An abridged production of Starlight Express played at The Hilton Theatre at the Las Vegas Hilton (now known as the Westgate Las Vegas) from 14 September 1993 to 30 November 1997. The production was contracted to run for 5 years, but ended early when the hotel changed owners.
Starlight Express was the first permanent production of a legitimate musical theatre show in Las Vegas's history.
Press Reel - Las Vegas 1990s
Creative Team[]
- Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber
- Lyrics by Richard Stilgoe
- Scenic and Costume Designer John Napier
- Associate Scenic Designer Ray Huessy
- Sound Designer Graham Carmichael
- Lighting Design and Special Effects by Rick Belzer
- Automated Lighting Design by Aland Henderson
- Conventional Lighting Design by Douglas Cox
- Musical Director Jan Rosenberg
- Orchestrations by David Cullen and Andrew Lloyd Webber
- Conductor Wayne Green
- Laser Designs by Floyd Rollefstad
- Film Design by Kevin Biles Design
- Pyrotechnics developed by John Bordeaux
- Production Audio Supervisor Michael Cusick
- Technical Supervisor William M. Mensching
- Production Consultant Clayton Phillips
- Stunt Coordinator Todd Lester
- Model Trains Developed by Paul Wolfram and John Graves
- Wig and Hair Designs by Bernie Ardia
- Company Manager Tony McLean
- Production Stage Manager Seth C. Wenig
- Resident Artistic Supervisor Preston Simpson
- Skate Supervisor Michal Fraley
- Assistant Director/Choreographer James Walski
- Assistant Choreographer VOYD
- Directed and Choreographed by Arlene Phillips
- Presented by The Troika Organization and The Las Vegas Hilton in association with Starlight Vegas Company, inc.
- Produced by Nicholas Howey, Kenneth H. Gentry and Dallett Norris
Production Specifics[]
Originally conceived as a six-month 'sit-down' production using the set from the first US tour, Starlight Express in Las Vegas grew into a bigger budget production locked into a five-year contract.
In an attempt to compete with headliner stars, dancing girls in casino shows, and the first "Cirque du Soleil" productions, Starlight Express in Las Vegas would be a shorter, more spectacular version of the show. Several songs were trimmed or cut, and the interval was removed, bringing the running time down to 90 minutes. Stunt routines were added, the audience were invited to 'place their bets' for each race, and the coaches were given a controversial "showgirl" makeover. A few lines were also inserted to place the story on Christmas Eve, with Control's mother telling him that, now that his 'stocking is hung up', it's time to sleep, ahead of the 'big day'.
Caboose returns[]
The material largely followed the 'New' Starlight revisions unveiled in 1992, with one change reversed. The production would recycle race footage shot for the first US tour. This created a problem, as Caboose featured in the footage, despite having been removed from the London production. Andrew Lloyd Webber acquiesced and Caboose was reinstated, albeit in a reduced role[1].
