1975 Off-Broadway 1975 Broadway 1976 North American tour 1976 US tour 1976 West End 1990 US tour 1996 North American tour 2006 Broadway 2008 North American tour 2013 West End
Set on the bare stage of a Broadway theater, the musical is centered on seventeen Broadway dancers auditioning for spots on a chorus line. A Chorus Line provides a glimpse into the personalities of the performers and the choreographer, as they describe the events that have shaped their lives and their decisions to become dancers.
Following several workshops and an Off-Broadway production, A Chorus Line opened at the Shubert Theatre on Broadway July 25, 1975, directed by Michael Bennett and co-choreographed by Bennett and Bob Avian. An unprecedented box office and critical hit, the musical received twelve Tony Award nominations and won nine, in addition to the 1976 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
The show opens during an audition for an upcoming Broadway production. The formidable director Zach and his assistant choreographer Larry put the 24 dancers through their paces. Every dancer is desperate for work ("I Hope I Get It"). After a round of cuts, 17 dancers remain. Zach tells them he is looking for a strong 8-member dancing chorus of four boys and four girls. Wanting to learn more about them, he asks the dancers to introduce themselves. Reluctantly, the dancers reveal their pasts. The stories generally progress chronologically from early life experiences through adulthood to the end of a career.
The first candidate, Mike Costa, explains that he is the youngest of 12 children. He recalls his first experience with dance, watching his sister Rosalie's dance class when he was a preschooler ("I Can Do That"). Mike replaced her one-day when she refused to go to class—and he stayed. Bobby Mills tries to hide his unhappy childhood by making jokes. As he speaks, the other dancers distrust this strange audition process and debate what they should reveal to Zach ("And..."), but since they all need the job, the session continues.
Zach is angered that the streetwise Sheila Bryant is seemingly not taking the audition seriously. Opening up, she reveals that her mother married at a young age and her father neither cared about nor loved them. At age six she realized, as had fellow auditionees Bebe Benzenheimer and Maggie Winslow, that ballet helped her escape her unhappy family life ("At the Ballet"). Scatterbrained and tone-deaf Kristine Urich-DeLuca laments being unable to sing, while her husband Al finishes her phrases in tune ("Sing!").
Mark Anthony, the youngest dancer, relates his first exposure to the female anatomy and his first wet dream, while the other dancers share their own memories of adolescence ("Hello Twelve, Hello Thirteen, Hello Love"). The 4 ft 10 in (1.47 m) Connie Wong laments the problems of being short, and Diana Morales recollects her horrible high school acting class ("Nothing"). Don Kerr remembers his first job at a nightclub and Judy Turner reflects on her problematic childhood while some auditioners talk about their parents' opinions ("Mother"). Greg Gardner discusses discovering his homosexuality and Richie Walters recounts nearly becoming a kindergarten teacher ("Gimme the Ball"). Finally, the newly-buxom Val Clark explains that talent alone isn't everything, and silicone and plastic surgery can really help improve one's image and career prospects ("Dance: Ten; Looks: Three").
The dancers go downstairs to learn a song for the audition's next section, but experienced dancer Cassie Ferguson, who has had notable successes as a soloist, stays onstage to talk to Zach. They have a history together: Zach had previously cast her in a featured part, and they had lived together for several years. Zach tells Cassie that she is too good for the chorus and shouldn't be at this audition. However, she explains her current inability to find solo work and is willing to "come home" to the chorus where she can at least express her passion for dance ("The Music and the Mirror"). Zach relents and sends her downstairs to learn the dance combination.
Zach calls Paul San Marco, who has been reluctant to share his past, onstage for a private talk, and he emotionally relives his childhood and teenage years, his early career in a drag act, facing his manhood and his homosexuality, and his parents ultimately discovering his lifestyle and disowning him for it, before breaking down, with Zach comforting him. Cassie and Zach's complex relationship resurfaces during a run-through of the number created to showcase an unnamed star ("One"). Zach confronts Cassie, feeling that she is "dancing down," and they rehash the issues in their relationship and her career. Zach points to the machine-like movement of the other dancers, who have all blended together and will probably never be recognized individually, and mockingly asks if she wants this. Cassie defiantly defends the dancers: "I’d be proud to be one of them. They’re wonderful....They’re all special. I’d be happy to be dancing in that line. Yes, I would...and I'll take chorus...if you'll take me."
