Living a Chorus Line

In 1985, A Chorus Line was a smash hit on Broadway. It is the only musical of that genre ever made. The other night Orllyene and I watched (on a DVD) Michael Douglas put eight boy and eight girl dancers through a test of strength and endurance that they hoped would give them a job in A Chorus Line.

The opening scene is a stage filled with at least a hundred dancers auditioning. They glide across the stage, turning, leaping, spinning, in complete unison. Back and forth they go. (Dancers of this caliber are magnificent in their defiance of gravity and maneuverability)

I devour each detail and am drawn into each emotion. Every nuance of the music stirs me and I become part of what I’m watching. Orllyene murmurs thoughtfully, “You still feel it don’t you?” “Of course, I do,” I reply.

I started dancing when I was sixteen. The only time I strayed from my muse was when I was a lonely, divorced bachelor mowing lawns for a living. It was then that I met a sweet, young, divorced mother of two little kids. It was then I discovered what was lacking in my life; a home, so I joined theirs and we married, and I got back into dancing in a hurry. Soon, a little brother was added to our brood. From then on it was dance, dance, dance.

Back to A Chorus Line.

Michael Douglas, the choreographer, sits in the darkened theatre and gives each dancer a chance to shine. Their dancing is enthusiastic, athletic, captivating. The plot of the show is about the dancers themselves; they, are the plot of the movie, and so is the choreographer. (The pathos, the victories, the love, the dreams, are all the reasons why a dancer dances. Without dancing they are not truly alive.)

The audition day concludes when a dancer falls and is taken to the hospital. Now all that remains is for Michael Douglas to choose who of the 16 dancers will be cast. (Throughout the movie, Orllyene and I feel like we know each dancer, inside and out - their secrets, their hopes, their dreams.)

The 16 dancers line up on the painted line in front of the stage. Douglas picks four boys and four girls to step forward. They believe they have the job but instead they hear, “Each of you is very special, but I can only have eight dancers. Thank you for coming.” It is then the other eight dancers realize they are the ones chosen to be on Broadway in A CHORUS LINE. they made it!

The final scene of the movie is line after line of dancers, dressed in gold lamé outfits, complete with top hat, strutting toward the camera. It’s a thrilling conclusion, and makes me proud to be a dancer.

Orllyene glances at me, smiling. This was our life in part. I danced, choreographed, and became part of the entertainment world. Orllyene made our home a loving success. It’s been a good life.

Ron Walker can be reached at walkover@gmx.com