Video: Meet the All-Star Dancers of Bob Fosse's DANCIN' on Broadway

Hello, I'm Richard Ridge for Broadway World

Bob Fawsey's Dancin is returning to Broadway for the first time in 41 years

directed by original cast member, Tony Award winner Wayne Salento. And we're here at the Music Box Theater to meet the company

How excited are you to be bringing Bob Fawsey's Danson back to Broadway, Wayne

Very excited. Very honored. It's really exciting. I mean, it's a lot

I mean, but it's, it has to happen. I mean, it's been 45 years

We have to get this back. So I'm thrilled to death to represent him and kind of manipulate the show

So it fits for this generation. I mean, it was 45 years ago

So it's rough to reinvent. But I'm really excited. I'm excited about this company

They are everything that we were from the original company, all unique different individuals coming from all worlds of dance

So I think he would be really happy with that. Well, I love this. I mean, look at you too

I mean, this is like the company of dancing, isn't it, the way you all feel right now? Yes

Family. Yeah. We love each other. We do. What's made this so special for both of you

The experience to be able to just be me on the stage. You know, Fosse's work just requires I show up as me

And I love everyone. when I get to be myself with. It's a great cast

Yeah, it's, as I said before, it's an honor to be able to dance as a principal on Broadway

and to be a show, to be a dancer and to be in a show called Literally Dancing

doing Posse's work. I mean, it doesn't get any better than that, honestly. I think it's super special that we get to play principals

and we get to be dancers and I get to be a storytelling dancer

and I get to share the stage with peers that I look up to and inspire me and I think it really exciting to be a part of it Yeah I going to totally jump on that and say that you know I only 19

and so first of all, did not anticipate being here at all, but to look up to or look on stage around myself and see dancers that I've looked up to four years

since I was, you know, eight starting to dance. I think that it's wild. It's such a surreal experience

It's been a long time since we've seen dance, like this kind of dance

on Broadway for, you know, it's just been a while. So I'm really excited to hopefully, you know

we've been saying that during the pandemic, we all were stuck, right

Like we were stuck at home. And so it's a great opportunity to remind ourselves

that we can move and we can have this like shared experience

of having this universal language bring us together in community. So I'm really excited about that

Well, I have to say when I initially heard from my agent during the pandemic, like right in the middle of it, I was like, yeah, sure I'm interested, like never going to happen in my mind

You know, so I'm still just like, I'm just so grateful to be here and to be doing this kind of material, you know, a dance dominant show like this that just has so much texture

I still can't believe he created this in the late 70s. It still feels so fresh

And it's timeless, you know, it really is. It's like timeless work. He was such a genius

When you each got the call, like what went through your mind and who were you able to tell

I was shocked because I had retired about 10 years ago. So I was definitely not expecting the call

And the first person that I was excited to call was my wife. I called my mom

I was like, come on, man. I was like, it's happening. I called my mom

I was so excited. I first called my dad. And he I don think I ever heard a more exciting response from him in my entire life Yeah I was on the road like driving And so I hung up the phone and called my mom immediately

And she was ecstatic. And I also told my partner, who is also in the show with me too

who had it far longer than I had. And so he all but, you know, beat his pants

When did you first meet Bob Fawsey? Because were you doing the act at the same time when you went into

Dance for him? I auditioned for Chicago. That was the first time

But I don't even think he saw me. So I was cut. But I was doing the chorus line, so it was okay

I got over it. And then I left chorus line, and I went and I did the act

And then I missed all the auditions. And Gratzella set me up with a private audition

And I went across the hall, and I auditioned for him. And he already had the host show cast

So then, you know, he thanked me. I said, thank you. and I ran out of there flying

I never thought of anything else. Opening night party, he ran into me

and he said, I want you to do the show. And I said, really? He said, yeah. I said, but I thought you cast it

He said, I did, but don't worry about it. I want you in the show. I said, I'm in. But I doubled

I doubled, and I danced in the act, and I rehearsed him the day with dancing

When were you each first aware of Bob Fawsey, and what made you say, I'd love to live in his world

I was introduced to Bob Fossi back in 2012. I started taking classes with the Verden Fosse legacy

And at the time, they were just trying to get a small group of dancers together to sort of start archiving some of his work and using videos, old videos

and memories from people to try to put things together. And I remember the first week that I finished that workshop, I came home

And I told my husband, I'm like, I found it. Like, I've found the thing that I have been missing in my career

And it changed my life. I was aware of Bob Fossi at the age of 14 by Anne Rankin

I was so fortunate, yeah. the late Ann ranking and she showed me what this was and what this movement is and I learned from her I mean it was incredible And so when I saw this movement I knew I grew up being a I was a ballet dancer but I did

all kinds of styles. But when I saw the Bob Fossi style with her demonstrating it, with Annie

demonstrating it, I was like, what's happening? This is going to change my life. And it did

It absolutely did. I think there's a photo that dates back to before my memory kicks in. And

I'm in this little bowler hat and I have the classic teacup hand I'm in like a dancing man suit

and tap shoes so I think I was maybe five so I think it's always been a part of my training

and part of my inspiration and I think I'm from Australia so a lot of his movies were part of what

I first was introduced to before the theatre experience I got a little later in life but just

watching people live in this world that was so captivating and each dancer mesmerizing in their

own way and him himself as well. Like the Kiss Me Kate duet from the movie, just one of the iconic

moments that you're just like, what is happening and how do I, how do I do that? I think I was first

aware of Bob Fawsey at like age four maybe. His movement is everywhere. But I, and also one of the

first Broadway shows I saw was Fossi. And so, yeah, I feel like I've known Fossi forever. But at the

same time, I'm also relearning Bob Fossi through this work and through Wayne, who is a wealth of

knowledge and who worked directly with him. And yeah, so a new and an old relationship

So finally, what does it mean to bringing him back to a whole new audience falling in love with the

world and the steps of Bob Fawson? I just hope they walk out of here. If they know Bob Fawsey and not know

Bob Fawsey, and they go, that man was a genius and the most creative, talented person around