During a tap sequence, Paul falls and injures his knee that recently underwent surgery. After Paul is carried off to the hospital, all at the audition stand in disbelief, realizing that their careers can also end in an instant. Zach asks the remaining dancers what they will do when they can no longer dance. Diana leads the company in "What I Did for Love". The final eight dancers are selected: Mike, Cassie, Bobby, Judy, Richie, Val, Mark, and Diana.
"One" (reprise/finale) begins with an individual bow for each of the 19 characters, their hodgepodge rehearsal clothes replaced by identical spangled gold costumes. As each dancer joins the group, it is suddenly difficult to distinguish one from the other: ironically, each character who was an individual to the audience seems now to be an anonymous member of a never-ending ensemble.[1]
Zach – The imperious, successful director running the audition
Larry – Zach's assistant
The Auditionees
Don Kerr (#5) – A married man who once worked in a strip club
Maggie Winslow (#9) – A sweet woman who grew up in a broken home
Mike Costa (#81) – An aggressive dancer who learned to tap at an early age
Connie Wong (#149) – A petite Chinese-American who seems ageless
Greg Gardner (#67) – A sassy Jewish gay man who divulges his first experience with a woman
Cassie Ferguson – A once successful solo dancer down on her luck and a former love of Zach's
Sheila Bryant (#152) – A sassy, sexy, aging dancer who tells of her unhappy childhood.
Bobby Mills (#84) – Sheila's best friend who jokes about his conservative upbringing in Buffalo, New York
Bebe Benzenheimer (#37) – A young dancer who only feels beautiful when she dances
Judy Turner (#23) – A tall, gawky, and quirky dancer
Richie Walters (#44) – An enthusiastic black man who once planned to be a kindergarten teacher
Al DeLuca (#17) – An Italian-American who takes care of his wife
Kristine Urich-DeLuca (#10) – Al's scatterbrained wife who can't sing
Val Clark (#179) – A foul-mouthed but excellent dancer who couldn't get performing jobs because of her looks until she had plastic surgery
Mark Anthony (#63) – The youngest dancer, who recounts the time he told his priest he thought he had gonorrhea
Paul San Marco (#45) – A gay Puerto Rican who dropped out of high school and survived a troubled childhood
Diana Morales (#2) – Paul's friend, another Puerto Rican who was underestimated by her teachers
Cut Dancers
Tricia (#131) – A dancer who prays for a job
Vicki (#60) – A dancer who's never studied ballet
Lois (#63) – A dancer who excels in ballet
Roy (#36) – A dancer who can't seem to get the right arms for the dance
Butch (#14) – A dancer who gives attitude in the audition
Tom (#40) – A dancer who is also an all-American jock
Frank (#59) – A dancer who keeps looking at his feet
Production history
The musical was formed from several taped workshop sessions with Broadway dancers, known as "gypsies," including eight who eventually appeared in the original cast. The sessions were originally hosted by dancers Michon Peacock and Tony Stevens. The first taped session occurred at the Nickolaus Exercise Center on January 26, 1974. They hoped that they would form a professional dance company to make workshops for Broadway dancers.
Michael Bennett was invited to join the group primarily as an observer, but quickly took control of the proceedings. Although Bennett's involvement has been challenged, there has been no question about Kirkwood and Dante's authorship. In later years, Bennett's claim that A Chorus Line had been his brainchild resulted not only in hard feelings but a number of lawsuits as well.[11] During the workshop sessions, random characters would be chosen at the end for the chorus jobs based on their performance quality, resulting in a different "cast" being selected every run-through. However, several of the costumers objected to this ending, citing the stress of having to change random actors in time for the finale. This resulted in the ending being cut in exchange for the same set of characters being "cast."[12] Marvin Hamlisch, who wrote A Chorus Line's score, recalled how, during the first previews, audiences seemed put off by something in the story. This problem was solved when actress Marsha Mason told Bennett that Cassie (Donna McKechnie in the original production) should win the part in the end because she did everything right. Bennett changed it so that Cassie would always win the part.[13]
Original production
A Chorus Line opened Off-Broadway at The Public Theater on April 15, 1975.[14] At the time, the Public did not have enough money to finance the production so it borrowed $1.6 million to produce the show.[15] The show was directed by Bennett and co-choreographed by Bennett and Bob Avian. Advance word had created such a demand for tickets that the entire run sold out immediately. Producer Joseph Papp moved the production to Broadway and on July 25, 1975, it opened at the Shubert Theatre, where it ran for 6,137 performances[16] until April 28, 1990.
