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I am not old enough for the original Studio 54 (really, I am not), but I did get to see the 2nd incarnation when it re-opened in the mid 90’s. As exciting as it was to see the place that bore so many iconic stories, I was told that it would never be the same as the original. In Florida, we have many people who were part of the staff of the original Studio 54 including my good friends…

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I am not old enough for the original Studio 54 (really, I am not), but I did get to see the 2nd incarnation when it re-opened in the mid 90’s. As exciting as it was to see the place that bore so many iconic stories, I was told that it would never be the same as the original. In Florida, we have many people who were part of the staff of the original Studio 54 including my good friends Michael Festa and Howard Merritt as well as Sal DiFalco and DJ Frank Corr (both from Boom) and I am sure there are many others. The reason I bring up Studio 54 is because that’s the feel The Donkey Show is portraying when you enter into the show, which is also known as The Oberon Nightclub; your disco fantasy.

donkey 2Before entering the venue, some of the performers are outside greeting and posing with their future audience. Once you enter the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County, you are actually on the dance floor with VIP all around, a stage, dancer boxes with dancers on them in 70’s garb as well as dancers walking all around you. They really transformed this space into a nightclub. The one thing I noticed from the moment I stepped in was that all the performers loved what they were doing and were having a blast and of course that makes the audience have even more fun!

This show is a spectacular phenomenon that blends a crazy circus of disco music hits, go-go dancers, roller skaters, feathered divas and a full active bar becoming the ultimate party extravaganza! The show, inspired by William Shakespeare’s classic comedy, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, is playing for a limited engagement on the Arsht Center’s Ziff Ballet Opera House stage (1300 Biscayne Boulevard, Miami).

Created by Tony Award-Winning Director Diane Paulus and Randy Weiner, The Donkey Show experience encourages the audience to become part of a glittering nirvana where inhibitions don’t exist and everyone dances and sings along to the greatest hits of the ‘70s such as “We Are Family,” “Last Dance,” “I Love the Nightlife,” and “Car Wash” – it’s an opportunity to relive the hedonistic days of the dazzling Studio 54 era. This self-curated show will allow patrons to become as emerged in the story and in the production as they wish. It’s the ultimate night fever—a crazy fun house enchanted by an ever-so-light sprinkling of Shakespearean magic.

donkey 3The Adrienne Arsht Center always strives to bring unique performances with world-wide appeal to the community,” said Executive Vice President, Scott Shiller. “Miami’s version of‘The Donkey Show’ will mark the show’s largest production yet—complete with alluring aerial stunts and a cast of 20 of South Florida’s best actors and dancers.”

The Donkey Show has previously performed on a world tour in major cities including London and Seoul, maintained a successful six-year run in New York and is currently playing in Boston. Hailed by Variety magazine as “…an infectious, celebratory and titillating event that starts off with giddy good fun.

The Donkey Show plays through August 12th. Check it out on Thursday, August 9 when Milancita Rodriquez hosts The Donkey Show Drag Night and an exclusive after party at Discotekka with free entry with your ticket stub!

Dance floor tickets are priced at $45 on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays; $60 on Fridays and Saturdays. Tickets in the VIP seating area are priced at $60 on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays; $75 on Fridays and Saturdays. Showtimes: Wednesdays & Thursdays at 7:30 pm, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm and 10:30 pm and Sundays at 5:00 pm. Patrons must be over the age of 18 to enter; 21 to drink. To purchase tickets to THE DONKEY SHOW call the Arsht Center box office at (305) 949-6722, or online at ArshtCenter.org.