Alex: Chicago ‘non-stop frenzy’

Ice skating champion Elvis Stojko toplines the musical Chicago, now on stage in Toronto.

The tuner tells of Roxy Hart, a ’20s nightclub floozy, who becomes a celebrity after shooting her gangster lover. On death row, Roxy mixes with a sultry chorus of tough-as-nails jail chicks headed by the conniving Velma Kelly, who dreams of transforming her criminal celebrity into a showbiz career.

Jealousy erupts as Roxy, the new murderess of the moment, overshadows Velma in the jail’s pecking order.

Elvis Stojko is the hot-shot shyster lawyer Billy Flynn, who makes unethical deals to plead their cases revamping the public images of Roxy and Velma from molls to dolls.

The scintillating, syncopated score and Bob Fosse’s signature choreography propel the super-energetic cast into almost non-stop frenzy. Stojko was smooth on ice, but as the smooth talking lawyer, Canada’s skating ace is somewhat on thin ice, but admirably holds his own.

The show’s anthem, “Give’em the Old Razzle Dazzle,” does just that.

Chicago plays until Sunday in Toronto at the Princess of Wales Theatre.