Late Night Cabarets at The State Theatre aim for flashback fun

Throw on your fedora and grab your pearls — the first of Lady Grey’s monthly themed Late Night Cabarets will be held Sept. 24 in the Attic at The State Theatre, where Grey and her troupe of Lovelies will perform.

A professional dancer since middle school, Grey has traveled the globe and appeared on Broadway, at the Sydney Olympics, and alongside entertainment greats, including Gregory Hines, Savion Glover and more.

Grey originally conceived the Late Night Cabaret as a show that would bring together members of the local entertainment community with regional performing professionals, while providing the State College area with access to sophisticated adult entertainment for those beyond the college bar scene.

“The show is a monthly event, that we’re intending to evolve with different monthly themes and performers,” she said. “This month’s cabaret will transform the Attic at the State Theatre into a 1920s speakeasy, with great music, vintage sideshow entertainment and some of the best flappers this side of the Mississippi.”

The Cabaret features Lady Grey’s Lovelies, a vintage dance company specializing in authentic vintage dance from the 1920s to the 1950s. The speakeasy cabaret will include numbers that feature the Charleston, the shim sham shimmy and even a fun follies-inspired number.

The Lovelies hail from State College, Philadelphia, New Jersey and New York. The group also includes dancers who are performing internationally in touring Broadway productions.

“Pulling together a wide range of professionals requires us to rehearse in Philadelphia, New York, locally, or wherever we can get our team together,” Grey said. “So it is a logistical and creative challenge sometimes, but worth the effort.”

Much of the group’s planning is done online, and they rely heavily on Facebook and social media to communicate with each other and their fan base.

“We also have even been known to rehearse via Skype in our kitchens,” Grey said. “The State Theatre has been a critical part of bringing this vision to life, and I am especially grateful to Greg Ray for his support and encouragement in bringing this new entertainment to the State College community.”

Each of the company’s performances is a very different experience for their audiences, and this month, they will be immersing them in the sights, sounds and energy of a Prohibition-era party. Next month’s theme, “Lady Grey’s Cirque Noir,” features a dark circus with an exotic variety of entertainment and sideshow performances.

“We see this as a great opportunity to add to the Lovelies’ already engaged base of fans,” Grey said. “We want to create a place where like-minded artists and audiences can enjoy a unique variety of performances in a wonderfully intimate setting.”

This story was originally published September 23, 2016 at 8:29 AM with the headline "Late Night Cabarets at The State Theatre aim for flashback fun."