Could ‘Magic Mike Live’ Be the Key to Longevity?

How many different ways are there to take off your shirt??

That’s what I was thinking on a rainy September morning. no i’m not here Fashion office but i Do There is a difficult task: Magic Mike live show After successful runs in London and Las Vegas, it’s finally opening in New York – and I’m observing the casting process.

this MMML team, including Channing Tatum (whose experience as a stripper inspired Magic Mike The franchise (which began with Steven Soderbergh’s 2012 film) and choreographers Allison Falk and Luke Broderick auditioned more than 850 male dancers from around the world for the show. On that dreary September day, 21 chiseled top contenders were making callbacks.

Photo: Courtesy of Magic Mike Live

When I call our humble Manhattan dance studio “steamy,” I mean it literally: all the hip thrusts, backflips, and other impressive athletic tricks that make the mirror blur. A person’s entire job for the day is to mop the floor; the wrong drop of sweat can lead to a slip.

There are no real audition uniforms. Some wore jerseys and showed off their tattooed biceps, while others dressed a bit like Paul Mescal for paparazzi shots. (Nikes are the sneakers of choice; silver necklaces abound.) I imagined myself surrounded by every possible version of Ken and his friends, but they were all kind and real.

But back to the shirts, there’s still a lack of shirts. Watching the dancers perform the same striptease move multiple times, I noticed one was enthusiastically removing his T-shirt with his hands, while the other was stripping off with more purpose. Don’t get me started on the guy in the gray hoodie who was careful to take his time (and show off his perfect six-pack).

“Don’t forget to find a moment to smile,” Falk urged the dancers. “You’re hot!”

After the talent show part of the day ended, MMML The hopefuls performed an acoustic rendition of the love song and danced salsa for their first lap dance lesson. “This experience is not about people at all,” Faulk instructed. “You’re here for women: let them have a good time, put them first.” That means making lots of eye contact, asking before touching, and kissing her hand.