N2 Dance will be presenting a unique musical experience at the Palace Theater: “Decades — The Ultimate Escape Room.”
The musical follows Suzy and her brother Tommy, played by Olga Arianoff and Reef Masaoka, along with their cousins, Shantelle and Brock, played by Jenea Gomez and Garret De Soto. While they are hiking in the forest, they who happen upon an old rundown shack with a worn out sign on it that says “Escape Room.”
They decide to explore the shack, and after getting themselves locked on the inside, they find themselves traveling through time looking for hidden clues to make it back home. They are told that they have only 90 minutes to escape, or they will be stuck in the escape room forever.
The show features a cast of 90 performers ages 5 to adult who will be acting, singing, and dancing — showcasing various types of dance including hip-hop, jazz, b-boy, Charleston, swing and hula. The music and dance styles will span a century starting with the 1920s and ending in the 2020s.
“My favorite part of this show is seeing these dancers have so much fun learning the different styles of dance from previous decades,” says N2 Dance director Angela Woods. “It was also really cool to recycle a piece that we did 20 years ago, the 1930s jazz piece, that seems to be a favorite for many of the dancers.”
N2 Dance is a performing arts studio that incorporates acting and dance in its shows. In 2018, N2 had its first musical, and now every semester’s recital is a musical production, which helps performers tie all these arts together.
Woods developed this particular script with help from students in N2’s acting classes. The show will have costume changes, an intricate elevator, and lots of music to enjoy.
The show’s actors did a lot of research to make sure each decade was depicted as accurately as possible.
“The audience should know they are in for a fun, exciting and funny escape room (drama) with some awesome, classic music from past decades,” said Gomez, who is playing Shantelle.
There will be two showings of “Decades — The Ultimate Escape Room” at 7 p.m. tonight and 2 p.m. on Saturday.
Presale tickets can be purchased for $15 for general seating and $20 for preferred seating at hilopalace.com.
Keiki under 3 are free. Tickets will be $5 more at the door.
For more information, go to N2-Dance.com or contact Woods at info@n2-dance.com.
Email Kelsey Walling at kwalling@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
