BY KAREN BOSSICK
It’s history in the blink of an eye.
Or, maybe, several blinks.
Informative. Entertaining. Clever. And way ambitious.
Rick Miller introduced BOOM to an audience Friday night at the Argyros Performing Arts Center in Ketchum. They were wowed as he performed magic behind a mysterious curtain like the Wizard of Oz. And they showed it with a standing ovation.
If you didn’t catch it, you can catch up as he reprises the show at 8 tonight and Sunday, Aug. 25, at the Argyros.Sunday's, however, is a private event not open to the public.
The one-man show is a crash course in BOOMdom—that is, the era of the Baby Boomers from 1945 to 1964.
The show uses rapid-fire newsreels, pictures, text, even home movies, as Miller notes historical facts, political upheavals and other noteworthy milestones of the era, including the atomic bomb, the Cuban Missile Crisis, Sputnik and The Pill. Often in satirical fashion.
He sings the songs of the time from Nat King Cole and Perry Como, hip swivels to an Elvis tune and then throws in some Janis Joplin and Joe Cocker. And he clearly got a rise out of the audience with Barry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction," as well as a couple Steppenwolf and Rolling Stones numbers.
He highlights the rise of consumerism, the prolonging of racism and the threat of nuclear annihilation.
And he stokes the belly laughs as he reminds people of the travails of rabbit ears, the rotary phone and--gulp--vitamin-infused doughnuts.
Miller said he created the show to learn about himself and where he came from by examining the lives of three baby boomers in his life and what shaped them.
He started off to tell the story of the best rock and roll ever created, then realized he couldn't tell that story without a look at the politics of the time.
To pull it off, he impersonates a hundred characters and plays guitar and harmonica to boot.
"I like how quickly it moves. You don't have a chance to get bored," said one viewer.
"Hes created a time capsule," added Casey Mott, the executive director of The Argyros.
Tickets start at $25, available at www.theargyros.org.
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