Intact ‘Chicago,’ Save Velma

“Chicago,” the musical that makes us admit we get a thrill from killers, outrageous liars and lawyers--as long as they’re stylish--has moved from downtown’s Ahmanson Theatre to the Shubert in Century City.

Khandi Alexander has stepped into the role of Velma Kelly, a notorious murderess who gets shoved from the spotlight by the next headline-grabbing femme fatale to kill her lover. Velma gets a star entrance--rising up from the floor, center stage, with a white hot light on her.

Still new to the role, Alexander is underwhelming as Velma, and she never goes on to earn that entrance. She looks great in a black dress the size of a wash cloth, a ponytail sprouting from the top of her head, and a grinding, dour expression. Alexander is funny when she’s forced to suck up to the new girl in town--a baby-talking blond who is--unbelievably--even nastier than she is. But in the all-important solo turns, Alexander’s dancing is lackluster. As of Thursday night, she never approached the steely confidence of a showgirl who would cut your throat as soon as miss a high kick.

The show, however, remains gorgeously intact. Charlotte d’Amboise is perfection as Roxie Hart, the ditsy party girl who inadvertently achieves her wildest ambition--celebrity--when she shoots her lover. D’Amboise finds endless comedy in Roxie’s transparent phoniness. Her masterful dancing gives the lie to Roxie’s helpless routine, and her act-one ode to herself, “Roxie,” is a tour de force. What’s more, D’Amboise hints at the panic underneath Roxie’s pathetic need for recognition, and her corresponding instinct about keeping pathos to an absolute minimum is exactly right; in “Chicago,” you never want to spoil a good time.

Brent Barrett as the baby-faced barracuda Billy Flynn is terrifically strong, as is the entire ensemble. Directed by Walter Bobbie, choreographed by Ann Reinking (in the style of Bob Fosse), this John Kander-Fred Ebb musical insists--through the excellence of its dancers--that shallow pleasures can be profound.

* “Chicago--The Musical,” Shubert Theatre, 2020 Avenue of the Stars, Century City, Tuesdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 7:30 p.m.; Saturdays-Sundays, 2 p.m. Ends Aug. 30. $35-$70. (800) 447-7400. Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes.