Never Gonna Dance in Long Beach, CA

[Sheri]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 10:58am

I was fortunate enough to be able to get the opportunity to see the West Coast Premiere of Never Gonna Dance in Long Beach yesterday.

What a wonderful show it was. I'd never seen it on Broadway so I really didn't know what to expect - but the choreography was amazing! Lee Martino absolutely outdid herself and every number was breathtakingly beautiful to watch. Her choreography is usually very dazzling and upbeat and I'm beginning to be able to spot it even before I look at the program. :) It was incredible!

David Engel was GREAT as Lucky - his comedic timing was perfect, his dancing was absolutely flawless... he was SO incredibly appealing in the role - he just ooozed charisma. Tami Tappan Damiano was wonderful as always! I've now seen Tami in seven shows in LA and she never fails to amaze me with her talent. :) Unfortunately I felt the show didn't give her the opportunity to showcase her beautiful voice as much as I would've liked (except for "Remind Me" in the second act). Harriet Harris was VERY funny as Mabel and Yvette Tucker and Danial Brown were breathtaking as the opposition - Velma and Spud.

All in all a very good show. I'm very glad I made the trek down to Long Beach (and flight in from Hawaii) to see it. :) Has anyone else seen this show? I'd love to hear your opinions of it. :)

[eslgr8]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 11:24am

Sounds like a great show, Sheri. I'm really looking forward to seeing it. And speaking of great shows, there's just one more weekend left of It Came From Beyond, truly one of the funniest, cleverest, and best sung and performed new musicals I've seen in a long time, starring your favorite and mine Kevin Earley, and three other members of the NYC cast. Anyone in L.A. should get over to the Write Act Theater in Hollywood to see one of the last three performances: Friday at 8, and Saturday at 3 and at 8.
http://itcamefrombeyond.com/

[Sheri]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 11:35am

Haha! Thanks SO MUCH for the It Came From Beyond plug!! :) Seems very "shilly" of me to plug the show - though I will say that I enjoyed it greatly - and not just because of its star. Fun show, great catchy music. :)

Posted: 2/20/06 at 12:23pm

I saw this show on Broadway and it was awful. The dancing was amazing, but there wasn't enough of it to make up for bad acting and an over-simplifyed plot. It felt, to me, like they picked songs the dancers could sing (ie: not difficult ones) rather than good songs, and therefore it was an unimpressive evening.

I wonder if this version was altered, since you say it was so good....

[eslgr8]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 1:23pm

The key to the success of Never Gonna Dance is the stars. In David Engel and Tami Tappan Damiano, the Long Beach production has arguably the two reigning superstars of SoCal theatre. David Engel is a two-time Ovation winning superlative dancer/singer and Tami Tappan Damiano, who played Ellen in Miss Saigon on Broadway, is not only the busiest and finest singing musical actress in L.A. (with the dazzling CD Hot Notes), she's also perfected her dancing chops in shows like Crazy for You (which she starred in opposite David). With David and Tami at the helm, there is absolutely no doubt that this Never Gonna Dance will have nothing in common with its Broadway counterpart.
Updated On: 2/20/06 at 01:23 PM

[Sheri]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 1:46pm

Very true, Steven... the stars really make the show - that and the wonderful choreography and outstanding ensemble of dancers. I'd never seen David Engel on stage before (only briefly at the Harold Arlen benefit concert) and I was pleasantly surprised by his talent.

While it's true that the book is a bit dated, and there are really no songs that can really highlight the vocals of the talent onstage, it was a slick, professional production with enormous talent and brilliant choreography. Definitely worth a look for anyone in the southern CA area. :)

[eslgr8]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 3:04pm

And the L.A. Times gives it a mostly very favorable review, echoing Sheri's and my comments on David and Tami.
LA Times Review--Never Gonna Dance

[BroadwayBaby6]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 6:02pm

I was at the premiere as well. While one could quibble with some of the staging choices and the not-so-flattering costumes, I thought the show was a knock-out due to David and Tami's amazing performances. I saw the show on Broadway and thought David and Tami were much much better than their Broadway predecessors (Noah Racey and Nancy Lemaneager)- they have such stage presence and their chemistry on stage is just electric. David is a true triple threat and Tami is an amazing singer and comic actress and a good dancer.

I was a bit disappointed with Harriet Harris's performance- she was out of her depth vocally but her acting and comic timing were wonderful.

I'd give the show 3.5 out of 4 stars. I usually don't agree with the LA Times reviewers, but I think their review is 100% spot-on.

[Sheri]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 9:16pm

I thought the LA Times review was pretty accurate too. I wish I'd seen the Broadway production so I could've made some comparisons. Would you believe my tickets for the show were for the day AFTER they closed on Broadway? My timing stinks, I tell ya!

And BTW, I don't know if anyone mentioned this - but I'm very excited that Musical Theatre West is going to be doing "Thoroughly Modern Millie" and "The Full Monty" next season. :)