Mr Aitken began rehearsals this week with 25 Wakatipu cast members. In four weeks, the company will move into the Queenstown Memorial Hall, where the entertainers will blend their polished performances with sets, lighting, sound and the live band.
The director assessed individuals in auditions and was looking for people who understood the "old-style musical comedy aspect, but [are] able to perform with a bittersweet tone", he said.
"All Shook Up is set in the 1950s, like Grease, but All Shook Up has more depth. There's an interesting development in act two where sex and sexuality starts to be questioned.
"I think [writer] Joe DiPietro has done a wonderful job in making the lyrics work with the scene; the emotional undercurrents the characters are going through."
In the month since the auditions, musical director Cheryl Collie taught singing, while choreographer Tiffany Menzies worked on three of the major numbers in the show. With such preparation done, Mr Aitken said his role was to integrate the package to make it work.
The director first came to Queenstown to direct the Broadway musical Cabaret for Showbiz Queenstown in 1993. Invitations to return had been made, but the timing had never suited his schedule, he said.
Mr Aitken is the winner of many awards, has worked in the arts for more than 50 years, and is a former associate director and original company member of the Court Theatre, in Christchurch. He continues to freelance out of the theatre as a tour manager, director and tutor.
However, the Court was "in a state of flux" because of the earthquake on February 22, and had been yellow-stickered by the authorities, Mr Aitken said.
The two stages within the Court, plus two rehearsal rooms, offices, wardrobe and technical equipment would need to be relocated for two or three years. A temporary home was being negotiated.
"The back wall moved out, and so have we. Four theatres have closed as a result: one might be demolished, one is to reopen in the spring and two are closed long-term.
"Really, the entertainment industry is staggering."
