Review: ON YOUR FEET! at Washington Pavilion

The touring company performing ON YOUR FEET! at the Washington Pavilion in Sioux Falls, will make your blood flow a bit warmer with it's absolutely "world class" band full of musicians that project latin power with bold brass and staccato & percussive sounds and rhythms of The Miami Sound Machine, a latin group that made 80's dance music immortal. It's pure pleasure for an audience to experience such expertise and passion in musicianship in a touring musical company.

The cast of principal players of Gloria and Emilio Estefan and their various family and business associates is a strong mix of talent and charisma on stage. The duet between Gaby Albo as Gloria and Samuel Garnica as a suave and passionate Emilio in "I See You Smile" is a soulful and heartfelt love song. You will love the characters of Gloria's family, portrayed masterfully by Francisca Tapia, Adriel Orlando Garcia, Adela Romero, and Lauren Danielle Horgan. Their characterizations of the passionate and loving, if sometimes emotionally explosive advocates of Gloria and her career are presented with authenticity and finesse. Each actor embodies vocal prowess and physical ability to create the visual excitement in the latin movements.

The supporting cast of this production is beautifully cast with dancers and vocalists of superb abilities. There are many times the audience has a taste of their beautiful voices in some of the musical's expositional songs; most notably portraying the emotions of fans that write to Gloria of their love and admiration after her life-altering accident on a tour bus.

The technical aspects of the scenic and lighting designs in this touring show are visually interesting and create a beautiful flow to an already lovely ensemble piece. Choreography and costume designs are visually exciting and there will most certainly be some "chair dancing" in the audience as the cast moves into the house on one of the livelier and familiar dance numbers.

This band is HOT and the music will take you back to a time when it felt like the latin rhythms and melodies were part of your own personal origin story.

ON YOUR FEET! is most certainly "family friendly" and quite possibly an inspiration story for aspiring performers. Tickets are available for Saturday matinee at 2 and evening performance at 7:30 on Saturday the 14th. Get on your feet this January weekend and take someone you love to see this electrically energetic production.