Behind the Scenes of Choreographers in Media

As many of you know, I cover a lot of events, red carpets, panels, and conferences for my job, some events are more exciting than others.  When I come upon the annual "Choreographers in Media" panel each year, I get giddy.  As a former dancer, it's a thrill to hear about the history of dance and where the art form is headed.  That is what the panel, sponsored by Dance Camera West, offers each year.  Last year, the panel offered a powerhouse of top choreographers like Maguerite Derricks, Chucky Klapow, and Tyce Diorio.  It was a bittersweet event because Chucky kept us all glued to our seats with updates on Michael Jackson's "This is It" tour which he was rehearsing with Kenny Ortega down at the Staples Center.  Less than a week later, Michael had passed away.  His contribution to dance and choreography is not forgotten as Michael was a huge topic of conversation at this year's panel including Lula Washington, Kim Blank, Chuck Maldonado, and Larry Billman as moderator.

I had the opportunity to interview all four of them individually for Dance Channel TV and they each brought something exciting to the panel.  Lula is a firecracker!  I am thrilled to see that modern dance is getting its due in mainstream entertainment and it doesn't get any bigger than James Cameron's Avatar.  The challenges presented to Lula were often on the technological side, but she created four wonderful ballets for the movie all while using motion capture.  While we didn't get to see those full ballets onscreen, I am hoping Mr. Cameron saves it for the extras on the DVD.

Chuck represented the male point of view on this panel.  As a choreographer, he is working on his 20th film in less than a decade.  That is truly an impressive number because he has only been in LA since 2001. His speciality is stepping and he gave DCTV a little highlight of his signature move.  If you want to see what he is truly capable of, rent Stomp the Yard.  It is a choreographic feat in terms of stepping sequences.  I also like that Chuck talked about the importance of a choreographer on set because a director is not trained to see movement the way a dancer is trained.  He talks about all of the possibilities for a choreographer on set during his interview.

And then there is Kim.  As a dancer working in the 1980's, she was there for the MTV explosion back when music videos were a pioneering art form.  Michael Jackson was king and musical artists created stories behind the music.  It was interesting to hear Kim say the Thriller video was considered "a great gig" at the time.  She was young, so she was in awe of the people she was working with MJ, choreographer, Michael Peters, and legendary dancer, Gary Chapman. She didn't realize she was going to be a part of pop culture history, the music video that sent me rushing home from school each afternoon.  It's hard for this generation of dancers to understand that we went into a frenzy anytime the video was played because MTV barely register on the pop culture radar anymore.

Larry proved to be a terrific moderator for this panel since his vast movie and television choreography knowledge validates the importance of dance in all artistic mediums.  He spent years at Disney Live Entertainment and he talked about the cultural significance of the Mouse in dance during the variety show years heyday.  The Kids of the Kingdom dancers performed with Anne Margaret, Bob Hope, in front of Presidents, and at the Super Bowl.  It was one of the best gigs in the industry at the time.  While the landscape has changed, he still believes that Michael Jackson has the most influence on choreography even in 2010.  If you are interested in learning more, Larry has a terrific book called Film Choreographers and Dance Directors. (link posted below) 

Two important notes also came out of this panel.  One involved the importance of mentoring.  We lost significant choreographers in the 80's from Michael Bennett to Michael Peters to Bob Fosse.  Those great losses also created the "lost" years in dance.  There were years without a driving force in dance and innovations in the industry.  Each of the choreographers on the panel talked about the importance of teaching and mentoring young dancers who are interested in working behind the scenes in TV and film.  As a choreographer in Hollywood, you need to be a producer, a director, and an artist all at once.  They don't want to lose the momentum that dance currently has, so they are working hard to raise the next generation in the industry.  Finally, the YouTube revolution has also changed the face of dance.  For an artist, you can't be one dimensional to succeed, you need to find your place in multimedia.  It can be a challenge, but technology is playing an important role in all art forms.

If you missed the panel, check out all of the highlights from Dance Channel TV:

PS LA Dancers: There will be another panel coming up on June 29th at SAG from Career Transitions for Dancers called :  Dancer's Roundtable: What is new and innovative in dance today?  You can find all of the information here.  

2009 in Review: June

Okay, we are officially at the halfway point and this is where my year started charging full speed ahead and it doesn't slow down until we hit the Christmas holidays.

Hanging at E3 with the 2010 Toyota Prius and The Sims 3:

This still remains one of my favorite locations from The Web Files, The Hollywood Wax Museum. I adore the cast from The Crew and I am so happy for their success. Check out our episode with them here: The Crew

Covering the Whatever Works premiere at the Pacific Design Center for Focus Hollywood. I interviewed some fantastic actors at this premiere, Ed Begley, Jr, Patricia Clarkson, Larry David, Evan Rachel Wood, Peter Fonda, and John Lithgow. See the footage here:
Whatever Works Premiere

My coverage for this panel will stand out in my mind forever. I attended Dance Camera West's Choreography Media Honors Panel to cover the events for Dance Channel TV. One of the dancers, Chuck Klapow, was currently rehearsing the "This Is It" tour with Michael Jackson. Read the article: Choreography Panel. Sadly, we all know the outcome.

