Night Clubs Reviews

Jul 11, 2007 - Reno's Eldorado Hotel Casino's "Dancing Queen" is fun, campy, entertaining and a hit

By Jack Neal

A celebration of the music of ABBA and a host of other 70’s popular musical groups just opened (6/29/07) at Reno’s Eldorado Hotel Casino. It’s loaded with great tunes, exuberant dancing and more than its share of high camp.

A show that includes such memorable songs as “Stayin’ Alive,” “Mamma Mia,” “Night Fever,” “How Deep Is Your Love,” “YMCA,” and “Does Your Mother Know,” when they’re well done – and this lively troupe of twenty does them exceptionally well – falls into the camp, excuse the expression, of irresistible.

“Dancing Queen” "is" irresistible.

Alan Harding is the show’s director and choreographer. What Harding has created is high octane dance, solid musical arrangements (unfortunately, recorded orchestrations), colorful costumes and production numbers that are, as the movies used to say, more than your eyes have ever seen – which isn’t quite true, but it’s apt enough when one‘s having a good time. Jacqui Lemmens is the company’s resident director in charge of keeping the show fresh and in shape, which is exactly what it is. The lighting does what it should do – enhance and disguise. The sound does what it should do – support, not deafen.

Singers Julia Mansfield, Becky Maclean, Adam Hills and Duncan Heather more-or-less headline the show. They sing well. Never take themselves seriously, and are a class act whether singing solo or together. The dancers are attractive, terrific and provide oodles of swashbuckling oomph.

“Dancing Queen” is a 75-minute show that pulls out all stops in the fun department as it sizzles its way through nearly three-dozen hits. The show’s singing quartet join their high-flying dancing colleagues for a romp that does virtually every screwball thing in the book including a fan-dance production number that’s too good to be true. Yet, there it is - for audiences to relish night after night.

Wow!

“Dancing Queen” has big hit written all over it. It certainly has my stamp of approval.

“Dancing Queen” is at the Eldorado Hotel Casino, 345 North Virginia Street, Reno, Nevada, for and extended run. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays at 7 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m. and Saturdays at 7 and 9:30 p.m. For tickets call 775-786-5700 or go online at eldoradoreno.com.