Bob Fosse
Bob Fosse was born on June 23, 1927 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Fosse had many great professions such as directing, choreographing, acting, screenwriting, and most importantly dancing. At a young age, Fosse quickly fell in love with dancing and pursued his goals without having any college background. Being a son of a Vaudeville entertainer, Fosse began his career of dancing as a hoofer and by the age of thirteen was performing at many burlesque shows in Chicago. Fosse was deeply inspired by Fred Astaire, Jack Cole, George Ballanchine, and Jerome Robbins and inherited their populist style as well as their sensual choreography pertaining to jazz. With these influences, he developed his own recognizable dance techniques, involving sharply bent elbows, crossing of the legs, and tipping his hat. His flashy style of dance was entrancing and showed off his personality. Fosse did not solely wear gloves and hats in his dancing methods because of the style, but he also wore them because of his increasing baldness and insecurity of how his hands looked. However, he made all of his dancers wear gloves and hats in the performances to give off that jazzy and sensual feel that he was going for. He pursued a career of Hollywood stardom, but his dreams came to a halt because of his baldness and short stature.
Although Fosse's dream of becoming a Hollywood dancer was crushed, he decided to pursue the art of choreography and directing dance. Fosse made great accomplishments out of his career diversion and choreographed amazing works like, "The Pajama Game", "Damn Yankees", "Sweet Charity", "Star 80", "Thieves", "The Little Prince", "Pippin" which earned a Tony Award, "Chicago", "Cabaret" winning the Academy Award, "Lenny", and his most famously know, "All That Jazz" which is an autobiography of Fosse's life struggles and passion for dance. On top of that Fosse won an Emmy for directing "Liza with a Z": Which was a concert for television. Fosse became the only director to win all three major industry prizes in just one year. Critics argue that Fosse was the most influential and visionary choreographer of the 20th century. His love for dance choreography entertained his audience with unique mechanical gestures, snapping fingers, hip thrusts and jazz music. Fosse in the end was not looking to make it big or impress anyone, but to enjoy dance for himself.
"Don't dance for the audience; dance for yourself."
-Bob Fosse
This is one of my favorite performances of Bob Fosse dancing. This act is called Alley Dance and incorporates multiple unique styles that Fosse loved to use. The dance incorporates quick twirls, flashy movements, and of course Fosse's favorite, the use stylish hats. Fosse made sure to use the entire area to show off his multiple jumps and flips.This dance truly demonstrates Fosse's fun dancing techniques and displays his love for dance.
Although Fosse's dream of becoming a Hollywood dancer was crushed, he decided to pursue the art of choreography and directing dance. Fosse made great accomplishments out of his career diversion and choreographed amazing works like, "The Pajama Game", "Damn Yankees", "Sweet Charity", "Star 80", "Thieves", "The Little Prince", "Pippin" which earned a Tony Award, "Chicago", "Cabaret" winning the Academy Award, "Lenny", and his most famously know, "All That Jazz" which is an autobiography of Fosse's life struggles and passion for dance. On top of that Fosse won an Emmy for directing "Liza with a Z": Which was a concert for television. Fosse became the only director to win all three major industry prizes in just one year. Critics argue that Fosse was the most influential and visionary choreographer of the 20th century. His love for dance choreography entertained his audience with unique mechanical gestures, snapping fingers, hip thrusts and jazz music. Fosse in the end was not looking to make it big or impress anyone, but to enjoy dance for himself.
"Don't dance for the audience; dance for yourself."
-Bob Fosse
This is one of my favorite performances of Bob Fosse dancing. This act is called Alley Dance and incorporates multiple unique styles that Fosse loved to use. The dance incorporates quick twirls, flashy movements, and of course Fosse's favorite, the use stylish hats. Fosse made sure to use the entire area to show off his multiple jumps and flips.This dance truly demonstrates Fosse's fun dancing techniques and displays his love for dance.