Research Catalog
[Interview with Baayork Lee : raw footage]
- Title
- [Interview with Baayork Lee : raw footage] [videorecording] / [directed by Michael Kantor]
- Publication
- New York, 2003.
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| Status | Format | Access | Call Number | Item Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Available - Can be used on site. Please visit New York Public Library - Performing Arts Research Collections to submit a request in person. | Moving image | Restricted use | NCOX 2141 | Performing Arts Research Collections - TOFT |
Details
- Additional Authors
- Description
- 1 videocassette (VHS) (46 min.) : sd., col. SP; 1/2 in.
- Summary
- Raw interview footage used for the documentary Broadway, the American musical. Dancer and choreographer Baayork Lee speaks about the Broadway musical and the show A chorus line, of which she was an original cast member and for which she has directed over 35 of its companies. Topics of discussion include her first Broadway role at age five in The king and I with Yul Brynner and Gertrude Lawrence; the work of choreographers Agnes De Mille, Jerome Robbins and Carol Haney, which elevated the standards of Broadway choreography in the Rodgers and Hammerstein productions Oklahoma!, The king and I, and Flower drum song, respectively; Rodgers and Hammerstein's role in opening the door to minorities in the theater; the effect on Broadway of the social changes of 1960s, and a 1964 performance of Golden boy in Chicago, which sparked a near riot in the audience when the Black actor Sammy Davis Jr. kissed a White actress; Michael Bennett's choreography for the musical Henry sweet Henry; Bennett's ability to translate contemporary dance trends into engaging dance numbers which would build to a climax, as he did in the number Turkey lurkey time for the show Promises, promises; the 1975 production A chorus line, directed by Bennett, which changed the format of the Broadway musical and brought about the rise of the "triple threat": the performer who could dance, sing as well as act; Lee's mandate as director of the touring companies of A chorus line, which reproduced Bennett's show worldwide; the creation of A chorus line in a series of workshops in which dancers contributed their personal stories. The tape goes black ca. 22 min. and resumes with the opening of A chorus line at the Public Theater and its transfer to Broadway six months later; the show's appeal to audiences and the significance of its finale; its hit song "What I did for love," sung by Priscilla Lopez; the impact of A chorus line on Broadway during the mid-1970s and on society; her lack of interest personally in becoming a star; the impact of the AIDS epidemic on the Broadway community and its response; how dancing for the Broadway theater has changed since the 1960s; the global reach of Broadway; the meaning of the title A chorus line, and how the show changed the lives of all who were involved in the original production; the "myth" of Broadway as a place where one can become a star; opportunities for minority actors on Broadway currently, and in comparison with the 1960s and 70s; her views on the 1992 controversy surrounding the Broadway production Miss Saigon, in which a white European actor was cast in the Eurasian role of the Engineer; her favorite Broadway performers Gwen Verdon and Chita Rivera; what the musical expresses about America and its culture. Audio only discussion continues for ca. 2 min. with more on the "triple threat" Broadway performer.
- Alternative Title
- Broadway, the American musical
- Broadway: the American musical
- Subjects
- Choreographers
- Musicals
- Unedited footage
- Broadway (New York, N.Y.)
- Choreography
- Dancers
- Musical theater > Production and direction
- Choreographers > Interviews
- Documentaries and factual works
- Musical theater > New York (State) > New York
- Minorities in the performing arts
- Lee, Baayork > Interviews
- Theater > New York (State) > New York
- Hamlisch, Marvin > Chorus line
- Bennett, Michael, 1943-1987
- Genre/Form
- Documentaries and factual works.
- Musicals.
- Unedited footage.
- Note
- This interview is one of a group of interviews with 90 individuals used in making the documentary Broadway, the American musical. The completed production is available on NCOX 2058.
- Credits for completed production from pbs.org: A film by Michael Kantor ; produced by Jeff Dupre, Michael Kantor and Sally Rosenthal ; written by Marc Fields, Michael Kantor, Laurence Maslon, and JoAnne Young ; directed by Michael Kantor.
- Time code on frame.
- Contains various takes, at occasional brief intervals, audio continues without sound.
- Credits (note)
- Cameraman: Mead Hunt.
- Performer (note)
- Interviewer: Michael Kantor. Interviewee: Baayork Lee.
- Event (note)
- Videotaped in New York, N.Y. on February 11, 2003.
- Biography (note)
- Broadway, the American musical, which aired on PBS in October 2004, is a documentary chronicling the entire history of a unique American art form, the Broadway musical. Each of its six episodes covers a different era in American theater history, and features the Broadway shows and songs which defined the period. The series draws on feature films, television broadcasts, archival news footage, original cast recordings, still photos, diaries, journals, first-person accounts, and on-camera interviews with many of the principals involved in the development of the genre.
- Call Number
- NCOX 2141
- OCLC
- 124081281
- Title
- [Interview with Baayork Lee : raw footage] [videorecording] / [directed by Michael Kantor]
- Imprint
- New York, 2003.
- Credits
- Cameraman: Mead Hunt.
- Performer
- Interviewer: Michael Kantor. Interviewee: Baayork Lee.
- Event
- Videotaped in New York, N.Y. on February 11, 2003.
- Biography
- Broadway, the American musical, which aired on PBS in October 2004, is a documentary chronicling the entire history of a unique American art form, the Broadway musical. Each of its six episodes covers a different era in American theater history, and features the Broadway shows and songs which defined the period. The series draws on feature films, television broadcasts, archival news footage, original cast recordings, still photos, diaries, journals, first-person accounts, and on-camera interviews with many of the principals involved in the development of the genre.
- Local Note
- Gift of Broadway Film Project, Inc. and Thirteen/WNET, 2005.
- Connect to:
- Added Author
- Lee, Baayork, interviewee.Kantor, Michael, 1961- interviewer.Kantor, Michael, 1961- director.Hunt, Mead, cameraman.Broadway Film Project, Inc, donor.Thirteen/WNET, donor.
- Research Call Number
- NCOX 2141