WHAT?S GOING ON BROADWAY?! It?s only 32 days till Broadway?s biggest night of the year?. The 72nd Annual Tony Awards. We are continuing to present to all of you the best of the Musical Theatre stage from the previous telecasts on NEW YORK BROADWAY TOURS? TOP 40 TONY AWARDS COUNTDOWN.
At # 32 on our countdown is a show honoring the works of one of the most genius choreographers ever in the history of Musical Theatre. He was well known for his movements like the jazz hands, the rolled shoulders, sideways shuffling, and more. He used canes, chairs, and boiler hats at his signature props. We are talking about the late and legendary?. Bob Fosse. This is the tribute musical revue FOSSE. This show was performed in 3 acts. It was conceived by Director Richard Maltby, Jr. along with acclaimed dancers Chet Walker and Ann Reinking.
From the 1999 telecast, the company perform the ultimate dancing showstopper?. Louis Prima?s SING SING SING (which appeared in Bob Fosse?s 1978 musical DANCIN?).
The show was first conceived by Chet Walker in the 90?s to reflect on the mark Bob Fosse had on the world of Theatre. Walker was no stranger to working with Bob appearing in many of his acclaimed shows and ended up becoming a dance captain for them. It was workshopped in New York City and featured many dancers coming together teaming up to get Bob Fosse?s choreography right. Livent (a production company in Canada) helped produce the show before embarking on a pre-Broadway tour tryout playing Toronto, Boston, and Los Angeles. In addition, the show went through a lot of changes. Mainly producers felt the show was too long for a revue. The show?s original timing was 3 hours and 10 minutes. The final product was cut down to 2 ? hours.
FOSSE officially arrived on Broadway at the Broadhurst Theatre in 1999. The show ran for a total of 1,114 performances. It was one of the longest running revues in Broadway history. The cast featured an incredible lineup of some of the greatest performers on Broadway including Tony winners Ben Vereen and Tony Winner Ann Reinking. In addition, future Tony winner Andy Blankenbuehler and celebrated dancer Rachelle Rak both appeared in the Ensemble
The show was nominated for 8 Tony Awards in 1999 winning 3 including Best Musical.
During its run on Broadway, FOSSE was also captured on film. It aired on Great Performances l PBS back in 2002. It?s currently available on DVD.
Right after the Broadway production closed, FOSSE went on to become a hit in London?s West End running only for a year.
No revivals have been made for FOSSE at the moment but we hope to see one soon.
How about that performance honoring a true Broadway genius?
#TonyAwards #CountdownToTheTonys #BroadwaysBiggestNight #NYBTTonyAwardsCountdown #NewYorkBroadwayTours #Top40Countdown #ThisIsBroadway
The cast performs “Sing, Sing, Sing” on the Tony Awards.
Love our posts? Click here to follow us on Facebook!
Wanna Book a Tour? Click here!
