STOMP lives up to its reputation as the Most Unique Theatre Experience
How is it possible to take a bunch of broomsticks, pots and pans, garbage cans, kitchen sinks, water, plastic bags, Zippo lighters, brooms, dustpans, drums, and car parts, combine them with a troop of performers who don't sing, say lines or do any form of traditional dancing, and create a show that has toured the world for twenty years to sold out audiences. Audiences who come back time and time again to experience the going
s on? If you are Steve McNicholas and Luke Cresswell you find a way…and you name it STOMP.The sounds, which really can't be called music in the traditional sense, focus on percussive beats, rhythm and patterns.
How does the audience react? At the end of the production they screamed, and then screamed for more.
On the way out, Alex, my 15 year-old grandson, shouted over the audience excitement, “That was really, really good!” Musically, he should know. A pianist and composer, he was recently informed that he was the second place winner in the 2011 National Federation Of Music Clubs/The Ohio Federation Of Music Clubs Junior Composers Contest.
Alex enjoyed the combination of musical creation and humor. As
he said, “It's pretty hard to hold an audience's attention with just percussion, but they did it. They also had a theme that carried throughout, including each performer having a unique role.” He was so enamored by their sound that as he was listening, he was composing a percussion composition. My only wish is that he use drums, bells, and shakers instead of my hubcaps and his grandmother's soup pots.CAPSULE JUDGEMENT: The New York Drama Desk gave STOMP its award for Most Unique Theatre Experience. They were right on with that designation. It's a performance well worth seeing!
