Stage Door: Burn The Floor

There is dance, and there is dance mania. Which is to say, two hours of a dance extravaganza burning up the Longacre Theater nightly. In fact, Burn The Floor is a salute to international style ballroom dancing -- five Latin American dances and five ballroom dances. All will knock your socks off.

The high-energy show, directed and choreographed by Jason Gilkison, depends on 20 sinewy dancers who are adept at the waltz, foxtrot, tango, cha cha, samba, rumba and jive, to name just a few. And the music is as electic as the moves -- from Gershwin's elegant "Let's Face the Music and Dance" to "The Dirty Boogie" to "Si tu Supieras."

The joy of Burn The Floor, if you're in orchestra, is seeing every limb move and extend in a graceful way. Walt Whitman's poetic "I Sing the Body Electric" seems apposite here. Burn The Floor is an explosive razzle-dazzle; surprisingly, the special guests stars - Karina Smirnoff and Maksim Chmerkovskiy - weren't the high point.

When the level of dance is this good, everyone has mastered technique; it's personality that shines through. In this case, there are several standouts, including Nuria Santalucia, who works it from first moment to post-curtain call. Like her multi-talented colleagues, many of whom are Australian, she's adept at every dance style and is a pleasure to watch. However, all are a wonder to behold.

The only low moments in the production are the vocalists -- Ricky Rojas and Rebecca Tapia. Neither has the voice nor the presence that Broadway demands. Different singers could have extracted far greater entertainment value from their numbers.

Still, Burn The Floor is like watching fireworks dance. Each number -- be it a waltz or a rumba -- champions the art form and leaves audiences breathless for more.