Broadway star and brother/partner of the legendary Gregory Hines, Maurice Hines will guest star in Thank You Gregory, A Tribute to the Legends of Tap, a new show that pays homage to tap's leading ambassador, the late Gregory Hines, and the great legends who preceded him.
MAURICE HINES STARS IN 'THANK YOU GREGORY' A TRIBUTE TO GREGORY HINES AND OTHER LEGENDS OF TAP. Created, Written, and Staged by Tony Waag, Artistic Director of American Tap Dance Foundation, the show will tour the U.S. during the 2009-10 season.
Musicians: Bernice "Boom Boom" Brooks (drums), Joe Fonda (bass), Theo Hill (piano)
Broadway star and brother/partner of the legendary Gregory Hines, Maurice Hines will guest star in Thank You Gregory, A Tribute to the Legends of Tap, a new show that pays homage to tap's leading ambassador, the late Gregory Hines, and the great legends who preceded him. Hines and Jason Samuels Smith lead an all-star cast of eight hoofers, a live band, films of great tappers, and multimedia projections. The new show is produced by Dance Affiliates' Randy Swartz, directed by Ann Marie De Angelo (former principal dancer and associate artistic director of the Joffrey Ballet), and created, written, and staged by Tony Waag (artistic director of the American Tap Foundation).
Gregory Hines said: "I love tap dancing. I get so inspired, so filled up." Tony Waag concurs, and states: "In Gregory's honor and in his spirit, this production pays tribute to America's leading tap legends." Some of the tap titans honored in the production are Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, John Bubbles, the Nicholas Brothers, Honi Coles, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Ray Bolger, Donald O'Connor, Dr. Jimmy Slyde, the Copasetics, some of tap's leading ladies, and, of course, Gregory Hines, who redefined the art form and influenced a new generation of tappers. The show reflects the scope and breadth of tap's genres and timelines, including vaudeville, Harlem and the Club circuit, Hollywood and Broadway, and tap's recent renaissance on concert stages.
The original version of Thank You Gregory was presented five years ago, after Randy Swartz approached Tony Waag with the idea of creating a tribute to Gregory Hines. As with the new production, Waag wrote the script and selected the dancers and dances, which reflect the amazing variety seen in contemporary tap.
Waag has assembled a dream cast for the new production, all with extensive credits on Broadway, TV, and the concert stage.
Briefly, they are:
Jason Samuels Smith, whom Gregory Hines referred to as "possibly the next greatest"; Chloe Arnold, protege of Debbie Allen; Michelle Dorrance, in the cast of off-Broadway's STOMP; Kendrick Jones, discovered by Gregory Hines in Jones' hometown of Flint, Michigan, and brought to New York to study on scholarship with American Tap Dance Foundation; Dormeisha Sumbry-Edwards, captain/principal dancer for Broadway's Bring in Da' Noise, Bring in Da' Funk; Brent McBeth, formerly in Fosse; Heather Holohan, a protege of Brenda Bufalino; and Melinda Sullivan, original cast member of Disney's High School Musical.
For more information, please visit www.atdf.org
00025