Offbeat a capella experience at HOB
By Sara Elisabeth Potts - The Sun News
Five voices and no instruments make up the Grand Strand's newest dinner show.
Toxic Audio Dinner Show, which opens at House of Blues in North Myrtle Beach on Sunday, features a five-person group that mimics a human juke box, cranking out a collection of hit songs and everyday sounds a capella-style.
The show is an hour-and-30-minute montage of favorite songs from Michael Jackson to The Beatles that are synchronized - often amusing and always entertaining - into skits.
Both lyrics and instruments are created through the human voice.
And music isn't all the five-some can mimic. Other sounds, such as a motorcycle revving and other common noises, are prominently featured.
The group is composed of Jeremy James, Shalisa James, Michelle Mailhot-Valines, Rene Ruiz and Paul Sperrazza who got started in 1998 in Orlando, Fla., when they took over an abandoned storefront at the Orlando International Fringe Festival.
As Toxic Audio grew in popularity, the members caught the eye of Disney executives and were hired as performers at the Disney/MGM Studios. In 2003, Toxic Audio's album "Chemistry" was named "Album of the Year" by the Contemporary A Cappella Society of America.
The dinner show itself takes place in HOB's music hall and will feature an all-you-can-eat Southern-style dinner buffet an hour before the members perform.
The Toxic Audio Dinner Show is a limited engagement running through July 15.
Toxic Audio Dinner Show
Where | House of Blues, Barefoot Landing, North Myrtle Beach
When | Doors are at 5:30 p.m., and the show runs from 6:30 to 8 p.m.
How much | $32.95 for adults and $12.95 for children 10 and under.
272-3000, www.hob.com/myrtlebeach or www.toxicaudio.com
Contact SARA ELISABETH POTTS at 626-0379 or spotts@thesunnews.com
