Choreography in Theatre

The Follies, the beginning of modern Choreography

Follies a history Choreography really took off when the Zigfield follies made their debut in 1907 Gaining their name from Florens Zigfield’s wife and entertainer Anna Held and the Follie Bergere of Paris France The show ran till 1931 with various remakes till their demise in The follies were so successful that they spawned both a motion picture and a radio show in the height of their popularity

The man behind the show Born to Belgian and German immigrants, Zigfield was no choreographer but a great producer. He started by helping salvage his father’s night club and managing a strong man, this led him to meet Anna Held whom was his common law wife for some years as well as a client of his Zigfield produced both the Follies and Showboat, yet it was Held whom suggested an American imitation of the Follie Bergere

What the show was all about The zigfield follies gave rise to the one of first real choreographer in broadway’s history; Robert Balanchine, the man responsible for the ballet and movement of the follies circa 1936 yet it another choreographer; Robert Alton whose moves and positions are still being used in modern productions The show was a musical revue, one which gave rise to stars like Lucille Ball

Rock, Musical, Choreography and Fosse

Rock n roll’s influence on choreography  It has been said that Rock n Roll made Bye Bye Birdie the first musical stage or film to be influenced since the fifties in having Rock N Roll music for its musical acts.  Then you have fosse the 3 act musical done on the choreography of Bob Fosse. Which had 2 different adaptations done the Broadway version and the London Production. Both had nominations and won a Tony award, a drama desk away and an Laurence Olivier Award.

What is Choreography? Choreography is the art of movement in blocking and dance and sometimes specialized in dance and for duels meaning the actors need to be trained in a certain way

Garth Fargan Garth Fargan and Christopher Gattelli were vital roles in the Disney Musical Theatre Productions for “The Lion King” and “Newsies.” Garth Fargan grew up in Kingston, Jamaica. Growing up he did gymnastics and gymnastics is what grew his curiosity in dance. He studied at Wayne State University and earned his Bachelor Of Arts Degree with sights on becoming a psychologist. “Fagan worked at several dance companies in Detroit, and moved to Rochester New York in 1970, and there established his dance company originally named the "Bottom of the Bucket BUT... Dance Theatre" in 1973.” He was influenced by Caribbean and West African dances. Fagan's choreography incorporates elements of modern dance, ballet, Afro-Caribbean dance, and social dance. He was a big influence for Disney choreography. He won many awards including the coveted Tony award for Best Choreograph for Disney’s The Lion King. His list of his awards include: “1998 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Choreography – The Lion King 1998 Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Choreography – The Lion King 1998 Tony Award for Best Choreography – The Lion King 2000 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Theatre Choreographer – The Lion King” Productions he has choreographed include:Griot New York (1991) Moth Dreams (1992) The Lion King (1997)

Christopher Gattelli Christopher Gattelli also made an impact on Disney Broadway and Broadway in general. “Christopher Gattelli is a choreographer, performer, and director for the theatre. He has been nominated for the Tony Award for Best Choreography for South Pacific and Newsies, and the Drama Desk Award, Outstanding Choreography for Altar Boyz, He won the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Choreographer for Altar Boyz and Bat Boy: The Musical.”He currently just won the Tony and Drama Desk Awards for Best Choreography for Newsies this year. “He grew up in Bristol, Pennsylvania, started dancing at the age of 11 and is a “Star Search Grand champion.” His work as choreographer for Broadway includes Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me (2006), High Fidelity (2006), The Ritz (2007), Sunday in the Park with George (Revival, 2008), South Pacific (2008), 13 (2008), and Newsies (2012).Broadway includes Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me (2006), High Fidelity (2006), The Ritz (2007), Sunday in the Park with George (Revival, 2008), South Pacific (2008), 13 (2008), and Newsies (2012). As a performer, he appeared in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (Revival) and Cats.How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (Revival) and Cats.

Rnr influence  You also have The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Which is one of my all time favorite shows ever. It has a mix of upbeat and slow tempo of rock n roll music and the songs tend to really help set the moods for the play.

musical  Musical's have been around for decades one of the biggest musicals has been Bye Bye Birdie which originally showed on Broadway back in the early to mid 1950’s.  Some of the other great musical hits came in the years from 1927 to starting with Showboat and ending with Wicked.

Choreography  With choreography most people think that it pertains just to dance. Yet it also goes with how you stand on stage or in a movie set while performing or filming.

Fosse  A 3 part movie musical named after Bob Fosse. The movie musical had several of his choreographed sequences in it. As was his trademark in all his choreographed sequences, all of his protégés wore hats/gloves combinations.

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