In a whirl of flashy lights, sparse costumes, gyrating limbs and enough bare flesh to make the most audacious person blush, the Australian dance troupe Burn the Floor tore up the stage Monday night at the Ohio Theatre.
The brainchild of Australian native Harley Medcalf, Burn the Floor features such ballroom dance styles as the cha-cha, jive, swing, jitterbug, waltz, salsa, flamenco, tango, rhumba, sumba and quick step–but the catch is that it is done with a modern, sexy twist.
“I was looking for a fusion of traditional ballroom dancing and the creativity, technology and energy of rock ‘n’ roll,” said Medcalf.
Having never been exposed to ballroom dancing, Medcalf had his first taste of it in 1998 at Elton John’s 50th birthday party. John hired ballroom dancers to perform for his guests, but instead of using traditional ballroom dance techniques, they incorporated fresh and sultry styles into their movements.
Medcaf was immediately hooked and began scouring the world searching for the most talented dancers for his vision. He ended up with 44 championship dancers from 15 different countries including Romania, Spain, Norway, Great Britain, the United States and Australia.
Touring since 1999, this Broadway-style production utilizes high-tech special effects and lighting theatrics, edgy and contemporary musical selections and breathtaking choreography that leaves its audiences in awe after every performance.
Serving as the artistic director and choreographer of the troupe, Australian-born Jason Gilikison has been with the company since it began. In this 2002 World Tour, Gilikison has created a show that takes his dancers from the elegance of a Viennese ball to the Big Band era of the 1940s and ’50s to the Latin American bullring and beyond.
“Burn the Floor is so much more than a show to all of us who have come to work on it; it’s an expression of our love for dance and music that finally has a chance to be experienced,” said Gilikison.
Opening the first act with the theme song prevalent throughout the show, “Would You Like to Dance With Me?”, the dancers then made the transition smoothly into the Fantasy Waltz sequence accompanied by Lovland’s “Papillon” followed by the Rodger’s classic “Carousel Waltz.”
Next, the Jump and Jive set of the show featured dancers in the bright, gaudy attire the early rock ‘n’ roll era, rocking the stage to such songs as Louis Prima’s “Jump, Jive An’ Then You Wail Away” and “Sing Sing Sing” along with the World War II favorite “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.”
The second act begins with an entire movement highlighting Irving Berlin classics like “Cheek to Cheek,” “Let’s Face the Music and Dance” and “Steppin’ Out With My Baby.”
In the Passionata and Hip Hot Hotter Finale portions of the performance, dancers converge into dancing styles so tribalistic and raw, one can practically see the sexual chemistry and excitement oozing our of every pore of the scantily clad men and women on stage. Songs like “Caravan,” “Karma Sutra,” “Burn For You” and “So Hot” accentuate this hot and steamy stage display.
This effect on the audience was quite apparent at a recent performance by the troupe at London’s Royal Albert Hall. The performance caused audience members to shriek and whistle with delight and prompted one elderly couple to leave early.
That’s the whole idea, said Burn the Floor performance director Kerrie Shrimpton. “We want people to get rid of their old notion of ballroom dancing as being boring and old-fashioned,” she said.
