STOMP Stomps Its Way Back With A Revamped Show
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Oleg Micheyev/STOMP
Audience members can still expect to watch percussion ensembles of mundane instruments – ranging from car mufflers to Zippo lighters to water bottles – but the show promises more surprises even after being on tour for over 20 years.
Cast member John Sawicki has performed with STOMP for 14 of those years, and he insists that STOMP continuously evolves because each performance is unique from the last.
“There’s more comedy. The rhythms are more difficult to play,” Sawicki says. “[STOMP] changes when cast members come in and out. Each person that you hire, their personality and who they are become a part of the show.”
What also makes STOMP a different experience from other shows is that it allows for performers to improvise on stage. Sawicki says that about 20 percent of the show is improvisation because each performer has a chance to solo with whatever items that are available.
“The best way I can describe [STOMP] is moving into a house that has a foundation and a structure,” Sawicki says. “The performers are the people that actually add colors to the walls and decorate the interior.”
STOMP’s stay at the Segerstrom Center lets audience members have a chance to make their own beats too. An hour before the show, stations will be set up with random objects so that each person can become a STOMPer.
“With STOMP, we’re a big family that has a drum circle and jams,” Sawicki says. “It’s always been that changing, evolving-with-the-times thing, and that’s why it’s so successful.”
TICKETS
Tickets start at $20 and are available online or by calling (714) 556-2787.
Specially-priced tickets are available for students at the Center Box Office one hour before the show.
