AussieTheatre exclusive: Hot Shoe Shuffle Tap Brothers announced

David Atkins and Dein Perry’s Hot Shoe Shuffle is one of Australia’s most successful musicals of all time and 2013 marks the 21st anniversary of the original production.

Having been seen by millions of patrons in six different countries, Hot Shoe Shuffle will be returning to Australian stages this year in a national tour which commences at QPAC (Brisbane) on May 4 and includes seasons at Sydney’s Lyric Theatre and Melbourne’s Her Majesty’s Theatre.

David Atkins, Bobby Fox and Jaz Flowers were announced last year as stars of the production, and today AussieTheatre can exclusively confirm the six other cast members who will sing and dance their way across the country in this 1940s inspired dance musical comedy.

Morgan Junor-Larwood (Slap), Rob Mallett (Buck), Mitchell Hicks (Wing), Alexander ‘Zan’ Kermond (Tip), Max Patterson (Tap), and Mason Schaube (Slide) will join Bobby Fox (Spring), David Atkins (Dexter) and Jaz Flowers (April) in this exciting revival production, which is also slated to tour to the United Kingdom and Europe in 2014. Erin Kennedy, Luke Alleva and Justin Anderson also join the company as band vocalists and understudies. 

Co-star and Director/Producer/Co-Choreographer David Atkins told AussieTheatre he is thrilled with the cast assembled for the 2013 tour, and has praised the Australian arts industry for its strength and growth over the last 21 years. 

“The good thing that has happened since we did the show the first time is with Dein Perry’s Tap Dogs and all the other Tap shows that have happened, the standard of tap has gotten much better”, he said.

“We had some great tappers in the first company and in subsequent companies, but we’ve got some really great tappers this time around. These Tap Brothers are genuine triple threats and could well be our best cast ever!”

Featuring classic hits by Gershwin, Ellington, Jerome Kern, Irving Berlin and our own Peter Allen, Hot Shoe Shuffle’s 21st anniversary production is set to be revamped and updated, with co-choreographer Dein Perry returning to modernise some of the routines and build on the strengths of these triple-threat performers in the show.

“Dein is coming back into the rehearsal room with us for a couple of weeks, and he’s keen to push the envelope a bit further”, Atkins told AussieTheatre.

“He’s done a lot more in the 20 years since we first did the show, so there are a couple of sections of the show – especially the tap jam – where we can really get away with doing less traditional tap but also a little more inventive work. So he’s going to come in and throw his eye over a couple of the routines and we are going to update them and give them a bit more edge. So there will be some new choreography and some new sets and we’ve got a whole scenic look which is new for the show, so it’s going to be interesting.”

With an Olivier Award for Choreography, an ARIA Award for soundtrack album, 4 Mo Awards, 2 Green Room Awards, and an Advance Australia Award for services to the Arts to its name, Hot Shoe Shuffle broke Disney blockbuster Beauty and the Beast’s box office record at Her Majesty’s Theatre for the most tickets sold in a single day in 2002. 

With such a phenomenal cast, it’s likely to do the same in 2013 – so snap up your tickets fast!