Two and a half stars
Storyteller Bobby Norfolk, Pianist Pete Ruthenberg

St. Louis storyteller Bobby Norfolk’s enthusiasm was catching Saturday night — he bounded on stage in a bright royal blue blazer, dancing and singing the chorus to the Ellington staple “It Don’t Mean a Thing.” But his material wasn’t nearly as exciting, standard bio-pic fare that covered too much territory, reducing a complicated and brilliant life to simplified plot points and conflicts. Which is a shame, because Norfolk has an engaging presence, and displayed a talent for mimicry and assuming different characters when he stopped long enough to sketch out a vignette. Neither was the program particularly well-suited for the audience: While schoolchildren may need to be reminded of the significance of alcohol prohibition and the Harlem Renaissance, a certain sophistication and awareness might be assumed among the mostly over-40 crowd attending Saturday night’s show. But some moments worked: A poem about jazz history and analysis of ragtime and swing briefly explored the roots of Ellington’s work.