Semester 3 1. Who was Jack Cole and for what is he given credit? Jack Cole is credited as The Father of Theatrical Jazz Dance. After being sent to boarding school and being repudiated by his parents, Jack found himself in a career in dance. Along his way he came to create an ethnically influenced style of jazz dance that was initially thought only suitable for nightclubs and small stages. Coles style included acrobatic movements and angular positions. He also notably used smaller, tighter groups of dancers, which was reminiscent of the time he spent dancing in nightclubs like The Rainbow Room. 2. List the contributions of Bob Fosse and include three shows he choreographed along with their styles. Bob Fosse was very self-conscious. He did not like the shape of his body, his balding head embarrassed him. He often wore gloves to hide his hands. It may have been mostly this that influenced the style that he created; one that would accentuate the features of a body type outside the desired cookie cutter show boy/girl appearance. This style quickly became popular and easy to tell apart. Fosses style focused largely on specificity. It was all in the way he could draw the attention and eye of the entire audience right down to the flick of a wrist or the rotation of a finger. Elements of his choreographic style include turned-in knees, rolled shoulders, sideways shuffling and jazz hands. Fosse won a whopping 8 tony awards for choreography and one as director. He was nominated for four academy awards and won for his direction of Cabaret in 1972. Bob Fosse choreographed many shows, including Sweet Charity, Chicago and How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying. 3. What is the connection between George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins and why is it important? George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins co-founded the New York City Ballet in 1948. Robbins would remain its Co-founding
Choreographer for 35 years alongside Balanchine as its ballet
master. This is significantly important because it is a growing form of Balanchines School of American Ballet, which would give it its own venues to perform in. Upon the addition of the New York State Theatre (now the David H. Koch Theatre) it would become the first ballet company in the united states to have two venues at one time: the David H. Koch on 63rd in Manhattan, and the Saratoga Performing Arts Centre in Saratoga Springs, NY. The NYCB still holds the largest repertoire by far, staging sixty ballets or more in its winter season at the David H. Koch, and another twenty or more at Saratoga Springs. They have produced such classics as The Nutcracker, A Midsummer Nights Dream, and Romeo and Juliet. The NYCB trained many great dancers. 4. What is Michael Bennett famous for and what productions does he have to his credit? Michael Bennett is famous his show of A Chorus Line. The process that was used to birth A Chorus Line was very different than any other. Michael took auditions for the show and sat down with various dancers and performers to listen to them talk about how they got to where they are. He recorded all of the conversations and used the many, many hours of footage to write the story of A Chorus Line. You will find on close inspection that most if not all of the stories told in the show are adaptations of true, real stories. Michael also choreographed the show, and won over audiences with his spectacular use of lines and synchronization. Another thing Bennett is famous for is his style, or rather lack there of. Instead, his choreography was driven by the nature of each individual story, and the characters in them. He was one of the first choreographers to really start using choreography as a storytelling tool.. Michael Bennett choreographed some incerdible shows, including A Chorus Line, Dreamgirls, Company, Follies, and Ballroom. 5. Give three examples of modern day choreographers with examples of their work and the style they are most notable for. a. Mia Michaels is famous for her work on So You Think You Can Dance, and So You Think You Can Dance Canada as a judge and contributing choreographer. Her main style is
contemporary dance, but she has choreographed a few
jazz pieces and even one described as lyrical jazz. Some numbers she choreographed include One from A Chorus Line, Gravity by Sara Bareilles and Will I from Rent. b. Jerry Mitchel is an American music theatre choreographer who continues to choreograph large scale Broadway shows. He has choreographed Will Rodgers Follies, Brigadoon and even Jekyl; and Hyde and The Full Monty. In 2013 he directed and choreographed Kinky Boots and won the Tony for best choreography and was nominated for best direction of a musical. He also holds the 2005 Drama Desk Award for outstanding choreography in La Cage A Folles. c. Sonya Tayeh, also a well known choreographer from SYTYCD, but prior to that she actually moved to California to run a dance studio. It was there that she developed her own unique dance style that she calls Combat Jazz. She says Its staccato, aggressive and engaged, even when its slow. Fun fact: she calls Bjork (singer) her ultimate hero, and one of her top influences.