For people who are of a certain age — and many of the customers at Drury Lane Theatre in Evergreen Park are — “The All Night Strut” should be a happy, finger-snapping entertainment.
Smartly directed, snappily choreographed and enthusiastically performed, this is nothing more than a brightly arranged selection of pop songs from the ’30s and ’40s. No plot, no dialogue, just one tune after another, performed in tight, close harmony by a singing, dancing quartet of two men and two women.
Originally premiered in Cleveland as a cabaret act, the show has been a hit in theaters across the country, its shrewd mix of peppy sass and sweet nostalgia hitting just the right note for customers who remember and/or are fond of the big beat and dreamy romance of the era.
Most of the two-dozen tunes — including “Chattanooga Choo Choo,” “Fascinating Rhythm” and “Ain’t Misbehavin’ ” — are familiar. All have been arranged so that the evening, which lasts a little under two hours, flows along nicely with a digestible mixture of ballads and bounce.
Director-choreographer Marc Robin’s production further zips up the pace with a staging that finds the four singers sashaying, swinging and strutting around the theater’s in-the-round performance area.
Dressed by designer Kathryn Eader in brightly colored sportswear for the first act and in formal wear for the second, the singers glide from belting out “Minnie the Moocher” to crooning “Dream” and back to belting again with “Beat Me Daddy Eight to the Bar.”
The performers, who shine in solo as well as in quartet versions of the songs, are Curt Dale Clark, Roberta Duchak, Karen Leigh Multer and Sean Allan Krill, whose hushed, tense rendition of the classic Depression-era lament “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?” is a highlight of the evening.
The revue is just long enough so that it doesn’t become too much of a good thing. The stage is bare, except for a few numbers using standing microphones; but a variety of clever props and the lighting effects, by Kathryn Eader, give each of the songs a different sparkle and shine.
As the production’s musical director, Terry James is responsible for the silky smooth vocal arrangements; and Michael Keefe is conductor of the tip-top trio of piano, bass and drums.
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“The All Night Strut”
When: Through Aug. 29
Where: Drury Lane Theatre in Evergreen Park, 2500 W. 95th St., Evergreen Park
Phone: 708-422-0404
