Platinum Jukebox – 10 decades of dance and music!

This fun and exciting show consists of some of the Barnyard’s best dancers and musicians, extraordinary dance routines and costumes, topped with the music industry’s best-known dance music of all times.

Platinum Jukebox is a journey of music, song and dance, starting with the gramophone in the 1920s and ending with the iPod in the 21st Century.

The journey starts in the 1920s, when music from Louis Armstrong and Fred Astaire were the platinum hit songs of the week.

The Charleston, The Waltz and The Tango were the dance crazes of what was known as The Golden Era.

In the 1930s and 1940s, both LP 331/3 rpm records and 45 rpm single records were invented in an era of peace, depression and then war.

Here the sounds of Glenn Miller, Frank Sinatra and Marilyn Monroe and dance crazes such as The Swing, Tap Dancing and the Fox Trot are celebrated.

Jukeboxes gained popularity in the 1950s, with rock ‘n roll music topping the charts.

Soon we were doing The Jitterbug, The Hand Jive and the Rock ’n Roll Boogie Woogie to the beat of Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, Little Richard and Bill Haley and His Comets.

In the 1960s and 1970s we saw the mass production of stereo albums, and turntables became affordable.

This brought Beatlemania and The British Pop Invasion.

Soon the world was doing The Twist, The Loco-Motion and The Funky Chicken and, of course, in the ’70s we had Disco Dancing with The Bee Gees.

Then the 1980s – cassette tapes and compact disks were the music formats, along with dancing styles such as The Moonwalk, Breakdancing, Headbanging and the Electric Slide, to the sounds of massive selling icons such as Michael Jackson, Madonna and Bruce Springsteen.

In the 1990s we encountered The Macarena, Hip Hop and Country and Western Line Dancing, to everything, from Cotton Eye Joe and Achy Breaky Heart to Britney Spears, while the compact disk was the flavour of the day.

In the 21st century the iPod has become the flavour of the day with downloading taking the place of compact disks.

Pop divas now rule the world, such as Lady Gaga, Beyoncé and Rihanna, and modern dance moves can incorporate any style you can imagine!

Platinum Jukebox is currently at The Barnyard Theatre, Emperors Palace, and will run until December 31.

* One lucky reader stands the chance of winning a party for 10 at the Barnyard Theatre, Emperors Palace, to see Platinum Jukebox.

The prize will be for either the show on either December 9 or 10, and will include two platters and two bottles of wine.

To stand a chance of winning, answer the following simple question: Name one artist whose music is performed during this show.

SMS your name and the word “jukebox”, followed by your answer, to 35718, before December 5, at noon.

SMSes are charged at R1.50.- @IschkeBoksburg

For a glimpse of the show, view the video.