RAVE!

By Jim Farber 16 Feb 2007

ON STAGE:
Civic Light Opera of South Bay Cities takes the A Train with 'Sophisticated Ladies

They called it "slumming," and it was one of the most popular forms of entertainment in New York City in the 1920s and '30s.

Rich white folks would get all dressed up in tuxedoes and evening gowns, call the chauffeur or hail a cab and head uptown to Harlem.

The hot spot of choice was the Cotton Club at the corner of 142nd Street and Lenox Avenue, where the all-white clientele could sip bootleg champagne as they swayed to the exotic rhythms of "jungle music," goggle-eye the "Tall, Tan and Terrific" chorus girls, and enjoy performances by the greatest black artists of the day: Louis Armstrong, Cab Calloway, Ethel Waters, the Nicholas Brothers and the coolest cat of them all, Edward "Duke" Ellington.

From 1927 to 1931, Ellington introduced a jazz-hungry nation to his sophisticated rhythms, playing and conducting the Cotton Club orchestra from his throne at the keyboard. Those who could not make the trip up to Harlem could listen in on the radio.

The musical "Sophisticated Ladies," which opened on Broadway in 1981 and which will open Saturday at the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center (compliments of Civic Light Opera of South Bay Cities), is an homage to Ellington and the days of the Cotton Club.

It is, in the words of director/choreographer Cheryl Baxter, "one of the very few shows that captures an era and really holds it up to the highest level."

This all-singing, all-dancing revue features a jukebox worth of Ellington's classic compositions, including "Mood Indigo," "Take the A Train," "I'm Beginning to See the Light," "In a Sentimental Mood," "Satin Doll," "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)," and the song that lends the show its title, "Sophisticated Lady."

Asked to describe the unique quality of "Sophisticated Ladies," Eugene Fleming -- who [along with Baxter] was part of the original Los Angeles company in 1982 and who will again take the stage for the South Bay run -- waxes rhapsodic, preferring to let the show's lyrics speak for themselves.

"Music is a woman and I wait for a woman to appear," he croons in a voice as silky as one of Ellington's signature top hats. "Yes, when you see the woman, the purpose of the evening will be clear. Come and hear the band. Come hear the sound. We'll pick you up and spin you around."

Baxter and Fleming are something of a mutual admiration society -- Fleming was even best man at Baxter's wedding.

They've been close friends since the early '80s, when they found themselves together tapping and swaying to the rhythms of "Sophisticated Ladies" on stage at the since-demolished Schubert Theatre in Century City. They were part of a company that also included several members of the original Broadway cast, including Gregory Hines, Hinton Battle and Gregg Burge.

Before being cast in "Sophisticated Ladies," Fleming -- then just 18 and a freshman in college -- had scored the prime role of Richie in the first national touring company of "A Chorus Line." For Baxter, "Sophisticated Ladies" would lead her into an even slinkier role as part of the national touring company of "Cats."

Baxter may have used up one or two of her nine lives since then, but her dancer's body remains feline sleek.

When Baxter was offered the chance to direct and choreograph "Sophisticated Ladies" in the South Bay, she leaped (or possibly pirouetted) at the chance. That's because, even though she's staged the show multiple times, it holds a special place in her heart and her repertoire.

"I think of this show as a tribute to my mentors," said Baxter, as she relaxed with Fleming in the company's rehearsal studio green room. "I worked with Henry LeTang [the great 91-year-old tapper who helped stage 'Sophisticated Ladies' on Broadway] and Michael Smuin [the show's director and co-choreographer].

"Over the years I've heard so many stories about why these numbers are done the way they are; there are genuine steps from the Cotton Club era in this show," she said. "That's history I want to pass on to the next generation. I do shows in L.A. and all over the world that are my own. But this show is special. It represents years of history."

Ah, but there's the rub.

"Casting this show is really difficult," admitted Baxter, whose 13-year-old son, appropriately named Ellington, is on stage at the Mark Taper Forum in the show that bears his age as its title, "13."

"I was barely able to find this cast. Every Christmas party I went to I'd ask, 'Do you know anyone who can do 'Sophisticated Ladies'? People got sick of me," she said.

"We're in an era, especially in L.A., where the orientation is hip-hop," Baxter explained, making no effort to hide her annoyance. "Dance has become very specialized."

Baxter looked over at Fleming and continued.

"When we were coming up, you had to learn every style: ballet, jazz, modern, tap, ballroom," she said. "You could rise to the top because you were versatile. Kids today can't do this show because they don't have the technique and they don't have a clue about the style. And then, even if they have the technique, they have to go to the piano and be able to sing. This has been one of the hardest shows I've ever had to cast."

Fleming, 45, agreed.

"This whole show is about style and line, and because of that it may not have a future," he said. "The truth is, there are only a handful of people in the world that can pull off this show. It's sad to say, but it's an art form that's losing steam.

"People see dancing in shows today and they don't know what they're looking at because the bar is so low. We build up performers who haven't even proven themselves.

"David Hasselhoff doing 'The Producers' in Las Vegas. What's that about?

"For me, it feels great to do this show because it is a way of paying homage," he said. "I love all those cats and I feel blessed just to be able to do it.