Stomp

"Pure stage magic" The Sunday Telegraph

What does the word Stomp make you think of? Music, Dance, Theatre, Choreography or Performance Art? All of the above! Or is it none of the above. Well, both are sort of right... in a way. Confused? read on...

Stomp is a movement, of bodies, objects, sounds - even abstract ideas. But what makes it so appealing is that the cast uses everyday objects, but in non-traditional ways. There's no speech, no dialogue, not even a plot.

So why go see Stomp? Well, have you ever composed a symphony using only matchbooks as instruments? Or created a dance routine based around sweeping? You may have done this a little, but get a group of rhythmically gifted, extremely coordinated bodies with definitive personalities, and you have the makings for Stomp.

"Entrancing, exhilarating and uncannily orchestral. Terrific" The Independent

You're mistaken if you look for a hidden message in Stomp. There are no political connotations, no pretentious techniques, and no dialogue to misconstrue. Instead, you're bombarded by noises that you usually try to block out. Stomp takes the everyday sounds of pipes and brooms, lighters and garbage pail lids, and creates the extraordinary.

"The huge international hit called Stomp has come triumphantly back home"
The London Evening Standard

Stomp - a unique combination of percussion, movement and visual comedy, was created in Brighton, UK, in the summer of 1991. It was the result of a ten year collaboration between its creators, Luke Cresswell and Steve McNicholas.
They first worked together in 1981, as members of the street band Pookiesnackenburger and the theatre group, Cliff Hanger. Together, these groups presented a series of street comedy musicals at the Edinburgh festival throughout the early 1980s. Pookiesnackenburger also produced the highly acclaimed 'Bins' commercial for Heineken lager. The piece was originally written and choreographed by Luke as part of the band's stage show... it proved to be the starting point for Stomp's climactic dustbin dance.
In 1986, Luke and Steve then created an eight minute 'percussive movie' for Bette Midler's television special Mondo Beyondo. In 1991 Steve and Luke first created Stomp, previewing at London's Bloomsbury Theatre and premiering at the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh, where it became the Guardian Newspaper's 'Critic's Choice' and won the Daily Express 'Best of the Fringe' award. Following this the original cast of Stomp played at various venues around the world: from Hong Kong to Barcelona, from Dublin to Sydney. This then culminated in a sell out season at London's Sadler's Wells theatre in January 1994, where Stomp received an Olivier nomination for 'Best Entertainment' and won 'Best Choreography in a West End Show'.

"Stomp seems to suit all ages, ideal for those whose children are too old or to hip to be dragged to ballet or pantomime" The Sunday Telegraph

"The energy and discipline is awesome, the sheer thumping dynamism irresistible!"
The London Evening Standard

During the late 1990s Stomp was featured in a number of commercials while 'Brooms', a fifteen minute short film based around the opening routine, was nominated for an Academy Award. In March 1996 an original piece involving both classic film clips and live onstage action was performanced at the Academy Awards. Since then a 45 minute television special called Stomp Out Loud has been created as well as a special IMAX movie titled Pulse. In September 2002 Stomp finally returned to London when the current show opened at The Vaudeville Theatre. Stomp was created with the original UK cast: Luke Cresswell, Nick Dwyer, Sarah Eddy, Theseus Gerard, Fraser Morrison, David Olrod, Carl Smith and Fiona Wilkes. Directed by Luke Cresswell and Steve McNicholas.

"Honed to perfection... A splendid racket worth shouting about" The Financial Times

Luke Cresswell is a self-taught percussionist from Brighton, UK. His session work as a drummer and rhythm programmer includes Norman Cook, Bette Midler, Elvis Costello, and Bryan Ferry. Steve McNicholas, from Yorkshire in the UK, has worked as an actor/ singer/ musician/ writer with various theatrical and musical groups, starting out with the Bradford Theatre group in 1973. As a singer he was an original member of the Flying Pickets. TV work includes Rowan Atkinson's Mr. Bean.

Stomp opened 25 September 2002 and closed 23 September 2007 at the Vaudeville Theatre in London before transferring to the Ambassadors Theatre, previewed from 27 September 2007, opened 4 October 2007.