Cal Poly Arts has just booked STOMP, the international percussion sensation, to storm the Performing Arts Center on Saturday, November 30, 2019 at 7 p.m.
Tickets on sale 10 a.m. Monday, August 5.
From its beginnings as a street performance in the UK, STOMP has grown into a worldwide sensation over the past 20 years, having performed in more than 50 countries, in front of more than 24 million people of all ages.
The performers “make a rhythm out of anything we can get our hands on that makes a sound,” says co-founder/director Luke Cresswell. A unique combination of percussion, movement and visual comedy, STOMP has created its own inimitable, contemporary form of rhythmic expression: both household and industrial objects find new life as musical instruments in the hands of an idiosyncratic band of body percussionists. It is a journey through sound, a celebration of the everyday, and a comic interplay of characters wordlessly communicating through dance and drum.
Synchronized stiff-bristle brooms become a sweeping orchestra; eight Zippo lighters flip open and closed to create a fiery fugue; and wooden poles thump and clack in a rhythmic explosion. STOMP uses everything but conventional percussion instruments – dustbins, tea chests, radiator hoses, boots, hub caps – to fill the stage with a compelling, unique act that is often imitated, but never duplicated.
Critics and audiences have raved: “STOMP is as crisp and exuberant as if it had opened yesterday,” says The New York Times. The San Francisco Chronicle declares “STOMP has a beat that just won’t quit!” The Los Angeles Times exclaims: “Electrifying! Triumphs in the infinite variety of the human experience.” “A phenomenal show! Bashing, crashing, smashing, swishing, banging and kicking – a joyous invention!” says the Chicago Tribune.
In addition to the stage shows, STOMP has been an overwhelming success marked by rave reviews, numerous awards, an Academy Award nomination, four Emmy nominations and one Emmy Award for their acclaimed HBO special, Stomp Out Loud. Noteworthy TV appearances include The London 2012 Olympic Games Closing Ceremony, the Academy Awards (produced by Quincy Jones), “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” and a series of award-winning international commercials.
Tickets for the performance range from $44 – $84 and may be purchased at the Cal Poly Ticket Office, Monday – Friday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., located on Grand Avenue on the Cal Poly campus; by phone at 805/756-4849; online anytime at calpolyarts.org.
For more information on all Cal Poly Arts events, including audio and video samples, please visit calpolyarts.org.