#104: Bring in ‘da Noise, Bring in ‘da Funk

  • Performances: 1,135
  • Open / Close: April 25, 1996 – January 10, 1999
  • Theater: Ambassador Theatre.
  • Tony Awards: Nine nominations and four wins, including for Savion Glover for Best Choreography and Ann Duquesnay for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical. The number of wins is especially impressive when you consider the competition in 1996 which included “Rent,” “Victor/Victoria” and revivals of “The King and I,” “Company,” and “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.”
  • Fun Fact: Ann Duquesnay would appear in another dance oriented Broadway show called “Hot Feet” in 2006 that ran for less than 100 performances. One of the leads in “Hot Feet,” Michael Balderrama is one of the choreographers of current Broadway show, “MJ: The Musical.”

Podcast

Listen to Dr. Julinda Lewis school me on the tap masters who influenced Savion Glover, the mastermind behind “Bring in ‘da Noise.” This is one of those shows that seems like it could only happen at the time that it did because of the specific convergence of talent that came together for the project. Julinda saw the show on tour from a very specific vantage point so has a singular perspective on this amazing show.

One of many reasons to be thankful for the Tony Awards is how they record for posterity some performances that would otherwise go unseen.
Video of two of the tap masters Julinda mentions: Peg Leg Bates and Sandman Sims.