LOUIS & KEELY: LIVE AT THE SAHARA Returns to Geffen Playhouse
By: Nora Dominick
Hershey Felder presents Taylor Hackford's Louis & Keely: 'Live' at the Sahara, written by Vanessa Claire Stewart, Taylor Hackford and Jake Broder, directed by Taylor Hackford. Featuring Anthony Crivello (Tony Award Kiss of the Spider Woman) and Vanessa Claire Stewart who originally created the part of Keely Smith, performances are scheduled December 30 through January 17 (press opening Wednesday, January 6) at the Gil Cates Theater at the Geffen Playhouse.
The show returns in a new production, part of a new national tour, based on the recent hit Chicago production featuring Crivello and Stewart.Louis Prima and Keely Smith shared a larger-than-life marriage and a groundbreaking Las Vegas act featuring unforgettable songs like "That Ol' Black Magic," "Pennies from Heaven," and "Embraceable You." Louis & Keely: 'Live' at the Sahara has grown from a local Los Angeles hit to a national musical phenomenon. After earlier award-winning and extended productions in Los Angeles and more recent acclaim in Chicago, Louis & Keely: 'Live' at the Sahara returns these outsized personalities and talents to the Geffen Playhouse at the Gil Cates Theater. The choreography is by Vernel Bagneris, scenic design by Mr. Felder, video design by Mariya Tatarintseva, sound design by Erik Carstensen, lighting design by Richard Norwood and costume design by Melissa Bruning and Christianna Rogers. Hedy Weiss said in the Chicago Sun-Times that Crivello and Stewart, "Have crawled so far inside their roles that the temptation is to proclaim: What happened in Vegas not only didn't stay there, but has come roaring back to life, decades later. Crivello, a wiry fellow with a fabulously craggy and expressive face, takes total possession of Prima, capturing the man's manic, almost clownish energy, his loose-legged dance moves, his playful singing, and his palpable compulsion to win over an audience. You can't take your eyes off him and you really have to wonder how the actor will make it through an eight-show week. "Stewart, a petite stunner with a voice that beautifully captures the distinctive richness and power of Smith's, is terrific in the way she grows up in plain sight - from a shy teenager in a cardigan and saddle shoes, to a twenty-something who asserts her independence, to a woman who commits herself to marriage, motherhood and show biz, but finally cannot deal with Prima's professional jealousy." Chris Jones in the Chicago Tribune said that these performers, "Do justice to the real artist. There's no question that Stewart and Crivello fall into that category. A classy new show recalling an age when you could forget your quotidian troubles, old school."Tickets currently range from $43 - $129 (including two special New Year's Eve performances) and can be purchased in-person, online at www.geffenplayhouse.com or by phone at 310.208.5454. Fees may apply.
Photo Credit: Charles Osgood Photography
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