Born to Boogie: Broadway Choreographers
“I just loved listening to them,” said choreographer Spencer Liff after the panel that united him with choreographers Lorin Latarro and Andy Blankenbuehler. “You learn so much.” The trio enjoy a storied history, dancing together in their pre-choreographer days, dancing for each other’s projects, and they were more than willing to breakdown their creative process. The discussions about style, versatility, their own movement vocabularies, authenticity, and the rehearsal room culminated in a full-on movement demonstration.

“Every show I must explain the core challenge of the show, the core thematic idea of the show, [with the first time they move]. So in Hamilton, for example, the first step is on ‘Word got around they said this kid is insane,’ and so it’s the idea that Hamilton puts quill to paper, explosions happen, and the world changes because of an idea that he had that he put into action. So I wanted to tell the story about how cool words can be, about how moving action can be and how what seems intellectual for Alexander Hamilton is actually completely emotional for everyone else.” Blankenbuehler popped up and walked the audience through: “So the very first step has the gesture of an ear [on ‘Word’]” and as Blankenbuehler danced over the lyrics (corresponding to “this kid is in-sane”) he recited in rhythm “and they grew to the their shoul-ders,” bobbing his shoulders up and down to demonstrate Hamilton’s impact and influence through word (ear) and action (shoulders). Blankenbuehler delved into exact movement for In The Heights, as well. Only at BroadwayCon can you watch a two-time Tony-winning choreographer explain and dance his own movement.

For her part, Latarro created an interactive component to the panel to teach the audience how she physicalizes words and emotion. “Let’s just take an action word, let’s take ‘lonely’ and use the word lonely,” said Latarro. She called on one audience member to give a movement above the head that says “lonely,” another viewer to give a movement between the neck and hips that means “lonely,” and Blankenbuehler to offer a movement from the fingers that says “lonely” to him. Before they left, the whole audience had learned original choreography from Latarro conveying a message of loneliness.

Gadgets and Gizmos Aplenty: Prop Design
Buist Bickley (Dear Evan Hansen), Valerie Lamour (The Present), and Faye Armon-Troncoso (Les Liaisons Dangereuses) talked about the art of designing props for Broadway and Off-Broadway shows, which may be more intricate than an average audience member thinks. Armon-Troncoso said, “Not only are we responsible for the furniture, the set dressing…special effects, blood, getting out of costumes, food that they eat every night—and they have many allergies… We do weaponry, and also if there is an umbrella that catches on fire, we do that.” Bickley added, “Picture frames, rugs, chandeliers, sconces, any picture on the wall—those are all props. … I always say that the ceiling, the floor, and the walls are sets. Everything that makes it what it is is a prop.” Lamour also brought prop examples, including a type of fake blood she uses (available at the Manhattan Wardrobe Supply) that will come out of white shirts with just water. The audience members seemed fascinated by talk of special effects and the use of fake blood, so Armon-Troncoso revealed some secrets behind Les Liaisons Dangereuses. “Liev Schreiber said, ‘Rather than a blood capsule, I want to eat a chocolate filled with blood.’ I [went to] a chocolatier, and I said, ‘Let’s make a red chocolate with this stage blood from Alcone,’ but then they couldn’t get the chocolate in his mouth…’ I knew it wasn’t going to work, but I had to go through the motions.”

READ MORE: THE BEST MOMENTS IN DEAR EVAN HANSEN, ACCORDING TO THE CAST PANEL

Julia Murney: Career Seminar
Former Elphaba Julia Murney took the panel audience through her career trajectory, including how she linked up with Andrew Lippa—leading to her starring turn as Queenie in his Wild Party. She recounted the infamous story of how she auditioned for Stephen Schwartz’s Snapshots and was asked by Schwartz to sing his “Meadowlark” at the audition. She didn’t have the music, but Lippa (the music director, who happened to be behind the table) had recently played the song for Patti LuPone’s concert. By memory, he accompanied Murney; after her audition he wrote on his notepad, “Who is she? Queenie?” As her career took off, Murney revealed that she was actually given the opportunity to come to Broadway a few times before making her debut in Lennon, but made alternative artistic decisions since she was able to support herself with her work in voiceovers. Although she’s been on Broadway and is an accomplished theatre performer, she admits to still getting nervous before certain auditions. “You can go to class 24/7; you can’t account for nerves,” she said. “They are the boogeyman who will get you in the night. I think you have to accept that everyone feels that way. Everyone’s nerves do manifest in very different ways, and some people nerves manifest in hyper-confidence—or what seems like hyper-confidence—and that can be intimidating. So sometimes in a waiting room, I’ll bring headphones with me. I generally know everybody else who is auditioning, which is also hard because they’re your friends, but you want the job! Then someone comes in, and I’m like, ‘Well, frickin’ Alice Ripley is here. I’m not gonna get this.’ Also, I love her, and we’re going to go have pizza, [but] I’ll bring headphones, even if I have nothing playing in them, just so I can be like, ‘Hi, I just need to listen to this.’ They will respect that, so you can just get into your center. It’s such a case-by-case basis, but you have to know it’s not just you.”

READ MORE: 5 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW FROM BROADWAYCON’S HAMILTON PANEL