Seniors sizzle on stage

Combining the elegance of a beauty pageant with the charm of a variety show, a group of talented performers stopped by the Oasis Senior Center in Corona del Mar on Friday to put on a show called “Sizzlin’ Seniors in Motion.”

The performers, ranging in age from early 60s to mid-80s, tore up the stage with tap numbers, patriotic salutes, a little Chopin and an original song written by a member of the group. Most of the songs, however, were borrowed from a half a century or more in the past.

Marilyn Kohler, director, producer and founder of the variety show, said the majority of her entertainers have won talent competitions around the country.

“Being a pageant director for five years, I didn’t want the women to stand on stage just one time,” Kohler said. “With all of this talent, why not share it with seniors hungry for music from the ‘40s and ‘50s?”

Sizzlin’ Seniors performed for the first time in 1999 in Huntington Beach with one saxophone player, one vocalist, two hula dancers and one country western performance.

“Now we have 30 performers, and the beat goes on,” Kohler said.

The Sizzlin’ Seniors make regular appearances at expos, county fairs, Cafe Roma in Beverly Hills, the Flamingo Hotel in Laughlin, Nev., and the Imperial Palace in Las Vegas.

Singer Dorcas Preston, a resident of Corona del Mar, was crowned Ms. Senior America in 2001, and fellow performer Susan Cashman claimed the Ms. Senior Palm Desert title this year.

Adding a bit of jazz to the show, Jan Briggins, Ann Marie Lorenzini, Barbara Jones and Bill Hard tap-danced to “Sweet Georgia Brown.”

Hard joined the group six months ago at 67 after expressing his interest in tap to a friend. The friend introduced him to Jones.

“I always wanted to tap,” Hard said. “It was a kind of boy dream.”

Briggins and Lorenzini, Carlsbad residents, said this was their first appearance with the group.

The quartet’s spirited number was only the first of the show’s tap routines. Marguerite Andrews, at 83 the oldest member of the group, performed two tap routines.

Known as the tap-dancing queen, Andrews completed several spins, high leg lifts and a few maneuvers that other members of the troupe said they could barely perform even as teenagers. Andrews’ second routine earned her a standing ovation.

The audience favorite was Eva Fry’s original composition, “Get Up, Get Out There, Get Going,” which encourages seniors to reach their full potential.

Oasis President Ed Romeo was in full agreement.

“We are for active seniors here at Oasis, and Sizzlin’ Seniors are a good example of that activity,” he said.dpt.08-boomer2-CPhotoInfo8E1PP8OA20060408ixdywxncMARK DUSTIN / DAILY PILOT(LA)Dorcas Preston, center, sings in the Hot Flashes segment of Friday’s Sizzlin’ Seniors show. Preston performed with Susan Cashman, left, and Marilyn Kohler.