A Chorus Line

Life is nothing but a series of tribulations and ordeal which might be grave or easier to perform but they carry immense significance all along. The crux of the matter comes forth when the impeccable performance is brought forward keeping aside all the torment and hard slog. Many narrative plays and theatrical performances comprised of such issues but still they carry great following and demand, the reason being the close proximity with life and its bitterness.

A Chorus Line is one such musical where the plot glides around seventeen Broadway dancers auditioning for spots on a chorus line. With nineteen main characters, it is set on the bare stage of a Broadway theatre. The show 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. This also highlights the stalk reality of the life of such talented people who get inspired or pushed forth into this world of rhythm and movement, thus marking themselves as entertainers.

The original Broadway production was an unprecedented box office and critical hit, receiving 12 Tony Award nominations and winning nine of them, in addition to the 1976 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It ran for 6,137 performances, becoming the longest-running production in Broadway history up to that time. It remains the longest running Broadway musical originally produced in the United States. The show has enjoyed many successful productions worldwide and was revived on Broadway in 2006.

Another candidate, Bobby, tries to hide the unhappiness of his childhood by cracking jokes. As he speaks, the 17 dancers have reservations about this strange audition process and debate what they should reveal to Zach. The session continues and Zach is angered when he feels that the streetwise Sheila is not taking the audition seriously. She reveals that her mother married at a young age to a man who neither loved nor cared for her. She goes on telling that when she was six, she realized that ballet provided relief from her painful family life.

The scatter-brained Kristine is tone-deaf, and her lament that she could never ‘Sing’ is interrupted by her husband. While sharing memories of adolescence, Gregory speaks about his discovery of his homosexuality, Diana recalls her horrible high school acting class, Don remembers his first job at a nightclub, Richie recounts how he nearly became a kindergarten teacher, Judy tells about her problematic childhood, and Connie laments the problems of being short.

Finally, the newly-buxom Val explains that talent doesn’t count for everything with casting directors. All go downstairs to learn a song for the next section of the audition, but Cassie, a soloist, waits to talk to Zach. They have a history together as Zach had cast her in a featured part previously. They had also lived together for several years. Since she hasn’t been able to find solo work for long, thus is willing to the chorus where she can at least express her passion for dance.

Cassie and Zach’s vague relationship re-emerges during a run-through of the number created to showcase an un-named star. Feeling that Cassie is dancing down, Zach confronts her. They rehash what went wrong in their relationship and her career. Zach points to the gypsies who will probably never get out of the line. Cassie replies, ‘ I’ll take the Chorus, if you take me’. Later, during a tap sequence, Paul falls injured and is carried off to the hospital. His audition is over. The final eight dancers are selected. These include Cassie, Bobby, Diana, Judy, Val, Mike, Mark and Richie.

“One’ begins with an individual bow for each of the 19 characters. The dancers’ hodgepodge rehearsal clothes are replaced by identical spangled gold costumes. As each dancer joins the group, it becomes difficult to distinguish one from the other. Ironically, each character who was an individual to the audience is now an anonymous member of the musical.

A Chorus Line received 12 nominations for the Tony Awards in 1975, winning nine. The winning categories were Best Musical, Best Actress, Best Featured Actor, Best Featured Actress, Best Director, Best Musical Book, Best Score, Best Lighting design and Best Choreographer. The musical also won the 1976 Pulitzer Prize for drama, becoming one of the few musicals ever to receive this honor.

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About the Author:
Peter Cohen calls Boston home and graduated from Brandeis University. He considers travel to be the love of his life and has already traveled to 5 different continents. He also has a passion for languages and has studied Arabic, German and Russian. While devoting his working life to writing for lifestyle magazines, he also takes out time for occasional event reviews.