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Page 26 ?╟÷ GOLD COAST BULLETIN, Thursday, January 30, 1986 totallynew standards Having burst through the mouth of a huge clown?╟╓s face, one of Star? extravagant backdrops, acrobat dancers continue an exuberant routine DAVE CONLEY STARZ has a well-defined effect on en- tertainment-starved people. While the musical fantasy is underway, they go ga-ga. L^ier the ga-ga phase is flushed out of the system by the gee-whiz syndrome, which manifests itself in a series of gushing noises. The response is thoroughly justified. In fact any- one who attended Tuesday night?╟╓s opening of the Jupiters Casino show without being hit by the gee-whiz syndrome should consult their doctor. They could be dead. The greatest difficulty with the multi-million] dollar musical fantasy is stringing together superla- tives to adequately describe just how good it is. Certainly Starz makes other productions look like they?╟╓ve been hit with an ugly stick. In fact Starz cannot be judged by Gold Coast this show really is fantastic standards because it sets entirely new standards of entertainment. Starz is billed as a musical journey into time. It begins with Chuck McKinney, who plays the guide, standing in a fog-filled ?╟ black hole'. The special ef- fects are dazzling. It is the year 2020. A full-stage sized space ship drops down, 40 space suit'?╟÷attired dancers climb aboard and the craft lifts off in a cloud of smoke and disap pea An odyssey ensues heavenward. .... ___which takes in Venice in 1762, Australia in 1896, New York in 1936, Spain in 1880, Paris in 1901 and Australia from 1965 to 1985. " V" ?╟╓ Each segment seemed more stunning than the previous one. The period costumes, the dance rou- tines, the gymnastics, the music from a 16-piece orchestra, the extravagant sets, the special effects and the choreography were simply superb. , I In the Venice sequence a gondola ?╟ floated?╟╓ across the stage and went underneath a bridge on which fantail pigeons v/ere perched. During the Australia, 1896, segment a horse and buggy sauntered across the stage. In the New York sequence a vintage Cad-j iliac crossed ihe stage. The stage revolved during the segment in Spain and several motorbikes zoomed around in the Australia 1965 to 1985 piece. April Colombo parades as a creature of the night in one of the unusual costumes from Starz IflllPf