Musical Numbers[]
| Musical Numbers | Featured Characters |
|---|---|
| Entry of the National Engines | Bobo, Espresso, Ruhrgold, Turnov, Nintendo, Prince of Wales, Greaseball, Gang |
| Rolling Stock | Greaseball, Greaseball's Gang |
| Taunting Rusty | Rusty, Greaseball, National Engines |
| Call Me Rusty | Rusty, Pearl, Dinah, Ashley, Buffy |
| A Lotta Locomotion | Pearl, Dinah, Ashley, Buffy |
| He'll Whistle At Me | Pearl, Dinah, Ashley, Buffy |
| Freight | Rusty, Rockies 1,2,3, Dustin, Flat-Top, Red Caboose, Pearl, Dinah, Ashley, Buffy, National Engines |
| AC/DC | Electra, Krupp, Wrench, Joule, Volta, Purse, Ensemble |
| Pumping Iron | Greaseball, Pearl, Dinah, Ashley, Buffy, Components |
| Coda Freight | Ensemble |
| Crazy | Rusty, Pearl, Dinah, Ashley, Buffy |
| Pearl, You've Been Honoured | Purse, Pearl, Rusty |
| Make Up My Heart | Pearl |
| Race One: New York to Chicago | Greaseball & Dinah Turnov & Caboose Ruhrgold & Joule Electra & Pearl |
| Poppa's Blues | Poppa, Rusty, Rockies 1,2,3, Flat-Top, Dustin |
| Rusty Why You Looking Sad | Rusty, Poppa, Freight |
| Race Two: Chicago to Denver | Bobo & Buffy Nintendo & Volta Espresso & Ashley Poppa & Dustin |
| Laughing Stock | The Company |
| Starlight Express | Rusty |
| The Rap | The Company |
| Pearl Twirl | Pearl, Greaseball, Dinah |
| U.N.C.O.U.P.L.E.D. | Dinah, Ashley, Buffy |
| Dinah, You're Honoured | Purse, Dinah |
| Wide Smile | Greaseball, Caboose, Electra, Components |
| Trans-America Final: Denver to Los Angeles | Greaseball & Pearl Electra & Dinah Nintendo & Volta Rusty & Caboose |
| I Was Robbed | Pearl, Greaseball, Gang |
| I am The Starlight | Rusty, Starlight Express |
| Rusty and Dustin | Rusty, Dustin |
| Dinahs Disco | Dinah, Electra, Caboose |
| Re-run: Phoenix to Los Angeles | Greaseball & Pearl Electra & Caboose Rusty & Dustin |
| One Rock & Roll Too Many | Greaseball, Electra, Caboose |
| Next Time You Fall In Love | Pearl, Rusty |
| Rusty King of the Track | Greaseball, Dinah, Ensemble |
| Light at the End of the Tunnel | The Company |
| Starlight Megamix | The Company |
The coaches' "Rusty, Can't be serious" was replaced by a snappy four lines of dialogue:
Hey, listen to the one man band
Rusty, you don't understand!
You'll be nowhere, you'll be last
You ain't going nowhere fast!
"A Lotta Locomotion" was trimmed to two verses, the first giving one line to each coach, and the second being Pearl's full introduction. This was followed by Pearl's solo "He'll Whistle at Me".
"Coda Freight" and "Hitching and Switching" were reduced to a couple of lines of dialoge and Control explaining the rules. "Crazy" and "Make Up My Heart" appear in full.
The Races are staged as location based, eg. "New York to Chicago", "Chicago to Denver" . Control announced "Place Your Bets" - with each engine announcing themselves with reference to the odds, the best bet etc. However, Control mixes his concepts, as while the re-run is staged "Phoenix to Los Angeles", he also decides to use "the Downhill course".
The lack of interval was covered by the Rockies ending Rusty's soliloquy "Starlight Express" with "The Rap", with "Hey Rusty, what's up? C'mon Rusty, get tough."
"Wide Smile, High Style", cut from the "New Starlight Express", ran with the introduction where Caboose reveals his plans to Greaseball, then Electra, but without the actual song, keeping just enough dialogue to support the plot. This same edit was used in later tours.
After the third race, the scene "I Was Robbed" was shortened to Pearl discovering the plot against Rusty, and the Gang beating up Rusty further - Rusty and Caboose's lines were cut. The Rockies, having already interrupted Rusty earlier with "The Rap", do not return for "Right Place, Right Time".
Set Design[]
The production recycled some elements of the first US tour, including the race sequences filmed for that production, and a piece of the set – the starting gate/"bridge". Due to the filmed races, the set was not required to have full race tracks, however it was expansive with loops into the stalls and multiple levels of tracks.
