© Julieta Cervantes 'Palladium Nights' reviews recent Ballet Hispanico reviews more Oksana Khadarina reviews Discuss this review (Open for at least 6 months)

Palladium Nights salutes Latin Jazz and Dance and brings plenty of enjoyable moments for jazz aficionados and dance lovers alike. With a humorous touch, it recreates the vibrant atmosphere of the hottest night club in New York City – the legendary Palladium Ballroom, famous for its exceptional quality of entertainment during the mambo-mania of the 1950s. Located at 53rd Street and Broadway, the Palladium Ballroom was the jazz lover’s paradise and the place to be. On its dance floor the racial and social boundaries melted away in a blazing fire of the exhilarating orchestral rhythms of mambo, cha-cha, and merengue. It attracted the finest bands as well as prominent dancers and celebrities. Renowned maestros of jazz such as Tito Puente, Tito Rodriguez, and Chico O’Farrell played there to sold-out audiences, and if you saw somebody in the crowd who looked like Duke Ellington or Marlon Brando, more than likely it was them.

Re-creating the atmosphere of that bygone era, the dimly lit stage of the Kennedy Center Concert Hall was transformed into an elegant dance club with cozy red-clothed tables, glamorous chandleries, and a spacious dance floor with an impressive 18-member band – the acclaimed Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra led by its music director, Arturo O’Farrill.

The plot of Palladium Nights is straightforward a dance night at the club. As the music soars, club-goers stylishly outfitted by costume designer Emilio Sosa stroll onstage and situate themselves at the tables or take their places on the dance floor. Some are the club’s regulars and some are first-timers. They mingle. They flirt. They dance. The rhythm is there, as are plenty opportunities for romance and heartbreak.

The diverse array of humorous personages of Palladium Nights will no doubt put a smile on your face. It’s quite an unusual company indeed: a nerd, a schoolgirl, a temptress, a sailor, a womanizer, a rich lady, a librarian and a few others. Yet despite difference in personalities and social status, they are all united by the irresistible rhythms of Latin dance and the feisty pulse of jazz improvisation... even if for only one night.

Ballet Hispanico’s energetic and exceptionally talented 11-member ensemble performed in the best Palladium tradition. Dancing with intensity and excitement, without missing a beat, the dancers demonstrated the most impressive Latin dance technique and excellent artistic skills. In all, it was an immensely satisfying performance, and the audience loved every moment of it.