Choreographer Shake Up for All Shook Up

Ken Roberson is taking over for Jodi Moccia as the choreographer for the Broadway-bound Elvis Presley musical, All Shook Up. Moccia choreographed the recent Goodspeed Musicals mounting of the tuner, but she will not be on board when the show hits Chicago's Cadillac Palace for its December tryout.

Roberson is currently represented on Broadway by Avenue Q. He was nominated for a Lucille Lortel Award for his work on the tuner when it was off-Broadway at the Vineyard Theatre. His other off-Broadway choreography credits include Avenue X, A Brief History of White Music which he also directed, Stupid Kids, The Mineola Twins and Harlem Song for which he received a Drama Desk nomination. Roberson also served as associate choreographer on Freak and assistant choreographer on Jelly's Last Jam on Broadway. He is attached to the upcoming musical version of The Color Purple.

A comedy set in middle America in 1955, All Shook Up, which features a book by Joe DiPietro, is not a biographical revue. In the musical, one girl's wish and a surprise visit from a mysterious leather-jacketed, guitar-playing stranger lead a small town to discover the magic of romance and the power of rock 'n' roll. Songs in the show include "Heartbreak Hotel," "Love Me Tender," "Don't Be Cruel," "Can't Help Falling in Love" and "All Shook Up."

All Shook Up, directed by Christopher Ashley, will try out at Chicago's Cadillac Palace Theatre, where it is scheduled to run from December 19, 2004 through January 23, 2005. It is then set to land at Broadway's Palace Theatre, with performances beginning on February 20, 2005 in preparation for a March 24, 2005 opening.