Gallery[]
Cast[]
| Role | Cast | Role | Cast |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rusty | Steven Michael Skeels | Pearl | Reva Rice |
| Poppa | Jimmy Lockett | Dinah | Dawn Marie Church |
| Greaseball | Rod Weber | Ashley | Meera Popkin |
| Electra | Anthony T. Perry | Buffy | Edyie Fleming |
| Rocky 1 | Michael Carl King | Flat-top | Andrew A. Currie |
| Rocky 2 | David Enriquez | Dustin | Matthew D. Burns |
| Rocky 3 | Jim Harrison | Caboose | T. Robert Pigott |
| Krupp | Nelson Yee | Bobo | Victor L. Butler |
| Wrench | Natasha Rennalls | Espresso | C.C. Brown |
| Purse | Marvin Engran | Ruhrgold | Danny Metcalfe |
| Joule | Jennifer Bizik | Turnov | Jacob Brent |
| Volta | Anne M. Tiger | Nintendo | Bob Lee Dysinger |
| Marshal/Gang | Todd Lester | Prince of Wales | Steven Kent Dry |
| Swing | Amanda Clarke | Swing | Madeleine Ehlert |
| Swing | Elizabeth Holum | Swing | Susan Lamontagne |
| Swing | Scott Bolt | Swing | Eddie Marco |
| Swing | Scott Carlyle | Swing | Matthew V. Daugherty |
| Swing | Paul Finocchiaro | Swing | Kevyn Haile |
| Swing | Chris Lamontagne | Swing | Larry Munsey |
| Role | Cast | Role | Cast |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rusty | Freddie T | Pearl | Reva Rice |
| Poppa | Jimmy Lockett | Dinah | Dawn Marie Church |
| Greaseball | Rod Weber | Ashley | Jennifer Bizik |
| Electra | Anthony T. Perry | Buffy | Amanda Clarke |
| Rocky 1 | Michael Carl King | Flat-top | Paul Finocchiaro |
| Rocky 2 | Tony Cordell | Dustin | Tom Gamblin |
| Rocky 3 | Leo Alvarez | Caboose | Chris Castillo |
| Krupp | Nelson Yee | Bobo | Buddy Casimano |
| Wrench | Nicole Discola | Espresso | Eric Jordan Young |
| Purse | Terence Yancey | Ruhrgold | Freddy Moretine |
| Joule | Natasha Rennalls | Turnov | Steven Kent Dry |
| Volta | Kelly Love | Nintendo | Robert Dean |
| Flying Marshal 1 | Todd Lester | Prince of Wales | Mark Moschello |
| Flying Marshal 2 | Brad Anderson | ||
| Swing | Stefanie Morse | Swing | Rachelle Rak |
| Swing | Anne M. Tiger | ||
| Swing | Gary Albers | Swing | Leigh Bucknam |
| Swing | Matthew D. Burns | Swing | Scott Carlyle |
| Swing | Matthew Daugherty | Swing | Garland Days |
| Swing | Bob Lee Dysinger | Swing | Marvin Engran |
| Swing | Kevyn Haile | Swing | Allen Lev |
| Swing | Bobby Love | Swing | Christopher Strauss |
| Swing | Gregory Vander Ploeg |
| Role | Cast | Role | Cast |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rusty | Greg Ellis [2] | Pearl | Reva Rice |
| Poppa | Lothair Eaton | Dinah | Dawn Marie Church |
| Greaseball | Ron DeVito | Ashley | Amanda Clarke |
| Electra | Anthony T. Perry | Buffy | Jennifer Bizik |
| Rocky 1 | Tony Cordell | Flat-top | Todd Lester |
| Rocky 2 | Troy V McLaughlin | Dustin | Tom Gamblin |
| Rocky 3 | Randy Donaldson | Caboose | Paul Finocchiaro |
| Krupp | Buddy Casimano | Bobo | Leigh Bucknam |
| Wrench | Angel Bates | Espresso | Terence Yancey |
| Purse | Reginald H Jennings | Ruhrgold | Freddy Moretine |