Additional cast members Carole Schweid and John Mineo were understudies named "Barbara" and "Jarad", although they only went on covering other roles. Also, Tim Cassidy was an understudy for "Bobby" but was not in the original cast and didn’t join the Broadway cast until after several of the originals opened the LA and London companies.
The production was nominated for 12 Tony Awards, winning nine: Best Musical, Best Musical Book, Best Score (Hamlisch and Kleban), Best Director, and Best Choreography, Best Actress (McKechnie), Best Featured Actor (Sammy Williams), Best Featured Actress (Bishop) and Best Lighting Design.[17] The show won the 1976 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, one of the few musicals ever to receive this honor, and the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best Play of the season.
In 1976, many of the original cast went on to perform in San Francisco. Open roles were recast and the play was again reviewed as the "New" New York Company which included Ann Reinking, Marsha Mason, Sandahl Bergman, Christopher Chadman, Justin Ross (who would go on to appear in the film), and Barbara Luna.
When it closed, A Chorus Line was the longest running show in Broadway history[18] until its record was surpassed by Cats in 1997. On September 29, 1983, Bennett and 332 A Chorus Line veterans gathered to celebrate the musical becoming the longest-running show in Broadway history.[19]
Up to February 19, 1990, A Chorus Line had generated $146 million from its Broadway gross and $277 million in total U.S. grosses[20] and had 6.5 million Broadway attendees.[21] At the time, it was the second most profitable show in Broadway history after Cats with profits of $50 million (including ancillary income). 75% of the profits went to Papp's New York Shakespeare Festival and 25% to Bennett's Plum Productions.[20] Since its inception, the show's many worldwide productions, both professional and amateur, have been a major source of income for The Public Theater that Papp had founded.
Subsequent productions
U.S. and international tours were mounted in 1976, including a sit-down engagement in Los Angeles at the Shubert Theatre.
A London production opened in the West End at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane in 1976, initially with the International Cast from the US, including Jane Summerhays as Sheila.[22][23] The production ran for three years and won the Laurence Olivier Award as Best Musical of the Year in 1976, the first year the awards were presented. The original British cast took over in 1977. It included Jean-Pierre Cassel as Zach, Diane Langton as Diana Morales, Jeff Shankley as Al, Michael Staniforth as Paul, Stephen Tate as Greg (later replacing Cassel as Zach) and Geraldine Gardner (aka Trudi van Doorn of The Benny Hill Show) as Sheila. Elizabeth Seal was cast as Cassie but was replaced at the eleventh hour by her understudy Petra Siniawski who played the role for the entire British cast run.[24]
In 1980, under the direction of Roy Smith, the Teatro El Nacional of Buenos Aires produced a Spanish version of A Chorus Line lasting 10 months (and then only to make way for an already scheduled subsequent production).
In Spain the show opened in December 1984 at Teatre Tívoli in Barcelona, directed by Roy Smith and translated into Spanish by Nacho Artime and Jaime Azpilicueta, before transferring to Teatro Monumental in Madrid.
In July 1986, A Chorus Line was produced in Italy for the first time. It premiered at the Nervi Festival of Dance in Genoa, followed by a five-week Italian tour. The choreography was adapted for the festival's performing space by Baayork Lee who had played Connie in the original production and subsequently became a close collaborator of Michael Bennett, the original choreographer.[26]
The German-language version was again directed by Lee and first opened in 1987 in Vienna, Austria, where it ran for one season [27] followed by the German-language CD release[28] produced by Jimmy Bowien in 1988.
