Dance Critique

1
Cassidy Fields
5/9/16
For my dance critique, I saw 42nd Street on Tuesday, May 3rd at 7:30pm. The show
was held in the lovely Durham Performing Arts Center and it was a sold out show. 42nd Street
played for 3,486 performances on Broadway at the Winter Garden, Majestic and St. James
Theatres. It was revived on Broadway in 2001 and played for 1,524 performances at the Ford
Center for the Performing Arts.
As the curtain rose, it stopped right about the knees so all you could really see was the
feet. It started off with a super strong tap number titled Audition They were auditioning for a
show called Pretty Lady. Then we meet Peggy Sawyer, who was late for the audition and
Julian Marsh (Producer) has no tolerance for late comers.
Shadow Waltz was a piece that had some ballet aspects. They did some very simple
dance moves including rond de jambes and chains. The best part of this piece was they had an
old timey camera/light that made the girls look like silhouettes while the main girl (Dorothy
Brock) was singing in the middle.
The last number that was my absolute favorite was 42nd Street. Not only because it
tied the musical together so well, but it was an AMAZING tap number. I did not see one flaw, the
props were great. It had stairs that slid out of the wall perfectly and Broadway signs that were
talking about coming to see the show Pretty Lady They did a ton of time steps, changing
shuffles, and crazy riffs. The tap sounds were so together, it sounded like one person.
Overall, I really enjoyed 42nd Street. I feel the choreographers did an extraordinary job
working with not only the music and the movement, but making sure it worked with the acting
too. I hope to see it again.

Dance Critique
2
Cassidy Fields
5/9/16