BAAYORK
LEE
1946
Chroeographin, Sängerin, Schauspielerin |
Lee was
born in New York City's Chinatown to an Indian mother and Chinese father.
She started dancing at an early age, and she made her Broadway debut at
the age of five as Princess Ying Yawolak in the original production of
The King and I in 1951. Yul Brynner, the original king, was like a second
father to her. After she outgrew the show, she first collected unemployment
at age eight. With further dance study in ballet, modern, and afro-Cuban,
she appeared in George Balanchine's original production of The Nutcracker,
where she met another idol, ballerina Maria Tallchief, whom she hoped to
emulate.
While attending the High School for Performing
Arts, she met fellow student Michael Bennett, and appeared in Flower Drum
Song, in which she was taught to walk in high heels. When reaching her
full height of four foot, ten inches (147 cm), her dreams of becoming a
ballerina were dashed because she was deemed too short. Next, when offered
a scholarship to Juilliard, Lee instead chose to further her career and
Broadway appearances included Mr. President, Golden Boy, and Here's Love.
Her next three shows were all choreographed by her old friend, Michael
Bennett: A Joyful Noise, Henry, Sweet Henry, and Promises, Promises (in
which she performed the famous dance Turkey Lurkey Time with Donna McKechnie
and Margo Sappington). Lee was dance captain for Promises, Promises, and
recreated the choreography for subsequent touring productions, starting
her future path as choreographer.
In 1973, she travelled to Israel to film Norman
Jewison's version of Jesus Christ Superstar.
In 1973, she appeared in Bennett's Seesaw and
was featured opposite Tommy Tune. Again assisting with the choreography,
if Bob Avian was Bennett's right hand, Lee had become his left.
In 1975, Lee was invited by Michael Bennett to
participate in the workshops from which A Chorus Line was developed. The
role of "Connie Wong" was in large part, based upon her own life. Her bubbly
and vibrant energy and "dynamo" personality were reflected in her brief
solo, although Lee reports her mother disliked her daughter's singing.
Lee laughingly blamed the notes. (Her "Four foot, ten" solo, long missing
from the album, was finally heard on a re-release in the late 1990s). Along
with the cast, she won the 1976 Theatre World Award for Ensemble Performance
for the show. Over the years she has directed or choreographed more than
thirty-five international productions of the musical, including the most
recent Broadway revival in 2006. Fifteen years later, along with cast member
Thommie Walsh and Robert Viagas, she documented the evolution of A Chorus
Line in the book On the Line: the Creation of A Chorus Line, published
in 1990. The 2008 feature documentary "Every Little Step" chronicles the
casting process of A Chorus Line's 2006 revival, which was choreographed
by Lee, and, in the course of the film, the saga of the original production
is re-told as well, through the use of old film clips and revealing interviews
from the original collaborators, including Lee.
Lee had become one of Bennett's closest collaborators
and helped develop the choreography in many of his shows.
Starting in the 1970s, Lee stepped out on her
own choreographing Where's Charley? in New Jersey. Since then, she has
directed national and international tours of The King & I, Bombay Dreams,
Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, Barnum, Porgy and Bess, Jesus Christ
Superstar, and Carmen Jones. She was Associate Choreographer for Tommy
Tune. She also has choreographed several productions for the Washington
National Opera at the Kennedy Center. She also choreographed the ill-fated
Marilyn: An American Fable when Kenny Ortega was fired during rehearsals.
Other projects include becoming a talent scout for Tokyo Disneyland, opening
a musical theater school in Seoul, South Korea, and producing.
Original-signiertes Foto im Postkartenformat (9
x 10,2 cm) Price in Euro 9.--
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