The first—and as of 2016 only—professional Hungarian production of the musical opened its limited run on March 25, 1988, under the title Michael Bennett emlékére (In Memory of Michael Bennett). It was performed by Ódry Színpad (the company of the Academy of Drama and Film in Budapest) translated into Hungarian by György Gebora, and directed by Imre Kerényi. The character Zach was renamed Michael and played by Kerényi.[29]
The production received two Tony Award nominations in 2007 for Featured Role (Charlotte d'Amboise) and Revival (Musical).[17] The original contract for A Chorus Line provided for sharing the revenue from the show with the directors and dancers that had attended the original workshop sessions. However, the contract did not specify revenue when the musical was revived in 2006. In February 2008, an agreement was reached between the dancers and Michael Bennett's estate.[33]
In 2012, the musical toured Australia, gaining much critical acclaim. Baayork Lee directed the production and it gained many nominations, including Helpmann nominations for Best Actress in a Musical for West End star, Anita Louise Combe playing Cassie, Best supporting Actress in a musical, Deborah Krizak and Best supporting Actor in a musical, Euan Doidge and it won best musical. The same production and cast then came to Singapore, playing at the Marina Bay Sands, Sands Theater from May 4 to 27, 2012.[35]
In 2015, the Original Broadway cast of Hamilton paid tribute to A Chorus Line's 40th anniversary and performed "What I Did For Love",[39] with the original cast of A Chorus Line joining them onstage.
Reports surfaced in June 2016 that a second Broadway revival is planned for 2025, in honor of the show's 50th anniversary.[40]
For its annual fully staged musical event, the Hollywood Bowl produced a limited run of A Chorus Line from July 29–31, 2016, directed and choreographed by Baayork Lee. The cast included Sabrina Bryan as Valerie Clark, Robert Fairchild as Mike Costa, Spencer Liff as Larry, Ross Lynch as Mark Anthony, Mara Davi as Maggie Winslow, J. Elaine Marcos as Connie Wong, Jason Tam as Paul San Marco, Leigh Zimmerman as Sheila Bryant, Mario Lopez as Zach, Sarah Bowden as Cassie Ferguson, Krysta Rodriguez as Diana Morales, and Courtney Lopez as Kristine Ulrich.[41]
In 2016, approval was granted to director Donna Feore to allow changes in choreography so the show could be performed for the first time on a thrust stage, in the Festival Theatre at the Stratford Festival of Canada.
In 2018, New York City Center presented A Chorus Line as their annual gala presentation. The production was directed by Bob Avian, co-choreographer of the original 1975 production, and choreographed by Baayork Lee, Broadway's original Connie Wong.
In 2019, a Spanish-language version of the musical premiered as part of the inaugural season of Teatro del Soho in Málaga, Spain, starring the theater's founder Antonio Banderas as Zach. Banderas also co-directed the musical with Baayork Lee.[42]
As Kelly Bishop, who played Sheila in the original Broadway cast, later noted, "it was appalling when director Richard Attenborough went on a talk show and said 'this is a story about kids trying to break into show business.' I almost tossed my TV out the window; I mean what an idiot! It's about veteran dancers looking for one last job before it's too late for them to dance anymore. No wonder the film sucked!"
Kelly, Kevin, One Singular Sensation: The Michael Bennett Story. New York: Doubleday 1990. ISBN0-385-26125-X
Mandelbaum, Ken, A Chorus Line and the Musicals of Michael Bennett. St. Martins Press 1990. ISBN0-312-03061-4
McKechnie, Donna and Lawrence, Greg, Time Steps: My Musical Comedy Life. Simon & Schuster 2006. ISBN0-7432-5520-8
Stevens, Gary, The Longest Line: Broadway's Most Singular Sensation: A Chorus Line. Applause Books 2000. ISBN1-55783-221-8
Viagas, Robert; Lee, Baayork; and Walsh, Thommie, On the Line: The Creation of A Chorus Line. New York: William Morrow & Company 1990. ISBN0-688-08429-X
