Stomps Final Performance: This week, the clatter of trash can lids, the thud of boot heels, and the swish of brooms that have been a part of New York’s downtown performing arts scene for almost 30 years will stop. Sunday is the last day to see it.
Richard Frankel, co-producer and general manager of STOMP, said, “Twenty-nine years is a long time to keep a show going.” “Most of our audience were foreign tourists, and most haven’t returned to New York since COVID. It has been hard. We just aren’t selling enough tickets.”
But that doesn’t mean that STOMP will stop. During its run, it has become a worldwide hit and has been seen in 45 countries. Its performers have been on Sesame Street and at the Olympics in 2012. The Simpsons made fun of it.
It has also given rise to several businesses, sometimes as many as six at once. Even though the long-running London production of STOMP ended in 2018, the producers said that the North American and European tours are still doing well and will keep going for a while. Steve McNicholas, who helped start STOMP, said, “We just had a five-week run in Paris that was sold out.”
From The Streets To The Fringe
Image Source: Smithsonianmag
STOMP, which has no words, has its roots in the street-performance scene of the 1980s in the United Kingdom. McNicholas and co-creator Luke Cresswell used their bodies and everyday objects to show how powerful rhythm is.
When they took their performance to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 1991, it caught the attention of producers. The next stops were in Australia and Canada. When Frankel and his partners saw STOMP in Toronto two years later, they decided to bring it to the 347-seat Orpheum theatre in New York.
“STOMP is a group of people who do stuff on the street. It showed how the East Village felt in the 1990s, “said producer Frankel. McNicholas, one of STOMP’s co-founders, said that New York is the center of the STOMP universe.
Not only has the show been put on nearly 11,500 times in the city, but most of the auditions for the company have also taken place there. A company representative said that the next place where auditions for the touring company will be held has not yet been decided.
There aren’t many shows that have been on for almost 30 years, but those have become like families to the actors and crew working on them. Fiona Mills, who has worked for the company for more than 30 years, can say that.
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She has been a member of STOMP for a long time and is now the rehearsal director. She met her husband, Jason Mills, when she asked him to audition for the group in the mid-1990s. She is distraught that the New York production is ending.
Only 4 shows left – see you there? #STOMPNYC pic.twitter.com/ieEbOIBarM
— STOMP (@STOMPNYC) January 6, 2023
She said, “It feels like someone just cut off my arm.” “Like a piece of who I am just got taken away.” Over the years, the show has gained a lot of die-hard fans, and they, too, are sad. Since the late 1990s, Bowlegged Lou, a songwriter and music producer from New York, has seen the show 225 times.
He said, “It’s been a part of New York City for so long, like the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, and Central Park, but in the downtown area.” But he’s still excited to see it one last time. Sunday’s final show will be his 226th.
He said, “After that, I’ll have to go see the show when it’s on tour.” Please share this with your friends if you find it interesting. Visit Lighthousejournal.org for more celebrity updates and breaking news.
For almost 4 years, Jason Martin has been a freelance writer for newspapers, journals, blogs, books, and online material. He covers the most recent news as well as many other topics.