Let’s talk about why it matters
Many might claim that Fosse’s work is timeless. His Broadway shows continue their tours into the present, in fact, Chicago was performed in the IU Auditorium just last semester!
While Chicago may be one of the most popular, Fosse premiered groundbreaking works beginning in 1945 with his first full choreographed show, “The Pajama Game.” While the show was directed by Abbott, Fosse’s distinct style made it’s debut. Today, audiences can recognize some of his trademarks in the choreography, from hip thrusts to hunched shoulders, use of parallel and turn in, shoulder rolls, articulate hand gestures and broken wrists, and characterization suggestive of vaudeville. Fosse was awarded his first Tony for “The Pajama Game,” and there were many to come.
His next musical was “Damn Yankees,” after which his films Sweet Charity and Cabaret also received raving reviews. Fosse also choreographed “Pippin” which was performed last semester in the Ruth N. Halls Theatre. You might have seen other Fosse films like All that Jazz. Fosse became the first artist to win awards in stage, film, and television for his choreography and his direction. Here is an excellent article written in 1973 about Fosse before he won the Emmy that made him the first person to win all three.
You can find a full list of Fosse’s Broadway credits here.
Fosse’s choreography evidenced the search for sexual freedom that characterized America during that time. While Fosse’s background may have disposed him to this style, he understood what the people wanted to see, and was wildly successful in it. As opposed to concert artists of his time, his entertaining and sometimes shocking choreography was highly commercial and spoke to the redirection of dance as entertainment. The 1972 film Cabaret was based off of stories of Pre-Weimer Germany, and pictures from the film appeared in major magazines like TIMEand Newsweek. Fosse played cleverly into the cultural cues of the time to become one of the most influential commercial choreographers of all time.
It is also important to note Fosse’s contribution to film. While he choreographed for dance film, his direction also revolutionized the way that dance and movement was filmed. Previously, dance had only been filmed from the front or from overhead, but Fosse introduced used jump cuts and new perspective shots while filming and editing Sweet Charity. These techniques would later become standard practice.
https://www.pbs.org/wnet/broadway/stars/bob-fosse/
https://blog.oup.com/2018/06/innovation-influence-films-bob-fosse/
Fosse! 