REVIEW: Rockettes bring in holidays in style

Never has winter landed with such grace and glamour as in the wonderland Radio City created in the U.S. Cellular Center on Thursday.

The Rockettes kicked up a storm of glitter and glitz that showered snow and streamers throughout the arena, bringing cheers and applause again and again from more than 2,000 people gathered for the 4 p.m. matinee. Quite a few seats were empty in the upper balcony, but that wasn't expected to be case for the sold-out 7 p.m. show.

While the gorgeous high-kickers are clearly the stars of the show, they're far from alone onstage. Santa is there in all his red-velvet splendor, along with Mrs. Claus, their elves, at least three children and a top-notch ensemble of singers, dancers and actors.

Not to mention the village it takes backstage to make the magic happen. Especially exciting is having Cedar Rapids native Rod Caspers as one of the stage managers, making sure the choreography backstage runs smoothly and safely.

From the opening number featuring The Rockettes as Santa's dashing, dancing Prancers with twinkling antlers, it's obvious why Radio City calls this its “Christmas Spectacular.”

Every aspect of the 90-minute show is a spectacle of the finest degree. The kids sitting around me were giggling and giddy, as were people throughout the arena who haven't been kids for decades. All these years after disco died, it's amazing how a giant mirror ball can still spin plenty of aah factor throughout an audience.

In a show filled with highlights, there are no lowlights.

The production values are lavish, led by a  giant LED screen transporting the action from Times Square to the North Pole and eventually to Bethlehem. The scenery is breath-taking, the costumes divine, the dances precise, the singing lovely and a stage full of Santas right jolly.

It's impossible not to feel the Christmas spirit in your bones after watching teddy bears dance “The Nutcracker,” rag dolls tap dance on snowflakes, a real double-decker bus pivot in front of Manhattan street scenes and wooden soldiers collapse ever so slowly like dominoes.

Then at the end, comes a magnificent pageant beginning with children reading the Christmas story from the gospel of Luke, their voices melting into a Living Nativity unfolding onstage. It's all done with reverence and splendor befitting the season.

The entire production is a class act from beginning to end.