| Joule | Brigitte Snowden | Turnov | Greg LoBuono |
| Volta | Paula Carlyle | Nintendo | Richard D Barber |
| Flying Marshal 1 | Christopher Strauss | Prince of Wales | Mark Moschello |
| Flying Marshal 2 | Gregory Feller | ||
| Swing | Gary Albers | Swing | Matthew D. Burns |
| Swing | Scott Carlyle | Swing | Matthew Daugherty |
| Swing | Steven Kent Dry | Swing | Bob Lee Dysinger |
| Swing | Marvin Engran | Swing | Allen Lev |
| Swing | Kelly Love | Swing | Joe Machota |
| Swing | Louanne Madorma | Swing | Janien Nola |
| Swing | Rachelle Rak | Swing | James Russell |
| Swing | Gregory Vander Ploeg | Swing |
| Role | Cast | Role | Cast |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rusty | Ernest Marchain | Pearl | Dawn Marie Church |
| Poppa | Lothair Eaton | Dinah | Jennifer Bizik |
| Greaseball | Rod Weber | Ashley | Amanda Clarke |
| Electra | Eric Clausell | Buffy | Brigitte Snowden |
| Rocky 1 | Troy V McLaughlin | Flat-top | Todd Lester |
| Rocky 2 | Allen Lev | Dustin | Tony Tripoli |
| Rocky 3 | Angelo Rivera | Caboose | Ken Romero |
| Krupp | Chris Galen | Bobo | Leigh Bucknam |
| Wrench | Sheri Kush | Espresso | Ron McKay |
| Purse | Reginald H Jennings | Ruhrgold | Scott Carlyle |
| Joule | Raquel Baldwin | Turnov | Tony Cordell |
| Volta | Paula Carlyle | Nintendo | Juan Cantu |
| Prince of Wales | Sheldon Craig | ||
| Swing | Beverley Braybon | Swing | Angel Creeks |
| Swing | Kelly Love | Swing | Louanne Madorma |
| Swing | Gary Albers | Swing | Matthew D. Burns |
| Swing | Steven Kent Dry | Swing | Andy Karl |
| Swing | Mark C Kraushaar | Swing | Freddy Moretine |
| Swing | Mark Moschello | Swing | Alex C Oteyza |
| Swing | RT Smith | Swing | Gregory Vander Ploeg |
| Role | Cast | Role | Cast |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rusty | Ernest Marchain | Pearl | Dawn Marie Church |
| Poppa | Lothair Eaton | Dinah | Kelly Love |
| Greaseball | Rod Weber | Ashley | Angel Creeks |
| Electra | Reginald H Jennings | Buffy | Jill Marie Petersson |
| Rocky 1 | Troy V McLaughlin | Flat-top | Todd Lester |
| Rocky 2 | Allen Lev | Dustin | Michael Petersson |
| Rocky 3 | Angelo Rivera | Caboose | Ken Romero |
| Krupp | Chris Galen | Bobo | Leigh Bucknam |
| Wrench | Sheri Kush | Espresso | Tony Cordell |
| Purse | RT Smith | Ruhrgold | Scott Carlyle |
| Joule | Gary Albers | Turnov | Ron McKay |
| Volta | Paula Carlyle | Nintendo | Richard D Barber |
| Prince of Wales | Tony Torres | ||
| Swing | Jennifer Bizik | Swing | Beverley Braybon |
| Swing | Louanne Madorma | ||
| Swing | Scott Bolt | Swing | Steven Cates |
| Swing | Matthew Daugherty | Swing | Steven Kent Dry |
| Swing | Andy Karl | Swing | Mark C Kraushaar |
| Swing | Freddy Moretine | Swing | Mark Moschello |
| Swing | Alex C Oteyza | Swing | James Russell |
| Swing | Nelson Yee |
Reviews[]
Variety - by Jeremy Gerard May 26th 1995[]
Starlight Express[3] Opened Sept. 14, 1993; reviewed May 26, 1995. Running time: 90 min.
