I was impressed by three things when I saw "Chicago" Friday night at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center: jazz, legs and a friendly star.

The musical has a titilating storyline involving murder and deception. There's no doubt that Roxy Hart (Bianca Marroquin) killed her husband, but flashy lawyer Billy Flynn (Tom Wopat) has ways of obscuring the facts with razzle-dazzle.

The plot moves forward with some fantastic musical numbers. It opens with "All That Jazz," and introduces the female inmantes with attitude in "Cell Block Tango." Roz Ryan delivers a powerful "When You're Good to Mama" as jail matron "Mama" Morton.

The singers are backed by an orchestra containting a number of local musicians. Marc Jimos, Jeff Erickson, Forrest Mankowski, Pat Phalen, Rand Skelton, David Sawall, Kyle Samuelson, Yuliya Smead, Steve Lewandowkis and Charles Ledvina did a subperb job of giving the musical its jazz-enfused energy.

The dancers were nothing short of amazing. Who knew limbs could kick that high and stretch so easily? The Bob Fosse-inspired choreography was a treat, especially in "All I Care About," the number that introduced lawyer Billy Flynn, played by Wopat.

Wopat had a strong voice and solid but not overwhelming stage presence. Years ago I saw Robert Goulet in "South Pacific." Even though I knew little about him, the moment he walked onstage I got the feeling of "That's Robert Goulet and he's a star." I didn't get that feeling with Wopat, but I still enjoyed seeing him in the role. He sounded wonderful and hit the mark with the delivery of his lines.

I was impressed by Wopat before he got onstage that evening. Before the show, he was in the lobby, dressed casually and wearing a baseball cap. He was promoting and authographing his new CD, and also signed "Chicago" merchandise.

Perhaps I still have stars in my eyes from growing up in the 1970s and seeing him on "Dukes of Hazzard," but I certainly didn't expect Luke Duke to be mingling with fans before the show. But he was aimable and happy to chat.

Onstage, the character Wopat played is a master of deception. In person, Wopat was friendly, down-to earth and not too egotistical to work the crowd before the show.

I liked him onstage, but also admired him for the extra effort he put in to further his career. It's a reminder that that having a shot being a star requires an awful lot of work on the ground.

To see some of the people who attended "Chicago" Friday evening, see our Out and About page at http://mywomenmagazine.com/modules/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=938.

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