A cast of 30 Australian artists will don platform shoes, shirts with huge collars and crazy hairdos in the musical Saturday Night Fever, which opens on Friday.
The musical is based on the film that made John Travolta famous and the soundtrack by the Bee Gees a mega hit. Directed and choreographed by Arlene Phillips, the show features classic numbers like Stayin' Alive, How Deep is Your Love and Boogie Shoes.
But Saturday Night Fever is not only about disco and the flamboyant fashion of the 1970s. It's also about people trying to realise their dreams in a busy and impersonal world. As Bee Gees' Robin Gibb says in Stayin' Alive, city life is about surviving.
The story revolves around a young man, Tony Manero, who lives in Brooklyn. He is a clerk in a paint shop by day, but a king on the disco dance floor by night. Every day as the sun rises, Tony and his disco-maniac friends have to face the cruel realities of New York. Tony struggles to break out of his limited world.
Although the story is set in 1970s New York, it is accessible to everyone, says Adam-Jon Fiorentino, who plays Tony. 'The story is about making decisions. Everyone must have something they want to achieve in life. There are elements of Tony in me,' he said.
Fiorentino says that performing in musicals and touring the world is a dream come true. But the cast has a gruelling practise schedule and the audition process was intensive. Fiorentino was selected as the lead over hundreds of hopefuls.