The message for the latest edition of All That Tap at the Touhill Performing Arts Center this Saturday, August 1 at 7 p.m.: Baby got tap.
All That Tap XVIII will feature Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards and Karen Callaway Williams, two of the tap dance world’s biggest female stars, both of them African-American.
Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards has been part of nearly every major tap show and film since the ‘80s. She was the featured principal dancer in the European tour of Black and Blue, the first female performer in Noise/Funk, choreographer of Michael Jackson’s music video Rock Your World and serves as tap advisor for Dance Magazine.
Karen Callaway Williams was the first female tap dancer in Riverdance, only female tap dancer and dance captain in Riverdance on Broadway, featured performer with symphony orchestras including Indianapolis, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Toronto, and tours with Tap Tel-Aviv and Tap Giants
They will take the Touhill stage for a group show that will crown the six-day St. Louis Tap Festival, founded in 1992 by Robert L. Reed. The festival includes workshops, a tap jam improvisation, a panel discussion, a participants’ showcase, and (new this year) a salsa session, taking place through August 1 at the Sheraton Clayton Plaza Hotel, 7730 Bonhomme.
Sumbry-Edwards, who has partnered with Savion Glover, and Callaway Williams, last seen in St. Louis at the Fox Theatre this past May in Riverdance, will be joined by artists from New York to Los Angeles. St. Louis’ own Carolbeth True Jazz Trio will provide the live soundtrack.
Also on the bill: Denise Caston, a member of The Radio City Rockettes since 1997; Lynn Schwab from New York City, who blends her tap with jazz, modern, ballet, African and Afro-Cuban dance; Robin Reed, daughter of the festival founder.
Showcasing other dance styles that depend on complex rhythms stamped out with the feet are flamenco and jazz artist Shannon Calderon of Oklahoma City and champion of Irish dance Mary Jo Clark-Cange of St. Louis.
It’s not a girls-only production however.
“Israeli Hoofers” Avi Miller and Ofer Ben will return with their flashy and funny tap personalities. Bril Barrett of Chicago’s MADD Rhythms pounds out hard-hitting street sounds. The festival founder will also be joined by his son Robert L. Reed III. St. Louis tap prodigy Logan Miller, who has been dancing as a soloist in the show since 2004 when he was 15, also will be back.
This year’s festival honorees are Ardie Bryant and Miriam Nelson.
In his teens, Ardie Bryant danced with jazz greats such as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Lionel Hampton. He has performed with Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Sarah Vaughan and Nat King Cole. In 2006, he was named a Los Angeles Cultural Treasure. His dance memories and the sounds of his percussive feet are preserved in recordings at the Smithsonian Institution.
Miriam Nelson made her Broadway debut in 1938 and, along with her multitude of stage appearances, became one of Hollywood’s busiest film and TV choreographers. She performed with Carol Channing, Ann Miller, Donald O’Connor, and dozens more. Her film credits include Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Cat Ballou, and Luciano Pavarotti’s Yes, Giorgio.
The festival is produced by the Robert L. Reed Tap Heritage Institute, Inc. For more information, check tapheritage.org or call 314-531-8277.
Tickets for All That Tap XVIII are $15, $20 and $25. They are available by phone via the Touhill box office at 516- 4949 (toll free, 866-516-4949) or online at touhill.org.
