Las Vegas Nights 2

“Las Vegas Nights” opened at the Abbey Theatre with a near-full house to greet the enthusiastic cast and production team.

Ian Harman (“CATS”, “42^ND STREET”) has crafted his own homage to the Vegas show scene.  With songs from Vegas stars like Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra and Count Basie, it is not hard to find one to tap your toes to.

Bradford Meurk (“Miss Saigon”) and Erica Ward (“All Shook Up”) hold the lead vocals well.  Bradford’s musical theatre pedigree is undeniable, although there were times when the lower notes got lost and his youthful tone was a bit amiss in his rat pack numbers.  Some beautiful soulful moments from Erica brought the crowd to a hush, but needed the contrasting power that I know she has produced before.

They are backed up nicely by all-singing, all-dancing Roulette – Conil Tod, Alexander van Brunt, Haley Tinning and Emma-Jade Mechen – who matched it well with the more experienced cast.

Much credit must go to Amy Hunt who crafted some great harmonies to bring songs like Copacabana to life.

Ian Harman was all crisp energy during his dance numbers with Kitten Carmichael and brought the show to life for me during the HMS scene when the theatre really came alive.

The sound balance, although muffled at times, allowed the singers to be heard against the recorded backing tracks.  However, the vocals lacked the sparkle you expect from this style of music.

“Las Vegas Nights” offers a nice slice of Vegas life and with slick choreography, well-paced music and great singing, offers something for every theatre-goer.