What makes you a choreographer?

Simple statement but really interested to know peoples views on this subject…. So in your eyes what makes you a choreographer?

Okay, well I want to start by saying that I'm not a dancer or choreographer, so feel free to completely disagree with/ignore what I say here. However, I've been invovled with a lot of musical theatre and I've seen quite a bit as well, and this is how I understand what makes you a choreographer. Also, my experience with dance is pretty much only in musical theatre, so what I say probably has nothing to do with any other medium where dance is used. I beleive that choreography has a lot to do with telling a story through movement. A choreographer for a show needs to work really closely with the director and musical director in order to create routines that are congruous with the story the director is trying to tell with a particular show. Also, the choreography needs to link together. I always find that while I don't pick up on subtle movements that are repeated throughout a show that link the movement pieces together, I will notice if they're not there because a sense of flow seems to be missing from that aspect of the show. I think this has something to do with having a holistic vision. A director sees the whole of a show, not just one scene at a time. They have to, otherwise the show will not flow. The same goes for the choreographer - they need to see all of their pieces as one dance that is split up into several different pieces and put to different rhythms and beats. I find that the best choreography (from a performer who is predominantly an actor/singer's perspective) is that which suits who I understand my character to be and helps to progress his/her story. I worked on a production of Beauty and the Beast as Gaston, and the initial choreo for the pub scene felt really wrong for me considering the state Gaston was in at the beginning of the song. It impinged upon my character development and so I talked to the choreographer about it and we decided that Gaston would just sulk in his chair. As rehearsals progressed though, it became apparent that his mood had changed and he needed to get out of his chair and interact with his fellows. Once again, the choreographer and I talked and he identified some specific moments of the dance that were really strong and manly and suited the character and he taught those to me so that we could put Gaston into them. In the end, it felt really comfortable, helped to develop my character and helped to tell the story. The other perspective from which I look at choreo is that of the audience member. As an audience member, I'm looking for choreo (and this is not restricted to dancing - things like fights and basically any form of movement count as choreography for me) that not only suits the style of the show I'm watching and helps to tell the story, but I also want to see movement that is visually engaging; something exciting that will catch my eye. My example here is the Perth Ballet Company's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream (I think this went on in 2006 - please don't quote me on that, I don't have the program with me). I really enjoyed this piece and was pleasantly surprised to find how much dance affected me on an emotional level. Throughout the show, the dancers did some pretty extraordinary moves with impressive elevation that just made it feel like the faeries were flying. It was beautiful, engaging and specky. I loved it. Then, at the very end of the piece, they hooked Puck up to a harness and actually flew him. For me, this didn't add to the story and was no-where near as fluid as what the dancers had been achieving with their own skills earlier. It was the one part of the performance that I didn't feel worked. So basically, what I'm saying here (and I re-iterate, I'm not a dancer or a choreographer, so feel free to completely discount what I have to say) is that in musical theatre a choreographer is someone who creates movement routines that are appropriate for the play as a whole and help to tell the story while being visually engaging for the audience. Darren

A quick addition to what I have written above. I was thinking about how all of that might work for dance when it is not connected to the story of a show. My thoughts came to this conclusion - creating a dance routine for a single song is exactly what I was talking about, EXCEPT the whole show is that one song. It's probably even more difficult to choreograph a single song as you have to tell the whole story in such a short period of time! Okay, so my revised idea about what makes a choreographer: "Someone who creates movement routines that give an audience the opportunity to find meaning by interpreting movement." I think I'm happier with that :) Darren

Thanks Darren .. I do agree with all you have written :) And yes to me is all you have stated is what a choreographer does.. But when are they labeled as one in the eyes of the amateur and also professional eyes?

Ultimately when it works. :-) Choreo's begin as dancers, and usually have a go at creating a dance at some point. Many I've met have quite an avid interest in creating a story through dance rather than perform it. Aside from being able to come up with moves/routines they need crowd control, communication skills (& dancing skills themselves), overall view of the show (& many of Darren's comments). Maybe your thinking this is what they do but a cast view them as being Choreo's when they take care of such business. A challenge for budding & long time Choreo's out there. Learn the basics of reading music. How it's counted (usually twice as fast as a dance count). Direction the notes take & their melodies... It's always been an amusement to me that for a profession that thoroughly uses music in their art, far too many have NO IDEA how its pieced together. ;-) ... dance while you breathe... Luke