Seven Days: Vermont's Independent Voice

All That Jazz

Murderous women in fishnet stockings? Check. Prohibition-era vaudeville numbers? Check. It’s not surprising Chicago is one of the longest-running shows on Broadway. The musical, performed this weekend by Lyric Theatre Company, tells the story of vaudevillian Velma Kelly, who murdered her husband and sister when she discovered them in bed together, and chorus girl Roxie Hart, who offed her lover and blamed it on her husband. From their all-women block at the county jail — where corrupt Matron “Mama” Morton presides — Roxie and Velma feud over lawyers and limelight, each attempting to cash in on the sensational headlines they’ve provoked. From there, it’s all ventriloquist press conferences, rhinestone shoe buckles and oodles of jazz hands. Musicals don’t get much more fabulous.