Chorus Line Documentary Likely for May 2008 Release
By Andrew Gans
and Zachary Pincus-Roth
27 May 2007
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The company of A Chorus Line.
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| photo by Paul Kolnik | A documentary chronicling the casting of the current Tony-nominated revival of A Chorus Line will likely arrive in theatres in May 2008, coinciding with the launch of that show's national tour.
Variety reports that A Chorus Line producer John Breglio is one of the producers of the forthcoming film, four minutes of which were recently screened at the Cannes Film Festival. The documentary's co-directors are James D. Stern and Adam Del Deo. Endgame Entertainment, run by Stern, produces.
The film, according to the industry paper, will focus on the Chorus Line auditions, which featured more than 1,700 performers vying for roles eventually filled by Charlotte d'Amboise, Michael Berresse and Jason Tam, among others.
Before filming began, producer Breglio met with Actors' Equity to secure permission to film the audition process. "My intent," Breglio recalls telling Equity, "is not to demean or ridicule people. It's not Chorus Line gone reality TV. It's just the opposite — celebrating what it is to be a professional dancer and showing the journey and drama that goes into it."
Breglio, who has since viewed the audition footage, told Variety, "We now know that we have some amazing stuff. It has a story to it."
The Broadway revival of A Chorus Line began previews Sept. 18, 2006, and opened October 5 at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre. The production recouped its initial investment of $8 million 19 weeks after opening night, after 157 performances and 18 previews. The musical recently received two Tony Award nominations, including one for Best Revival of a Musical and the other for actress d'Amboise.
The musical's director is Bob Avian, who co-choreographed the original production with its director, the late Michael Bennett. For the revival, Baayork Lee re-staged the original choreography.
The design team includes Robin Wagner (sets), Theoni V. Aldredge (costumes), Natasha Katz and Tharon Musser (lighting) and Acme Sound Partners (sound).
A Chorus Line has a book by James Kirkwood and Nicholas Dante, music by Marvin Hamlisch and lyrics by the late Edward Kleban, who later became the subject of the Broadway show A Class Act.
The original production of A Chorus Line opened at the Public Theater's Newman Theater on May 21, 1975, and transferred to Broadway's Shubert Theatre on July 25. The musical won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, along with nine Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book. It ran for nearly 15 years, closing on April 28, 1990, after 6,137 performances.
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