PALM SPRINGS, Calif. — There are many things that draw visitors to Southern California's Palm Springs — the terrific film festival each January, the year-round golfing, the art galleries and boutiques, and, of course, its almost eternally blue skies and warm weather.
But there's nothing quite as surprisingly satisfying and rewarding as the wonderfully unique and uplifting "Fabulous Palm Springs Follies."
"Uplifting"? Absolutely. No matter how you go into this three-hour show in Palm Springs' legendary Plaza Theater, you come out so buoyed up that you almost float home.
On the surface, its glitter and panache rivals New York's famous "Ziegfield Follies" of many years ago. But in its one-of-a-kind way, the "Palm Springs Follies" far surpasses the Ziegfield show.
What makes the show absolutely fabulous and jaw-droppingly stunning is that the entire gorgeous and super-talented cast is made up of senior citizens.
And what a cast it is! These men and women — stage-and-screen professionals from as far back as the 1920s and '30s — dance wonderfully, sing marvelously and wear multi-thousand-dollar costumes of rhinestones and feathers that'll knock your eyes out.
At one point, when the shapely and lovely chorus girls, accompanied by music, come down the staircase one by one, to primp and pose and introduce themselves, you'll hear things like "Hi, my name is Dorothy, and I just turned 80" or "I'm Maxine, and I'm 83," or even, "Hello, my name is Beverly, and I'm going to be 87 on my next birthday!"
The entire cast is an absolute marvel — but beautiful, petite and extremely agile 86-year-old Beverly Allen (who started dancing at 8, toured Europe with the USO during World War II, and made an amazing comeback to the stage when she joined the "Follies" seven years ago) is now in the Guinness Book of Records as "The World's Oldest Still-Performing Showgirl." Barely 1/2 inch over 5 feet, Beverly is the one whom the handsome tuxedoed men (in their 60s and 70s themselves) most often lift and whirl and toss from one to another during their dazzling musical numbers.
They're all special in their way, from tall, graceful Natascha Ahlborn, 68, born and raised in Germany, who was not only trained in classical ballet but has also been a high fashion model and danced in the Folies Bergere and the Lido in Paris, to pretty, blonde musical-comedy star Judy Bell, 66, whose spine-tingling throaty contralto voice has been thrilling Follies regulars for 10 years now.
And there's much more to the show than these eye-deceiving chorines with their shapely figures, gorgeous legs and elaborate headdresses and peacock-like costumes. Until just this year, the 87- and 90-year-old Mercer Brothers delighted audiences for years with their banjo-playing, soft-shoe dancing vaudeville act, and there is still always either a first-rate juggler, a comedy team, a fast-paced dog show or all of the above.
Not least of all is the suave and timed-to-perfection producer-emcee Riff Markowitz, an elegant and classy senior citizen himself, who keeps the timely jokes coming one after another.
And still, that's not all.
There's always the bonus of a guest star which, in the years I've been going, have included Howard Keel, Kay Starr, Donald O'Connor, Frankie Laine, Anna Maria Alberghetti, the Mills Brothers, the Four Aces, and the Four Lads.
And not all of the talent is on the stage. One year I sat beside Billy Barty, and on several occasions Bob Hope would stand up and take a bow from his special seat on the front row.
The show is always divided into three acts, one of which is inevitably a dynamic tribute to the armed forces or World War II or stage-door canteens, and it often ends with cannons, flags, streamers and confetti — each year seemingly topping the year before with its lively songs and inventive sets, costumes and special effects.
The "Fabulous Palm Springs Follies" is always invigorating and unforgettable, inevitably restoring faith in humanity and the indefatigability of the human spirit.
The show runs annually from early November through the end of May and is constantly changing. If you catch it once — and you simply must — trust me, you'll be hooked, and you'll keep coming back.
E-mail: marshalldj@itsnet.com