(Las Vegas Hilton; 1,572 seats; $ 49.50 top)
Andrew Lloyd Webber's choo-choo tuner, "Starlight Express," opened on Broadway in March 1987 with an $ 8 million tab it was never to recoup. While the show is still running in London, New York audiences weren't buying a childlike fable about a train race, featuring actors zooming about on roller skates, that seemed bloated out of all proportion at the cavernous Gershwin Theater. The show limped along for a couple of seasons before finally throwing in the towel at a considerable loss.
But in Vegas, “Starlight” lives, and what was garish and soulless even by the standards of contemporary Broadway megamusicals, seems positively quaint in these surroundings.
Two years ago, the Las Vegas Hilton rebuilt its main showroom to accommodate the show, filling the stage and a small section of the front orchestra with John Napier’s wavy ramps and speedways. Several songs and the intermission were cut — no loss there — to squeeze it into the standard 90-minute format.
In “Starlight,” male actors play different kinds of train engines — steam, electric, diesel — vying for rail supremacy with the support of female actors playing passenger cars. A hunky contingent of men play freight cars, and there’s a caboose, too.
The story, such is it is, concerns a challenge to the American diesel champ, Greaseball (Rod Weber), by Electra (Anthony T. Perry) along with several stereotypically appointed international models. It also concerns the fickle affections of a passenger car named Pearl (Reva Rice, who has a tendency to go with the flow, breaking the heart of the hopelessly outdated Rusty (Freddie T).
That “Starlight” even has a storyline puts it way out in front among the more glittery revues in town. The show has some appeal as family entertainment, and at $ 49.50, it’s a bargain compared with $ 70 for “EFX” and a whopping $ 78.50 for Siegfried & Roy.
Still, the “Starlight” score is the worst in the Lloyd Webber canon, a pedestrian pastiche of rock, country and blues melodies made even more groan-inducing by lyrics that are at best mediocre. By comparison, the similar pop-music catalog Lloyd Webber devised for his first show, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” is infinitely more appealing.
The company seems adept at negotiating the tricky race scenes, though anyone who cares about the live human beings under all those whizzing costumes will hardly be comforted in the knowledge that the production boasts an on-call ambulance.
Still, the pulsating lights and throbbing music seem completely in synch with the surroundings. Whatever dangers it presents its cast, for the audience, the desert edition of “Starlight Express” is fairly painless.
Production: A Troika Organization and Las Vegas Hilton presentation, in association with the Starlight Vegas Co. Inc., of a musical in one act with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Richard Stilgoe; directed and Choreographed by Arlene Phillips; musical direction, Jan Rosenberg; orchestrations and arrangements, David Cullen, Lloyd Webber; set and costumes, John Napier; lighting and special effects, Rick Belzer (automated lighting, Aland Henderson; conventional lighting , Douglas Cox; lasers, Floyd Rollefstad); conductor, Wayne Green; film, Kevin Biles Design; pyrotechnics, John Bordeaux; performance and dance supervisor, Bobby Love; stunts, Todd Lester; wigs and hair, Bernie Ardia; skate supervisor, Michael Fraley.
Cast: Rod Weber (Greaseball), Freddie T (Rusty), Anthony T. Perry (Electra) , Jimmy Lockett (Poppa), Reva Rice (Pearl), Dawn Marie Church (Dinah), Jennifer Bizik (Ashley), Amanda Clark (Buffy), Michael Carl King (Rocky I), Tony Cordell (Rocky II), Leo Alvarez (Rocky III), Chris Castillo (Red Caboose), Tom Gamblin (Dustin), Paul Finocchiaro (Flat-Top); Buddy Casimano, Eric Jordan Young, Robert Dean, Freddy Moretine, Steven Kent Dry, Mark Moschello, Todd Lester, Brad Anderson, Natasha Rennalls, Nelson Yee, Terence Yancey, Kelly Love, Nicole Driscola, etc.
References[]
- ↑ Fraley, Michal: Skating the Starlight Express (2011), ISBN: 978-1-4583-7432-5
- ↑ 1996 Press Release - Fan Archive
- ↑ Variety Review - Website