Chase Brock Experience at Connelly Theater's Whoa Nellie! & Mirror Mirror Close 7/11

"Whoa, Nellie!" and "Mirror Mirror," highlight the Chase Brock Experience season at the Connelly Theater, July 8 - 11. "Whoa, Nellie!," set to Nellie McKay's album "Obligatory Villagers," and "Mirror Mirror," set to a commissioned piano score by award-winning Broadway and opera composer Michael John LaChiusa, are as different as night from day.

Like its music, "Whoa, Nellie!" is a mash-up of styles and cultural references. A band of irrepressible pranksters, the dancers joyfully move chameleon-like from the Caribbean-tinged hip hop of "Identity Theft" to the disco-inflected whacking and voguing inspired by the refrain "Saturday Night in the Mens' Ensemble Dressing Room". The dancing plays with and against the thematic material of McKay's punchy, always surprising score.

In "Mirror Mirror," a uniquely spare work for Brock, the characters emerge from Michael John LaChiusa's specially created score. The mirror reflects the realities and fantasies of three male characters who, together and apart, struggle with their sexual and emotional identities. The music for "Mirror Mirror" will be played live by pianist Jamie Schmidt.

The company's associate artistic director, 2010 Drama Desk nominee Dane Laffrey, designed the sets and costumes for both works. Scott Zielinski is the lighting designer. The four year old company features Dean de Luna, Ashley Eichbauer, Erica Furst, Drew Heflin, Yukiko Kashiki, Connor Kilian Weigand, Micki Weiner and Michael Wright, many of whom have danced with CBE for at least two years.

Wii AND THEE: Following the show, audience members are invited to have their own fun dancing in the Connelly lobby where there will be stations featuring the recently released Wii game, "Dance on Broadway," which Brock choreographed. Ticket holders are encouraged to learn the dances and compete with each other by mimicking the moves of the avatars on the screens. The Chase Brock Experience dancers served as models for the game's avatars.

The curtain for The Chase Brock Experience's Connelly Theater performances is July 8, 9, 10 at 8pm and July 11 at 7pm. General admission tickets are $25, reserved seating tickets are $35, and VIP opening tickets are $75 including reserved seating and access to the post-performance reception. Tickets can be purchased online at www.smarttix.com or over the phone by calling 212-868-4444. The Connelly Theater is located at 220 East 4th Street (between Avenue A and B).

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