| A bit of 'The Windy City' in Sarasota posted 10/12/00 By Jay Handelman Seven tractor-trailer trucks are hauling sets, costumes, lighting equipment and "All That Jazz" to Sarasota for the premiere of "Chicago" at the newly enlarged Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall. The theater has its gala grand reopening Tuesday night, a black-tie affair with a pre-show dinner and meet-the-cast party that will launch a week of performances by the touring cast of the Tony Award-winning revival. "Chicago" is not the largest show ever presented at the Van Wezel (that honor is held by the towering sets of 1997's "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying,") but theater officials say it wouldn't have fit on the old stage. And it is one of the rare shows to arrive in Sarasota while another company is still selling out on Broadway. "Chicago," written by Bob Fosse and Fred Ebb, with a score by John Kander and Ebb, opened on Broadway in 1975, three months before Broadway was revolutionized by "A Chorus Line." "Chicago" ran for nearly three years, but was largely forgotten until it was revived in a staged concert by the City Center Encores! Series in 1996. Directed by Walter Bobbie and choreographed in the Fosse style by Ann Reinking, the four-concert run brought new life to the musical that many said was ahead of its time. Producers Barry and Fran Weissler quickly moved it to Broadway. Numerous touring and international companies are reintroducing the show and its jazzy score to audiences around the world. The musical, loosely based on a novel by Maurine Dallas Watkins, is set in 1920s Chicago. It's about two women who become stars after killing their husbands or lovers. Producers promote the show as "the drop dead musical." When the Encores revival opened, "It was during the O.J. Simpson trial. It was art imitating life, but we really had such a major timely effect. And I think we're much better able to laugh at ourselves now," Reinking said. The choreographer said it was fate, timing and good fortune that made the revival such a success. Some wondered whether the minimalist set used for the concert production -- basically a black jury box used by the on-stage orchestra -- would satisfy a Broadway audience. But Reinking said that "bare-bones look" perfectly served the purpose of the concert, which was to "evoke the spirit of the creators of the original piece and focus on the show rather than production values." The costume budget, for example, was only about $2,000. "Basically, what we used came out of everybody's closet. William Ivey Long (the costumer) is so brilliant," she said. "He just went into everybody's house and picked out the best outfit that we all had." One outfit was actually bought from a street vendor. When the show moved to Broadway, "We just had it made by someone who could make it last a little longer," she said. Although the show may not be overflowing with massive sets and numerous costume changes -- it's basically a black-on-black look -- Reinking described the show as "very glamorous and handsome to look at. It feels sumptuous." Reinking won a Tony Award for her choreography and was also nominated for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance as boyfriend-killer Roxie Hart. The show won six Tonys in 1997 and has won more than two dozen other awards around the world. USA Today wrote that "Ann Reinking should be canonized for choreography. What more could one ever want?" The Sarasota production stars Tracy Shayne as Roxie, Roxane Carrasco as Velma, Gerry McIntyre as flashy lawyer Billy Flynn, Michael Tucci as Roxie's invisible husband, Amos, and Roz Ryan as Matron "Mama" Morton. Most of the actors may not be instantly recognizable, aside from Ryan who was a regular on the NBC TV comedy "Amen," but they all have extensive theater credits. And Reinking said the show requires personality more than star power. "It really is very performance-oriented. Even if they're not famous, they have to be really good," she said. Almost everyone in this tour has been in companies of the show elsewhere, and on the day she was interviewed, Reinking said that she had spent hours rehearsing with the cast. "They know what they're doing, but because they've done it with other people, occasionally they'll bump into one another," she said with a slight giggle. That's because Reinking and Bobbie tailor each new production to the performers, while maintaining the original overall style. "It's the same choreography and direction, but it has to be a little different to fit the talents and style of the performers," she said. "That's what keeps it alive and fresh." |