by Jacqueline Monahan
jaxn8r@msn.com
Photos by Jacqueline Monahan unless
otherwise noted.

On Monday, March 24, The Empire Ballroom hosted the premiere performance of electronic house music pioneer Mickey “Mixin’” Oliver’s new Revue, In-Ten-Si-T Reloaded, an interactive history of dance music.

Billed as an “Electronic Dance Music Revue starring Chicago House sensation Mickey Oliver,” the show crackled with sound and movement, reminiscent of a go-go joint gone techno. A faux-British female M.C. took the stage to narrate the artist’s background information before a variety of dancers in all manner of dress (none of them Victorian) took to the stage for various strobe and laser-spiked numbers, mostly recognizable, but all re-mixed. The gyrations changed appropriately for each new song, and the girls, in various groups (some in themed outfits reflecting the song, two in knee-high black wooly mammoth boots like you’d see in the movie 10,000 B.C., one hula hoop specialist, a human candelabra, and two painted, thong-wearing animal girls (a leopard and a tiger), who periodically undulated in cages) took to the stage in a high energy prance which never seemed to slow down throughout the hour-long show.

Machine-made fog enveloped the intimate lounge during several points in the show. Opening with a James Bond homage, remixed classic rock, disco and country songs spun seamlessly into one another, complete with costume changes and customized dance routines. The musical recognition factor was high, with The Village People’s “YMCA,” Credence Clearwater Revival’s “Born on the Bayou,” Donna Summers’ “Bad Girls,” Motley Crue’s “Girls! Girls! Girls!” and C & C Music Factory’s “Gonna Make You Sweat” (Everybody Dance Now) comprising just some of the music/dance numbers. Even Willie Nelson’s “You Were Always On My Mind” got the techno music treatment, and that means a beat loud enough to make the booth you’re sitting in a Shiatsu massage chair.

Two body-stocking clad female aerialists climbed long lengths of fabric attached to the ceiling and twirled around within it until their torsos were wrapped like helicoptering Gandhis, thirty feet above the crowd. Another number featured several dozen hula hoops being held aloft by the writhing torso of a tall blond. Costume changes were plentiful, with nurses, Village People, construction workers and ripped denim all being scantily represented. The fish-net spandex/vest ensembles worn by the two mammoth-boot girls were enhanced by the appearance of an attached price tag on one of the pieces. “Mini-skirt Pearl,” I muttered, aware of the ancient reference that no one would understand, yet still oddly amused.

Also featured were two guitar girls, one lead, one bass, who accompanied Oliver on certain songs. They were more fully dressed than the dancers – go figure. Not true for the painted felines. The Leopard and Tiger girls were completely topless for the first number, but appeared with taped nipples ever after, like that made any difference in the square inches of clothing they were wearing. “This is a live show, no taping allowed,” griped one of my companions and it wasn’t a female.

Strobe lights and video screens, took turns alternately with tiny snippets of laser light through the artificial fog. Raquela – the featured singer who performed Oliver’s original material, belted out several numbers, including his composition “I Know Why” while the composer accompanied her on a grand piano adorned by a female candelabra, whose job was to lie on her stomach on top of the instrument, facing Oliver, and swinging her upraised calves back and forth amid a cascade of rose petals. Not exactly Liberace, but very Oliver. Raquela was always adorned in elegant evening attire enhanced by a gargantuan smile. She almost doesn’t need the assistance of a microphone to be heard; you’ll always know when Raquela’s in the room.

Mickey himself is a high-energy, friendly and cheerful presence from my hometown. Mixing and scratching are in his blood, being one of the original innovators of house music in the early 80’s. He’s done work for Michael Jordan, the Chicago Sports Channel and the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie Red Heat.

Named one of the 10 most influential DJ’s in music history, Oliver’s known as one of house music’s founding fathers. As one of the Hot Mix 5 group that introduced house music to a generation on Chicago’s 102.7 WBMX, Oliver is currently on Sirius Radio’s Area 33 show and The Underground Movement on KNRJ 92.7/101.0 in Scottsdale, Arizona. His musical accomplishments are too long to list, but he’s now back in the game and taking his show on the road.

Energy, Sensuality, Excitement, the IN-TEN-SI-T flyer proclaimed. After viewing the production, all of those descriptions are certainly true, especially if you’re a heterosexual male or an alternative female. No eye candy for the ladies, I’m afraid. But the concept is pure Las Vegas and should work well in any of its hundreds of venues, catering to just such a musical environment and sexy mindset. It’s a crowd pleaser, as long as you remember to target the right crowd. That should be quite easy around these parts.

Check out the video interview with Mickey Oliver, including excerpts from the show on this website.