On set with The Web Files for Episode 4 featuring Space Hospital. They are currently airing Season 2, so be sure to check them out. This is also the first shoot we came across our current makeup artist, Melissa Anchondo. A fortuitous day! Here's episode 4: Space Hospital.
Things only get busier as the second half of the year brings a lot of growth to The Web Files. Remember, we didn't even launch until July 8th! Come back for more tomorrow.

Special Edition: Dance Camera West's Choreography Media Honors Panel

**Update: June 25, 2009**

This article was written on Monday, June 22, 2009. Michael Jackson suddenly passed away from cardiac arrest on June 25, 2009. He was a part of many dancers' childhood dreams of performing on the stage. May his music live on and may his soul continue to dance.

R.I.P., Michael

On Friday night, I had the opportunity to attend Dance Camera West's Choreography Media Honors. What a treat for choreographers, dancers, and dance aficionados! The panel consisted of the top creative teams from "So You Think You Can Dance", "The 81st Annual Academy Awards", and "High School Musical". The night was moderated by Daniel Ezralow, choreographer for the upcoming Broadway show, "Spiderman".

Highlights from each of the shows/choreographers:

SYTYCD: The spotlight was really on this show during the panel. Matthew Diamond, director, Tabitha and Napoleon, choreographers, and Tyce Diorio, choreographer. It was fascinating to hear that choreographers only get 4 and 1/2 hours of rehearsal time with the dancers before the show. Tabitha mentioned that they are literally calling out reminders and instructions as they are walking out of the studio. SYTYCD is a game show, so it is regulated by the FCC and all contestants must have the same amount of rehearsal time to make it fair to everyone. A few audience members wanted to know why the dancers didn't have the same type of launching pad as the "American Idol" contestants. It does seem that the SYTYCD winners seem to fade into obscurity while America still knows the names of Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, and Jordin Sparks. Napoleon felt that the dancers do the show because they love to dance, they don't care about being a star. Tyce mentioned that the show is only a springboard or a beginning then the reality of the dance world sets in. I think it has to do with the bottom line......$$$$. The producers make a ton of money off of these kids, put them on tour, and then throw them to the wolves when they are done. No preparation for what is about to happen or not happen to them. The producers don't look back because they have another season around the corner. Harsh, no? I even had a chat with a true insider, but I promised that our entire conversation would be off the record. And so it remains, off the record, but wow......it makes you think twice about reality/competition shows.

The 81st Academy Awards: This panel was fascinating since it consisted of Marguerite Derricks, choreographer of Hugh Jackman's opening number at the Oscars and John Palermo, producer and partner to Jackman's Seed Productions. This was probably the most interesting to me due to my work at the Kodak and the years I have worked the Meet the Oscars exhibit. I love this show and it fascinates me to see how all of this work comes together for one night only. Maguerite expects a lot from her dancers by not tailoring her movement to them. She expects them to be able to do her movement from the first audition. While John works in a producing capacity, he really has an eye for what works in terms of choreographing for the camera. Movement created for the stage is one element, but movement for the TV cameras adds an entire new dimension. Maguerite has a lot on her plate with the new Broadway show, "Wonderland", and the remake of "Fame" coming out in September. (Look for a 2 1/2 minute pas de deux in the Graduation scene of the movie. Woo hoo!) And, dancers, if you are looking to work with Maguerite, she is now finding Los Angeles dancers more versatile than New York dancers whom she thinks sometimes get stuck in a rut with one style after performing in long running shows.

High School Musical: Representing the HSM trilogy were Charles "Chucky" Klapow, Co-Choreographer, Mark Hofeling, Production Designer, Barry Rosenbush, Executive Producer. Well, I feel like the tide has finally turned on the HSM trilogy. The heat of this series has peaked and there were fewer questions for this group, although it was interesting to hear how Mark Hofeling put together an amazing set that was both utilitarian and safe for the dancers. Surprisingly, HSM 4 is coming our way. Sigh. I expect it will be a new crop of faces as most of the core cast has gone on to bigger and better projects. Keep your eye on Chucky Klapow, everyone. He is a rising superstar who is assisting Kenny Ortega with Michael Jackson's big comeback tour in London. If Jackson delivers, I think we should all expect a US comeback for the King of Pop. While we may be exhausted from his tabloid antics over the past decade, remember many of you ran home to see "Thriller" on MTV each afternoon. The King of Pop sure knows how to dance.

The one final tidbit I want to leave with you......SYTYCD fans, the Katie Holmes rumor is true. She will be performing a number from "Summer Stock" that was choreographed by Tyce Diorio. Don't let the tabloids fool you into thinking Nigel Lythgoe had anything to do with it. Let's give credit where credit is due.....go, Tyce!

Thanks for joining me for this special edition of Red Carpet Closet. Who cares what I wore? It was all about dance!

Reporting Live from Los Angeles,

Kristyn

PS If you enjoyed this special report, please follow me for the Can't Miss List on Dance Channel TV.