Director's Note
Whether you love them or hate them, when thinking about theatre in the USA, our minds drift to the classic American Musical. It is an art form that has sustained its loyal fanbase by constantly reinventing itself and adapting to the times. I believe there are five “game-changers”, each roughly 20 years apart, whose first production altered the theatrical landscape in America for years to come –
1943: Oklahoma!.
1968: Hair.
1975: A Chorus Line.
1996: Rent.
2015: Hamilton.
Tonight, Phamaly is proud to present one of those game changers, A Chorus Line. Originally conceived by theatrical paramour Michael Bennett, the show was born out of an all-night recording session where various Broadway dancers shared their stories of hardship, humor, and, most importantly…love of an art form that did not always love them back. The purpose of this beautiful musical was to pull back the curtain so that one may experience the theatre past with all the glitz and glamour. It is a musical about performers being people. It is also a musical that has been gatekept by most artists.
A Chorus Line is a show about people…as long as those people are tall, skinny, traditionally beautiful, and able-bodied/neurotypical. This has always confused me. For a show whose theme is the humanity of performers, how is it possible that not every subsect of humanity is included?
So, I don’t know…maybe let’s do it differently??? Tonight’s production is different from any other Chorus Line you have ever seen. We have packed this relatively small theater with folks of all different backgrounds: race, gender, body type, ethnicity, and, of course, disability. What does this mean?
- If you are looking for complicated choreography done in perfect synchronicity, this isn’t the show for you. The actors will be performing choreography in harmony with their own body and mind.
- If you are looking for a show where all the lines make perfect dramaturgical sense, this isn’t the show for you. In order to move away from the show being strictly folks with a “perfect body and mind,” some of the lines will be in direct opposition to the thing you are seeing onstage.
- If you are looking for a show whose purpose is to uphold tradition, this isn’t the show for you. Here at Phamaly, we take tradition, and we don’t throw it away…we mold and adapt it into something inclusive.
So, if all those things are true, what is the lifeblood of this show? Tonight, you are going to see the most beautiful show, with the most beautiful artists who are here because they have a passion that far exceeds common sense. Artists whose love of the craft and love of each other far exceed what society has told them they can or can’t do. That is what Phamaly has been about for 35 years and will continue to be about for another 35.
Now lean forward and enjoy hearing about what we ALL did for love <3,
Ben Raanan
Director of A Chorus Line
Artistic Director of Phamaly Theatre Company
