Sinful City

Chicago first premiered in 1975. It was the seventh Broadway musical for composer John Kander and Fred Ebb, the same duo responsible for Cabaret (1966), Kiss of the Spider Woman (1993) and Steel Pier (1997), and is presented tonight in Page Auditorium as part of the Duke University Union's Broadway at Duke series.

According to the show's narrator/orchestra leader, Chicago is the story of "murder, greed, corruption, violence, exploitation and treachery"-sort of like a Saturday night with the Recess editor. Well, not exactly. The setting is Chicago in the 1920s, a city running amuck under prohibition. But instead of Dillinger and Capone, we have two ladies playing gunslinger Velma Kelly and Roxy Hart. Velma opens the show with "All That Jazz," quite possibly the best opening number in any musical. The song sets the tempo for the show: It's a sleek, sexy tribute to all of life's guilty pleasures.

Among those pleasures is watching this number-no matter which gender you are looking at, the lingerie and leather-clad bodies are tantalizing. From there, the story turns to that of Roxy Hart. Roxy pops her boyfriend and is home free until her inept (and easily manipulated) husband Amos rats her out. From there, she is whisked away to a women's prison. Roxy meets Velma, a former acrobat awaiting trial for the alleged murder of her husband and sister-whom Velma caught trying out some of their own acrobatic moves. The man representing both women is Billy Flynn, a high-profile attorney who knows that in a sin city like 1920s Chicago, the only court that matters is the one of public opinion. And soon enough, the victims are forgotten and the killers are all the rage.

This revival of Chicago began in late 1995, after the Simpson and Menendez trials captured both the press and the paparazzi. The show's lesson-that crime does pay if you play it right-seems to be truer today than it was in the past. In addition to its relevant plot, Chicago is a tribute to Vaudeville. Every song and dance is a take on an old Vaudeville number. This effect is best pulled off in the song "We Both Reached for the Gun," a spoof on the old ventriloquist act-with the lawyer supplying his dimwitted, vengeful client with all the answers to the press' questions.

But if you don't like plot, that's OK. Chicago is a complete musical: It features physically demanding dance numbers (done in the style of the great Bob Fosse), a lively orchestra (with brass to spare), hilarious lyrics (especially on "Cell Block Tango," "Mr. Cellophane" and "Razzle Dazzle") and a colorful lighting design that keeps the focus on the performers and their antics.

Chicago is not a conventional musical, because it is about more than song, dance and a silly ending. For that, try the musical kiddie pool run by Cole Porter and Neil Simon. For entertaining, thoughtful and well-written theater, Chicago is your ticket.