SWING! Opens at the Gateway 6/7

SWING!, the 2000 Tony Award nominee for Best New Musical, opens at The Gateway in Bellport Village on Wednesday, June 7 and runs through June 24. Tickets start at $59. Preview Performances on June 7th & 8th start at $39. For tickets, contact the Box Office at (631) 286-1133 or visit the website at https://TheGateway.org.

An all-singing, all-dancing evening of entertainment, Swing! features a mix of new and classic songs and over 30 tour de force dance numbers - some comic, some romantic, come nostalgic, some sexy. Swing! also features spectacular vocal performances, while the entire show is driven by the dynamic sound of a hot neo-swing band. In addition to several original songs, Swing! features classic, high-energy, Duke Ellington, "Count" Basie, and Benny Goodman hits like "It Don't Mean a Thing," "Stompin' at the Savoy," and "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy."

Conceived by Paul Kelly with music by various artists, Swing! celebrates the music of the Swing era of jazz (1930s-1946). Requiring only joyful enthusiasm and a ready partner, swing exploded out of pre-war Harlem's hotbed of youth culture and swept the world. It shattered ethnic and cultural barriers, generating specialty styles such as Jive, Swing, Lindy Hop, West Coast Swing, and Hip-Hop Swing. Swing! celebrates this remarkable diversity to the beat of the most exhilarating songs of the period. But as this enthralling song-and-dance show makes abundantly clear, swing was never a time or place - it has always been a state of mind!

The production at The Gateway will star DamIan Whitewood and Ekaterina Fedosova of ABC TV's Dancing with the Stars.

Mr. Whitewood is an Australian born competitive and professional dancer who achieved such titles as National State Champion, Australian Champion, Australasian Champion and Australian Representative at many world competitions. He appeared on Broadway and across the USA in the Ballroom Dance phenomenal stage production of Burn the Floor. He appeared as partner to blonde bombshell Pamela Anderson in 2010 on ABC TV's hit show Dancing with the Stars. Damian has also guest appeared on Dancing with the Stars in Israel, Argentina and Mexico along with So You Think You Can Dance Australia and Holland. Damian has been runner up in 2012 and 2013 with Danielle Spencer and then with songstress Tina Arena in Dancing with the Stars Australia.

Also a competitive and professional Ballroom Dancer, Ms. Fedosova has danced on US TV shows like Dancing With Stars, Hells Kitchen, and several Hollywood television and movies such as Gilmore Girls, Jane the Virgin, and worked as an Assistant Choreographer and a stunt double in True Memoirs of an International Assassin. She had a breakout live performance with Derek Hough on Dancing with the Stars that showed Ekaterina's unique, fast and clean footwork, and extraordinary technique.

The Swing! cast will also include lead singers Kate McCann (Smokey Joe's Café National Tour, Jesus Christ Superstar International Tour), Maceo Oliver (TV's The Blacklist, Madame Secretary, The Blindspot, Person of Interest, White Collar), JP Qualters (Kinky Boots National Tour), and Stephanie Gandolfo (Nice Work... National Tour). The dancing company will be Stephanie Brooks (42nd Street National Tour, Mamma Mia! National Tour), Tislarm Bouise , Shanna Heverly (Cat's National Tour), Jesse Jones, Akina Kitazawa, Brian Lawton, Samantha Lawton, Hannah Jean Simmons, Thomas Sutter (So You Think You Can Dance) and J. Morgan White (Cats National Tour).

Charlie Marcus and Desiree Duarte will be recreating the Original Broadway Choreography by Lynne Taylor-Corbett, with additional choreography by Ryan Francoise.

Mr. Marcus appeared in the First National Tour of Swing! in 2000 and has performed in and re-created several other companies. He currently appears on Broadway in A Bronx Tale: The Musical. Other credits include The Wild Party (Off-Broadway), Evita-20th Anniversary Tour, Peter Pan (Broadway), having made his Broadway debut in the original production of A Chorus Line.

Ms. Duarte was in the original Broadway cast of Swing! as well as the 1st and 2nd US National and Japan tours. She was nominated for a Los Angeles Ovation award for her Lindy feature performance in Swing! and has gone on to recreate the original production in many theaters throughout the country.

Additional choreography will be set by Beverly Durand. Ms. Durand was a principle performer and assistant Dance Captain in the original cast of Broadway's Swing!, was featured on the Tony's, and has co-choreographed numerous productions of Swing! She was also featured in Forever Tango on Broadway, and Saturday Night Fever in the Netherlands. As a partnering specialist she has choreographed for, and has been featured in numerous theatrical productions nationally and abroad.

Musical Direction will be led by Mr. Robert Felstein. Robert is a veteran of The Gateway and proud of his work on Off-Broadway's The Fantasticks. He has music directed over 50 Equity productions across the country- for such well-loved shows as Annie, Anything Goes, Cabaret, Funny Girl, Guys & Dolls, Gypsy, Hello Dolly!, Jesus Christ Superstar, Kiss Me Kate, Little Shop of Horrors, Man of La Mancha, Meet Me in St. Louis, My Fair Lady, Nunsense, Oklahoma!, The Sound of Music, South Pacific, and Sweet Charity as well as more contemporary favorites including Forbidden Broadway, I Love you, You're Perfect, Now Change, and Thoroughly Modern Millie.

Original concept of Swing! is by Paul Kelly, original direction and choreography by Lynn Taylor-Corbett.

To post a comment, you must register and login.