The ingredients for fantastic Friday and Saturday evenings were all there. If you didn’t have a good time, then you were the problem at The Studios of Key West on April 4 and 5, when Adam LaSalle and Paul Rigano returned for Dueling Pianos.
As for those winning ingredients? Two Steinway baby grand pianos, two funny and talented pianists, a repertoire ranging from “Great Balls of Fire” to “I’m Still Standing,” and every other bar singalong song — “Sweet Caroline (buh-buh-buh),” “Brown-Eyed Girl” and, of course, “Piano Man.”
Oh, and let’s not forget the bar — beer, wine and real liquor drinks — well-positioned right at the edge of the theater and open throughout the show. In fact, LaSalle encouraged his audience to get up for a refill whenever needed. “The more you drink, the better we sound,” he said.
The show was a delight, with the audience ranging in age from 17 to 80, although, to be fair, the teens were part of the act. For the second year in a row, LaSalle and Rigano invited young musicians from Key West High School to share the stage for a few numbers — and they didn’t disappoint. Juju Strunk, Jax Thurston, Matteui Bastillada and Jamie Everitt make up the band Zero Turbulence, which plays gigs around town at Little Jazz Room, the Custom House and elsewhere, including the Dueling Pianos stage at The Studios of Key West. (Everitt couldn’t make the Studios gig, though, as she is performing in the high school’s production of “Mamma Mia.”)
If you missed the Dueling Pianos shows this year, keep an eye on The Studios of Key West performance schedule. They’ll be back — and so will I. (And check out Zero Turbulence on Instagram @zeroturbulenceband.)
