So You Want to Dance on Broadway!
There was a time, years ago, when a Broadway dancer was not necessarily a ballet dancer. If you are old, enough to have seen the original “Fosse,” or “A Chorus Line” dancers, then you know what I mean. Bob Fosse, Michael Bennett and other choreographers of the day loved great jazz dancers. You could tell they had studied ballet, but it very likely was not their strong point. Broadway dancers took “ballet for theater dancers” class with nary a ballerina in sight.
Even so, the average Broadway audition always began with a brief ballet class. Within minutes, they knew if they wanted to see more of you. There would be a short break right after the across the floor combination and the cuts would begin. All of the hopefuls with poor ballet technique were thanked very nicely for coming. In “audition-speak” that meant that you had to pack up your dancing shoes and go.
The background of a Broadway dancer “du jour” is very different. Largely, they are more mature and polished and have a lot more training before they hit New York. Look at the résumés of working dancers. The majority of them have graduated from excellent college programs with strong ballet training and some are former members of professional ballet or modern companies.
So, how can you prepare for a future on Broadway? Start young, with good, clean training, and make ballet the cornerstone of your dance education. After you have graduated from pre-school combination classes, it’s time to get serious with the choices you make. Classical ballet is a must. It’s a perfect jumping-off point even for those dancers who cannot imagine being a swan. Ballet is the place where you teach your body the lines that make you look good no matter what style of dance becomes your forté. It gives you a reference point from which you can decipher many styles of movement. Learning to dance without ballet is a little like trying to go to college without having studied English.
Maris Battaglia leads a technique class at the Chautauqua Institution.
Photo: Roger J. Coda
Using dancers with ballet training is easier for choreographers. You will speak the same language; share an understanding of the shape and quality of movement. Even if the work is contemporary, a classical background gives your body the skills and strength you need to branch out to other disciplines. In the recent popular show, “Movin’ Out,” choreographer Twyla Tharp chose former ballet stars for many of the leads. “Fosse,” the smash hit that recreated original Fosse choreography, was put on dancers who were from a strong ballet background. Have you seen the “Rockettes” lately? Their tap is wonderful, but I would be willing to bet that they have all taken more ballet classes than tap. You can’t achieve the elegance and precision they project without it.
Ballet is not enough, though. Broadway dancers need to interpret historic styles of dance, many of them from pop culture. Tap and jazz will teach you that. Tap teaches rhythm and musicality rarely found in dancers without tap skills. Jazz will give you a wider range of movement and expression. It will soften and humanize the formality of ballet. Together they offer the historic dance you need because tap and jazz have always been a reflection of pop culture. They add soul and authenticity to strong ballet technique.
There is one more change from decades ago that should be addressed. College is now a great place to finish preparing yourself for a professional career. Years ago, it was almost impossible to find dance in college unless you went to Julliard. Broadway dance would have been unheard of in a university setting. Now you can find every form of dance in quality undergraduate and graduate programs across the U.S. Many talented performers retired from the stage are teaching in colleges, guest artists put notable choreography on students, and you have an opportunity to mature and become confident and competitive before you start auditioning.
Become a well-rounded dancer. Inspire yourself by seeing as many professional performances as you can. The next time you see a dancer that you admire, try to analyze why you like them. What makes them good? Look at their resumé in the program to learn about their background. Check out their technique.
…and trust me, work hard in ballet class.
Meg Segreto is a teacher, choreographer and studio owner. She teaches master classes for studios and conventions, creates tap and jazz choreography for theatre dance, ballet and modern companies, produces annual fundraising dance concerts for "Gilda's Club," offers teacher training and teaches the advanced levels of tap and jazz at her school, Meg Segreto's Dance Centre, located in Davie, Florida. Her studio offers programs in pre-school, classical ballet, pointe, tap, jazz, and modern and has a resident dance company, "Perpetual Motion." She is a perpetual student and ardent lover of theater, art, music, and of course, dance.