June 21, 2010

Having watched The Tony Awards last night with a group of people much younger than myself, I have learned a new lesson. Jazz squares tap numbers and endearing duets just don’t cut it anymore. It seems that you’re going to need to have various acrobatic stunts and loud energetic rock numbers in your show to get the kids acting crazy about Broadway nowadays.

The true class act of Sunday’s Tony awards was not the powerhouse performances of the singers such as Christaine Noll and Lea Michele, but the electrifying dance spectacles of Memphis, Come Fly Away, American Idiot and Fela! Their numbers really showed that choreography has really gone through some changes on the Broadway stage. It seems the Billy Elliot kids acting of angst and anger through dance has truly spread like wildfire in the theater community. I found myself being mostly immersed in the performances of American Idiot due to the ferocity and energy of the kids acting on the stage. It made me wonder if Broadway would still draw a profit from its younger audience if it still relied on orchestras as accompaniment rather than rock bands.

Another truly entertaining aspect of Sunday’s awards was the impressive dance numbers of Come Fly Away and Memphis. As a performer, watching the incredible skills of the dancers of Come Fly Away was more beneficial than it was entertaining. Being a dancer, watching their amazing performance made me feel like I was taking a class. Act II of the Tony’s included an exuberant celebration of life through song and dance by the cast of Memphis. The passion and energy from their singing combined with the spectacular choreography truly made their performance one of the better of the night. Both these shows really took dance to a whole new level that Broadway is welcoming with open arms.

I am very excited to see what the future holds for next year’s Broadway shows.