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Theatre listings > Choreography - David Nixon. Music and Lyrics - George and Ira Gershwin. Orchestration - John Longstaff. Costume Design - David Nixon. Lighting Design - Andy Rushton. Company – Northern Ballet Theatre – Company Website. Venues and Dates - Tour details. Run Time – 2 hours with one interval approximately. Seen to review at Edinburgh's Festival Theatre on 22 February 2006. Reviewer – Barbara Bryan. Perfect antidote to winter blues. Wednesday's performance of Northern Ballet Theatre's latest production - I Got Rhythm - heralded the start of a national tour. The whole programme consists of an evening of George and Ira Gershwin's 'unforgetable' songs, where everybody in the company has the opportunity to be showcased. The curtain opens and we are immediately transported back to the prohibition period of the late l920's and l930's America. On stage is the big band, conducted by John Pryce-Jones playing the classic Gershwin track "I Got Rhythm, I got Music, I got my Man, who could ask for anything more." And with this music we are launched into an entertaining two hours of song and dance. There are lots of captivating, contrapuntal rhythms in Gershwin's tunes and the company's choreographer, David Nixon, with the help of jazz specialist Stella Kane, has successfully combined a mixture of classical, ballroom and jazz dance to highlight much of the effervescent music.And the sultry, sensual dancing in songs such as My Man's Gone Now and Summertime, sung hauntingly by Simone Sauphanor, beautifully evoke the frivolous romanticism of the period. But the musicians play a vital part in this enjoyable, entertaining production and the pianist Jonathan Scott gives a memorable rendition of Rhapsody in Blue as does Whitaker Mills when he sings I Got Plenty O'Nuttin. The standard of dance is very high in Northern Ballet Theatre. So many of the dancers performed so well that it is difficult to highlight any particular one, and their talent is certainly appreciated by audiences, as they have won - for the second year running - a National Dance Audience Award, an award where members of the public vote by texting in their favourite dance companies. I Got Rhythm is a perfect antidote to winter blues. Excellent entertainment, a 'good feel' production, the show sparkles from beginning to end. © Barbara Bryan 23 February 2006 - Published on EdinburghGuide.com Tour Details of Northern Ballet Theatre production of I Got Rhythm/Madame Butterfly/. Tour begins 22 - 25 Feb at Edinburgh Festival Theatre 0131 529 6000. 21 - 25 March at Sheffield Lyceum Theatre 0114 249 6000. 28 March - 1 April at Canterbury Marlowe Theatre 01227 787787. 26 - 28 April at Llandudno North Wales Theatre 01492 872000. 4 - 6 May at 7.30pm, 6 May at 2.30pm, 7May at 4pm at London Sadler's Wells 0870 737 7737. 23 - 27 May at Cardiff New Theatre 029 2087 8889. This tour schedule is subject to change, and Northern Ballet Theatre reserves the right to make alterations where necessary without prior notice. Tour ends.
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