Nothing is quite as exhilarating as being swept off your feet which is exactly the type of experience the cast and crew of 42nd Street had in mind when they invited Salt Lake City audiences to come and meet those dancing feet this past week at Capitol Theatre as the aforementioned Tony Award winning musical swept into town to the delight of everyone in attendance.
Perhaps the only experience that tops being swept of your feet is being swept into a toe tapping delirium which is exactly what occurred when the velvet curtain rose just enough at the beginning of the performance to see those dancing feet complete an impressive feat of tap dancing brilliance that simply served as an appetizer for a veritable feast of song, dance, and glamorous glitz that theatre goers have come to expect from a big Broadway production.
What makes 42nd Street such a delight to behold is that it’s a throwback to the early days of Broadway in the boisterous 1930’s when song and dance ruled the stage as opposed to the more modern pyrotechnics that encompass many musicals today. 42nd Street relies on catchy show tunes and magnificent dance numbers to tell the story of achieving the American dream of rags to riches.
42nd Street spins a classic narrative of a small town girl, Peggy Sawyer, played by Caitlin Ehlinger, who arrives in the big city of New York with even bigger dreams and finds herself on a meteoric rise to stardom. Ehlinger is a vision to behold as a modern day Shirley Temple complete with an innocent doe eyed charm and of course incredible tap dancing skills that quite frankly boggle the mind. The only thing more incredible than her seemingly effortless toe tapping magic is that she is surrounded by a chorus line of talent that is every bit as good as she is.
In what appears to be a dream team of tap dancing geniuses the cast of 42nd Street put on a show that is unforgettable and completely enthralling. It practically impossible not to smile along with the cast as they skillfully and beautifully tap dance in tandem across the stage to the melodious sounds of captivating show tunes like “Go Into Your Dance” and “Dames” that will inspire even the laziest of slugs to want to leap out of their seats and dance along in the aisles. Though keep in mind due to fire code restrictions and basic theatre decorum to do such a thing is strictly forbidden.
Fortunately what’s not forbidden is the right to be thoroughly entertained by the wonderful performance of Blake Stadnik, who plays Billy Lawlor, and can belt out a show tune with the best of them all while tap dancing all around the stage in perfectly timed cadence along with the rest of the talented cast. Matthew J. Taylor, who plays Julian Marsh, rounds out a stellar cast by creating a character that is part prohibition era gangster and part Knute Rockne and who is just as inspiring to the audience as he is to Peggy Sawyer.
Perhaps the best way to convince you of the thrill of seeing this talented cast perform is in the lyrics of its most well known song “42nd Street” when a forlorn but introspective Julian Marsh passionately implores the audience to “Come and meet those dancing feet. On the avenue I’m taking you to, Forty-Second Street. Hear the beat of dancing feet. It’s the song I love the melody of, Forty-Second Street.”
Considering the standing ovation given by a more than satisfied audience at Capitol Theatre there is little doubt that everyone in the building shared that exact same sentiment.
42nd Street will end its brief Salt Lake City run on September 27th. Tickets are on sale at the Capitol Theatre box office and online at https://arttix.artsaltlake.org/