'Gotta Dance' a feel-good show
"Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter."
The Mark Twain adage pretty much sums up the main theme of "Gotta Dance," a feel-good musical about a group of spunky seniors turned hip-hop dancers as part of an NBA team's publicity ploy.
Inspired by Dori Berinstein's 2008 documentary about the senior hip-hop dance troupe formed to provide half-time entertainment for the then-New Jersey Nets, the Broadway-bound "Gotta Dance" features a bouncy score by composer Matthew Sklar and lyricist Nell Benjamin plus a couple of standout numbers by the late Marvin Hamlisch. Among them is the smooth as silk "Prince of Swing/There You Are" performed by the silky smooth elder statesman of American theater, Andre De Shields.
The pleasantly formulaic book by Bob Martin and Chad Beguelin has the gentle humor and paper-thin characters of a Lifetime dramedy, as well as the familiar platitudes: age is nothing but a number; you can't go back in time and so on. Essentially, it's about people relegated to society's sidelines claiming their place, which is not unlike their pioneering hip-hop counterparts.
Ably and affectionately helmed by director/choreographer Jerry Mitchell, "Gotta Dance" opens in "A Chorus Line" fashion with hopefuls auditioning for the 60-plus ensemble.
Putting them through their paces is troupe leader and choreographer Tara (Haven Burton, doing her best with a flimsily drawn character). She's a former dancer who, at 27, has "aged out" of the Cougarettes, the dance squad attached to the fictionalized New Jersey Cougars pro-basketball team. It's up to Tara to get the group in tiptop, hip-hop shape.
In the process - compounded by bonding, jealousy, infighting and reconciliation - we get to know the dancers. Former ballerina Joanne (Stefanie Powers) is eager to perform before a crowd and shame her ex-husband, who jilted her for a younger woman. Bea (Lillias White, a powerful presence) wants to reconnect with her Cougarette granddaughter Kendra (Joanna A. Jones). De Shields' Ron is a 70-year-old charmer who hasn't left his home since his wife died.
Showstopper and TV star Georgia Engel - who like De Shields has a flair for a comedic asides - plays Dorothy, a soft-spoken, rap-loving kindergarten teacher. Nancy Ticotin is terrific as Camilla, a leggy divorcee who's dating a man half her age. Lori Tan Chinn is funny and endearing as the modestly talented Mae, whose simple, soulful performance of "The Waters Rise" - describing her husband's battle with Alzheimer's - is the show's emotional high point.
It's a rare moment of introspection, though. If "Gotta Dance" does make it to Broadway, it will do so on a wave of good will, novelty and fine performances by a charismatic crew that rises above the featherweight material.
“Gotta Dance”
★ ★ ½
Location: Bank of America Theatre, 18 W. Monroe St., Chicago (800) 775-2000 or
Showtimes: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Thursday, Friday; 2 and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday through Jan. 17
Tickets: $38-$105
Parking: Paid lots nearby
Running time: About two hours, 20 minutes with intermission
Rating: Suitable for teens and older, includes adult subject matter and language