Pomp and Stomp

It's a little bit Vegas, a little bit Jet Li blockbuster, but Dr. Dennis Law's Heartbeat — the latest in his growing franchise of highly visual "action musicals" that hit the stage fully ablaze with dazzling choreography, tethered to earth only by a flowing timeline of Chinese history — is perfectly serious as far as intent goes: It's as steely and literal as a Chinese Olympic gymnast, presented deadpan in an athletic flurry of fantastic costumes, pounding percussion and flashing Asian skin. But if you like the Cirque du Soleil, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Stomp and Riverdance and can imagine rolling them all up into one big, pulsating show, you're gonna love this, too.

Heartbeat, replete with a cast of more than fifty dancers, martial artists and musicians wearing some 400 spectacular period costumes, opens tonight at 8 p.m. at the Buell Theatre, Denver Performing Arts Complex, for a four-day run. If only there were tickets available for the backstage show, with all those performers flying in and out of their sequined garb between segments! But you'll have to settle for regular seating, where admission ranges from $20 to $75. Call 303-893-4100 or go to www.denvercenter.org for tickets and showtimes.
Wednesdays-Fridays, 8 p.m.; Sat., March 3, 2 & 8 p.m. Starts: Feb. 28. Continues through March 3