TAMPA — Long-time crowd-pleaser “Stomp” will bring that beat back to the Tampa Bay area Dec. 26-28, in Ferguson Hall at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts, 1010 N. W.C. MacInnes Place, Tampa.
Tickets start at $58.80. Visit strazcenter.org.
The troupe uses matchboxes, brooms, garbage cans, lighters and just about anything that can be shaken, rattled or rolled. Now in its fourth decade. “Stomp” remains an inventive and invigorating stage show that combines dance, music, theatrical performance and, of course, the big beats.
From its beginnings as a street performance in the UK, “Stomp” has grown into an international sensation over the past 20 years, having been performed in more than 50 countries.
Throughout its life, the show has continued to change by creating new material. It is safe to say you will never again look at supermarket carts or plumbing fixtures the same way.
“Stomp” has been an overwhelming success marked by rave reviews, numerous awards, an Academy Award nomination, four Emmy nominations and one Emmy Award for their HBO special “Stomp Out Loud.” Noteworthy TV appearances include the 2012 London Olympic Games Closing Ceremony, the Academy Awards, “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” and a series of award-winning commercials.
The performers “make a rhythm out of anything we can get our hands on that makes a sound,” says co-founder/director Luke Cresswell. A unique combination of percussion, movement and visual comedy, “Stomp” has created its own inimitable, contemporary form of rhythmic expression. Both household and industrial objects find new life as musical instruments in the hands of an idiosyncratic band of body percussionists. “Stomp” uses everything but conventional percussion instruments — dustbins, tea chests, radiator hoses, boots, hub caps — to fill the stage with a compelling and unique act that is often imitated but never duplicated.