How many sounds can you make with a single broom? How about with a shopping cart? What about with a group together using these objects? The unique music and dance group STOMP proves you can make quite a lot of percussive rhythms using nearly entirely everyday objects. The group uses a mix of dance choreography and musical beats. By banging their feet and clapping their hands, the group brings a unique and unforgettable musical experience to Worcester.

With the brooms, for instance, the entire group is able to form unique beats using only different parts of the cleaning tool. While one performer may be slamming the broom’s handle against the floor, another will be sweeping against it, all together creating a unique blend of beats that fill the entire theater. It is an impressive and deeply coordinated performance that only works due to the 30+ years the show has been running around the world. The group has meticulously refined and figured out all of the best sounds to use with each object they’ve chosen. In many ways it sounds and feels like watching a street drummer you might see outside of a subway station, only at the highest and most intricately designed level.

While STOMP is an impressive music performance, it’s an equally impressive dance one. Throughout the show, you will see the performers passing objects to one another, running around the stage while they’re stomping on the ground, and even riding on shopping carts, slamming into one another. While it may feel large, fast-paced, and, at times, rambunctious, the show never feels overwhelming, likely due to the precise coordination on display. All of the placement of the performers and objects form a visual symmetry that can be mesmerizing as you try to decide a place to look in the controlled chaos on stage. All of this is supplemented with visual comedy moments that break the tension just when necessary. Without speaking, each performer brings a unique personality and humor to the stage.

I do wish the performance offered a more diverse set of sounds using the everyday objects chosen. Perhaps my favorite moment from the show is when the group hangs kitchen sinks around their necks, banging and pouring water into them. With each member pouring different amounts of water in together, the sinks create a beautiful, almost orchestral humming that echoes throughout the theater. I only wish there were more moments like this between the loud and more consistent bangings of trashcan lids, street signs, and sticks. 

One of the most special moments in the show comes in the form of audience participation. Members of STOMP guide the audience in clapping their hands, slamming their feet, and snapping their fingers. With guidance, the audience is given the opportunity to make the same rhythmic beats they’ve been experiencing throughout the show. In this way, STOMP defines itself as more than just a show, but as a message. That music is found everywhere, even in the simplest of household objects. You don’t need special music equipment to make something special; all you need is your hands, feet, and a beat. I highly recommend STOMP to any music fan.