Let’s start this off with the following acknowledgment, I am an unrefined brute of a man. And, as such, I am not a fan of musicals. Actually, let me be crystal clear with you, I absolutely abhor musicals. They are an excruciating experience for me.
This is no exaggeration.
To illustrate my disdain for musicals, I’ll share something about myself to you – I love my nieces. I have loved them since the day we met; there are few things in this world that I would not do for them. Well, one day when I was in town to visit them, they asked me to take them to see Frozen. I knew this to be the antithesis of my idea of a good time, however, we gotta do what we gotta do amirite? Long story short, it took me about thirty minutes before I had to walk out for several minutes in order to regain my composure. Weird? Maybe. Psychotic? Absolutely. But, as Popeye said, I am what I am and that’s all that I am.
I
don’t
do
musicals.
Grease notwithstanding, of course. I am not a total monster.
But, back to the point of this post, I owed my beloved a date night. So we took stock of our options and found that STOMP was in town. I was delighted to find that it was not actually a musical at all, but a theatrical show based around percussion.
What is STOMP?
It’s a unique and invigorating stage show incorporating dance, music and theatrical performance blended together in one rhythm. The artists use matchboxes, brooms, garbage cans, zippo lighters, and other miscellaneous “instruments” to fill the stage with awesome percussion cadences and numbers. The show is about an hour and a half without an intermission. So hit the loo before the show, and take it easy on the sauce there.
Click the link below to see what it’s like:
Man, do I love me some percussion, lemme tell you.
As it turned out, my buddy Kachet got us the hook up with Broadway Sacramento to watch the show on opening night.
Where to Pregame Before STOMP?
So, we had the entertainment for the evening squared away. But, what’s a date night without imbibing ’till we get sober as a judge? A lame date night, that’s what. So we hit Downtown & Vine for some libations, got lubricated a wee bit (tastefully – I promise), and socialized with other Sacramento bloggers.
Where is STOMP Playing?
Luckily, the Sacramento Community Theater was a short walk from Downtown & Vine because it was raining and windy A to the F.
There was a cool photo backdrop area inside the lobby of the theater, but we both have a healthy dose of macrophobia so we walked past that and sat down. Ain’t nobody got time for that. That’s not true, actually, a lot of people had time for that apparently.
What is the STOMP Show Like?
The show started and we were enthralled from beginning to end. I thought it would be a show with cool percussion rhythms, but to call it that would be reducing the experience and not giving it justice.
The aural experience was truly mesmerizing. The artists displayed a mastery of cadence, rhythm, tone, volumes, and depth of sound. They knew just how to create a sound bath with the right amount of reverberation to elicit specific effects. This would be difficult for anyone, but it was incredible that they were able to accomplish this with rudimentary “instruments” nonetheless.
Visually speaking, the performers were quite captivating too. They pantomimed, acted, and entertained. One of the surprising elements of the show was the comedic side. There were plenty of numbers that cracked you up.
Who Should go See Stomp?
We were glad that we chose to see STOMP on our date night. We enjoyed ourselves thoroughly and recommend to anyone looking for a date night or even a family night out. The show has no elements of “adult” content.
One constant thought I had was the amazement of what humans can do when we collaborate to create something truly beautiful. Humans were made to be collaborative, and we are at our best when we function within a team.
Where Can I Get Tickets to STOMP?
The STOMP 25th anniversary show will be running in Sacramento through Sunday, February 10th – get your tickets here.
Huge thanks to:
- Christina for the awesome pictures – hire her for your next photography needs!
- Broadway Sacramento for the invite.
- Downtown Vine for hosting the pregame.
- The Blog Bloc for the hookup.