MATTHEW MURPHY American Ballet Theatre New York, NY USA BIO | POSTS

After a few months away from the cultural landscape of New York (while I was home in Montana) I’ve made my return to the city by devouring as much as possible. In the past two weeks alone, I’ve gone to four Broadway shows and am pleased to report that dance is thriving on Broadway.

Of the four shows I saw (In the Heights, Cry Baby, Young Frankenstein, and Rent), three are new this season and two in particular are worth high praise. First and foremost is the fantastic new musical “In the Heights.” Set up towards the top of the subway map in NYC’s Washington Heights, the musical is a joyous merging of Latin, Hip-Hop, and Broadway sensibilities.

There are many things to praise in the show, including the stellar cast (full of Broadway newcomers), and the music, which practically blows the roof off of the theater number after number. However, the thing that really blew me away was the choreography. Andy Blankenbuehler has given Broadway what it has so desperately needed over the past few years: character driven choreography that honors Broadway pizzazz but transplants it to the 21st century. From the moment the lights go down, the dancers (with six pack abs to rival Janet Jackson’s) immerse themselves in different styles to thrilling results. I can’t recommend this show highly enough. Check out my full review here.

Last night I had the chance to catch a preview of the new musical “Cry Baby.” Adapted from the John Waters movie of the same name, it attempts to capitalize on the success of “Hairspray,” to mixed results.

The overwhelming thought I had while watching (from the front row) was “it’s cute.” The songs are mostly successful mergers of 50’s rock (the show is set in 1950’s Baltimore) with a healthy dose of John Waters’ twisted mind in the lyrics. Even though the show didn’t win me over entirely, there was no denying Rob Ashford’s fantastic choreography.

I knew that my friends Lisa Gajda and Nick Blaemire’s presence in the chorus signaled a dance heavy show, but I had no idea just how prevalent the dancing would be. In true John Waters fashion, it’s sexually charged, humorous choreography, but most of all it is technically demanding.

My first thought during one of the large dance numbers was that it was EVIL. Doing eight shows a week is hard enough, but with that choreography it must be hell on their bodies. At the same time, it must be so much fun to dance.

Ashford pulls out all the Broadway stops (even doing an entire tap number with license plates as taps on the boys’ feet at one point) and I was happy to see Broadway choreography that was both entertaining and challenging; I often feel like the audience gets one or the other.

Despite my reservations with parts of each show, I couldn’t be more pleased to return to New York and see dance thriving on the Broadway stage.

(Hanging out with my friend Nick afterward, who is not only making his Broadway debut in “Cry Baby,” but the show he wrote the music for “Glory Days,” is opening on Broadway next month! WHAT?! Blog interview coming soon!)