Interview: Baayork Lee Continues Michael Bennett's Legacy with City Springs Theatre's A CHORUS LINE

As the triple threat performers of A CHORUS LINE take the stage at the Byers Theatre, they're bringing the same professionalism City Springs Theatre Company has come to be known for over the last four seasons. But this time, they're doing so after spending time under the direction and choreography of a powerhouse woman who not only has a Tony Award, but is considered the international authority on all things A CHORUS LINE, Baayork Lee.

Lee has been with the musical since the beginning, ever since iconic director/choreographer Michael Bennett first conceived it from a conversation with Broadway dancers in the early '70s

"Broadway at that point was dying, and producers were only thinking about using singers. And so what were the dancers going to do?" she recalls. "Michael gathered a group of dancers to talk about Broadway. He said to us, 'Look, I came from Buffalo, I ran away to do WEST SIDE STORY in London. I came back to Broadway, and I'm not going back to Buffalo. I'm gonna stay here and dance, but if there's nothing here, what am I gonna do?'"

What Bennett shared sparked a chat that Lee says lasted 24 hours and was recorded on tape to eventually be used as the basis of A CHORUS LINE.

"Then everybody started talking about their lives - why they came to New York and how they got here and all the experiences that they had. And those are the stories in the show, real people's stories."

Lee went on to perform in the original cast, playing a character based on herself, Connie Wong. And now, 46 years later, she directs and choreographs the musical around the world, with her latest production now playing in Atlanta at City Springs.

"I was at City Springs Theatre Three years ago when I directed SOUTH PACIFIC, and I just love it here!" she expresses. "The facilities are excellent. I mean, we don't even have that in New York, you know? They've got huge studios and rehearsal studios and a green room for the actors with coffee and tea. So everything is prepared for us to just get in and create."

And "create," they have, at a pace fitting to the high-energy director/choreographer herself. The always humble Lee attributes their fast pace to the caliber of the cast.

"I mounted this show in, I think, 10 days- which is unheard of!" she says. "And that had a lot to do with [Executive Director] Natalie DeLancey and her casting associate getting us the best: smart and talented people."

Lee couldn't say enough great things about this production, the City Springs Theatre producers, and the talented local performers who are featured in the show.

"Because we have such an incredible cast, we had time to really chill out and develop our characters to give you a wonderful show," she explains. "In most shows, you have four stars and the ensemble. But A CHORUS LINE has 19 stars. So everybody has their chance. And we want everybody in Atlanta to know that there are a lot of folks here that are from their hometown- local people and talented. And I'm learning from them. So you have to come see us!"

A CHORUS LINE is more than a show to her; it's a training ground for up-and-coming performers.

"I have the title 'director,' whatever - I feel that I am a teacher," emphasizes Lee. "I am teaching them this show and helping them develop characters so that when they go on to do another show and they have to develop characters, they will know they have the formula to do it. And you know, now everybody's going to a university to take musical theatre and learn all of that. But there's nothing like being on the stage in front of an audience, learning your craft. It brings a lot of other things out of you."

One unique element of A CHORUS LINE is that since it is about an audition, the stage is full of dancers in the opening who are mostly cut before the second song begins, leaving a select few on the line. For this production, Lee has cast a few teens from the City Springs Conservatory to appear in that first song.

"There is a program that they have at City Springs for pre-professionals, 'Pre-Pro,' we call them," she shares. "And I said, 'I want six of them to be in the opening so that they can work with the professionals.' And of course they go off at the end [of the opening], but at least they're in rehearsals with us so that when they make that next step to becoming a professional, they know what is needed from them. And so I'm very happy to work with our Pre-Pros."

Lee says her favorite part of this process is getting to pass on the legacy of this special musical to a new generation.

"I love the show. I love the music and developing the characters. But most of all, I love training young, talented actors and dancers and giving them Michael Bennett's legacy. And that's important that this legacy continues, that A CHORUS LINE continues year after year, after year after year, and that we pass it on."

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Original A CHORUS LINE cast member and Tony Award® recipient Baayork Lee returns to Sandy Springs to direct and choreograph the musical, playing March 11 - 27, 2022 in the Byers Theatre at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center.

Tickets are $40-$100, with discounts for seniors, students, groups, and active and retired military personnel. For tickets and information call 404-477-4365 or visit www.CitySpringsTheatre.com.

A CHORUS LINE stars Billy Harrigan Tighe as Zach (Broadway: Pippin; West End: The Book of Mormon), Sarah Bowden as Cassie (Hollywood Bowl: A Chorus Line), Anne Otto as Sheila (Broadway: Hugh Jackman: Back on Broadway; National Tour: Chicago), and Tanner Pflueger as Mike (Broadway/West End: Billy Elliot).

Featuring Nathan Lubeck as Larry, Peyton McDaniel as Don, Cecilia Trippiedi as Maggie, Emma X. O'Loughlin as Connie, Cameron Benda as Greg, Ryan Rodiño as Bobby, Emily Franch as Bebe, Jonathan Duvelson as Richie, Jason Goldston as Al, Faith Jordan Candino as Kristine, Grace Arnold as Val, Lukas DeLancey as Mark, Emmanuel Cologne as Paul, Orianna Hilliard as Diana, and Olivia Windley as Judy.

Also in the cast are Maggie Bergman, Alexis Yard, Callie Regan Walker, Willis Hao, Craig Donnelly, Kevin Ivey Morrison, Gill Vaughn-Spencer, Maggie McCown, Evan Hussey.

The Pre-Pro company members Baayork Lee mentioned are Elise V. Friderich, Emma Kate Farlow, Kenya Perry, Mary Kathrine Abowd, Rhylee Mircus, Dominique Lowe, Tsumari Patterson, and Zach Feeney.

The show follows 17 dancers who meet in an empty theatre, on a bare stage, where casting for a new Broadway musical is almost complete. For these dancers, this audition is the chance of a lifetime. It's what they've worked for with every drop of sweat, every hour of training, every day of their lives. This is A CHORUS LINE, the musical for anyone who has ever had a dream and put it all on the line to make that dream come true. One of the first musicals to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, A CHORUS LINE received nine Tony Awards®, including Best Musical.

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