Perfomer and playwright Jon Peterson makes his Milwaukee Repertory Theater debut by giving us a history of some of the greats in vaudeville, theater extravaganzas, movie musicals and Vegas shows, and all the while Jack Forbes Wilson is accompanying him with his keyboard magic in "Song Man Dance Man."

The energy that both exude is hard to believe, considering that it is a two-hour show and they are performing it seven times a week. They are troopers of the highest order.

On this melodic journey, we meet George M. Cohan, Fred Astaire, Bobby Darin, Gene Kelly, Sammy Davis, Jr., Anthony Newley and Donald O’Conner. As we watch them dance and listen to some of their signature songs, we learn some personal tidbits about their lives, both in and out of show business.

Peterson does not give us a perfect replica of any of them, but he styles his dance and songs with the distinct flavor of each performer. He is amazingly versatile and very comfortable both with his audience and his material. By the end of the show, we are thrilled to have met him and happy to have revisited each of these talented stars.

We also are reminded of some of the great songwriters from the past: Cohan, Irving Berlin, Ira and George Gershwin, Darin, Newley, Hoagy Carmichael, Johnny Mercer, Cole Porter and others less famous, such as Walter Marks, who gave us Davis’ signature song, "I Gotta Be Me," and one of Darin’s big hits, "Mack the Knife," written by Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht.

Some of Peterson’s most powerful numbers are "For Once in My Life," "If I Ruled the World" and "Lazy River." As he dances, mostly tap dancing, we relive the likes of Kelly and Astaire, O’Connor and Cohan and Davis. As he sings, we hear the passion of a Darin or Newley.

Artistic director Brent Hazelton, who also brought us "Liberace" with the flamboyant Jack Forbes Wilson, has done it again with a show that will dazzle all who are fortunate enough to see it. It is a show that keeps building to the climactic rendition of Newley’s "What Kind of Fool Am I."

My last comment is this - if you love some of the old masters of song and dance, you would be a fool to miss this show.