Chicago is the Olympic Games of musical theatre, for the cast sing, dance and act, often at the same time, and barely leave the stage, director Bryan Aitken says.
Murder, greed, corruption, violence, exploitation and all that jazz are all in a day's work for the prolific director of 40 years as he helms his third consecutive production for Wakatipu audiences next week.
''It's one of the most prepared productions I've been involved with at this stage for a long time,'' Mr Aitken said.
''That pre-prep was down to musical director Emma Wilson and choreographer Anna Stuart, so they've made my job easier, but the cast is stunning.
''Their work is not just delight, but creative and forward thinking.''
The creative trio auditioned more than 70 hopefuls in February. The six leads chosen had stage experience, character insight and understood the direction the show would travel in, Mr Aitken said.
He encouraged collaboration in rehearsals, ''but you can't direct by committee''.
Nuances and the balance of each scene were his main focus because the musical moved in and out of vaudeville and fantasy on the twist of a high heel.
''Filmic and fluid'' was the way to be, he said.
He had seen three professional productions of Chicago over the years but said he left each ''a little bewildered'' with what was going on, so he was working hard to facilitate the concept off the page.
Mr Aitken was one of several people in show business who were critical of the limitations of the then Queenstown Memorial Hall when productions were staged.
Mr Aitken and others were consulted on the upgrade and, $3.1 million of renovation later, he described the renamed memorial centre as ''a great facility'', with more wing space, more seating, greater electrical capability and a larger lighting rig.
The vamped cast who ''desire to do their best'' in a revamped venue were ready to ''shock and delight'' the audience at Chicago, Mr Aitken said.
