wright and Heidi Carann Snider are two exceptional singing talents this reviewer is just getting acquainted with. Also worthy of mention are the talents of Isaac Rosen and David E. Sweet.

      The mostly onstage band is led on keys by the incredible virtuosic mastery of Music Director Jodel Charles. 

       The Sophisticated Rug Cutters, whose dance moves will thrill you non-stop, all evening long are: Rita Marie Aires, Mykai Eastmen, EDEN, Andy Nikhomvan-Morgan, Jasmyne Pierce, Lauren Slaughter and Dallas Slankard (Marlowe Award for Best Actress In a Musical for last season’s “Nice Work If You Can Get it”) Dance Captain. Jalen Gregory’s slender, sinuous, serpentine moves are so hypnotically eye-popping one wonders if his bones are elastic!

    The costumes by Alicia “Lisa” Young are simply Gorgeous!!! The gowns for the ladies dazzle the eye.

     Some of the tunes to which you will be treated when you go are: “It Don’t Mean a Thing if it Ain’t Got That Swing, “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore, I Got it Bad and That Ain’t Good, as well as “Hit Me With a Hot Note and Watch Me Bounce,” and many more.

     Sophisticated Ladies is a musical revue of the Life and Legacy of Duke Ellington. It received eight Tony nominations and won two in 1983.

      There was a glitch in the lighting tech on opening night, but nothing could keep one and all who were present from feeling they had just taken a trip to Harlem’s renowned Cotton Club with all the rapturous singing, dancing and playing of the Duke Ellington songbook.

 

For tickets call 303-856-7830 or go online at www.vintagetheatre.org