While The Ensemblist has asked Broadway fans to weigh in on the ensemble performances of the decade, the online advocate for ensemble artists has announced its annual winners of the Ensemblist Awards.
Max Clayton (Moulin Rouge!), Kimberly Marable (Hadestown), Jodi McFadden (Moulin Rouge!), and Ryan Worsing (The Cher Show) have been named the 2019 Ensemblist Awards winners.
Each December, The Ensemblist honors four Broadway performers who “embody the ensemblist spirit: someone who is talented, skilled, multifaceted, inquisitive and kind.” This year’s crop were chosen by the 2018 winners: Jacqueline B. Arnold (Moulin Rouge!), Jenifer Foote (Tootsie), Aaron Kaburick (Mrs. Doubtfire), and Christian Dante White (My Fair Lady).
Clayton has exploded as a Broadway ensemblist celebrity, having made his Broadway debut in Gigi before joining the cast of the most recent On the Town revival in 2015 as an ensemblist and understudy for Gabey. He replaced in Something Rotten!, but made a splash in Bandstand—often executing some of the most intense swing moves. He also appeared in the ensembles of Hello, Dolly!, as Don in the 2018 City Center production of A Chorus Line, Pretty Woman: The Musical, and now in Moulin Rouge!.
Marable made her Broadway debut in Sister Act, where she joined the cast as an ensemblist and understudy for Deloris Van Cartier, Michelle, and Tina. She has had multiple stints with The Lion King on Broadway, but many today know her as part of Hadestown's Workers Chorus.
McFadden is also currently in Moulin Rouge!, dancing that Sonya Tayeh choreography and understudying Nini. She made her Broadway debut in Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, where she also understudied Arachne, and was part of the company of The Band’s Visit.
Worsing served as a dance captain and swing on The Cher Show. Worsing made his Broadway debut in Shrek The Musical as a swing and later bowed as part of the chorus in Irving Berlin’s White Christmas. He’s had multiple engagements in Chicago. He first served as a dance captain in Finding Neverland. He was in the original ensemble of Hello, Dolly!, and eventually understudied Ambrose.
For more information and to listen to The Ensemblist podcast, visit The Ensemblist.com.
