It’s correct. The attention given, this past week, to the choreographer Jack Cole at the very moment of the debut of the Fosse/Verdon mini-series on FX. It’s correct because Verdon, a miraculous, one-off entertainer, was nearly a creation of Cole’s. And it’s correct because, basically: no Jack Cole, no Bob Fosse. Cole carved a space for a particular kind of movement on stage and screen that was so influential that other choreographers — Fosse primary among them — picked up the ball and ran with it immediately, eclipsing the innovator.
In a segment of “Witness History,” BBC arts reporter Vincent Dowd interviews Chita Rivera and myself to elucidate some of the dimensions of Cole’s innovation. Listen here.
Dowd’s extended essay based on his radio segment is published here.
Thank you, Steve! Debra
Excellent BBC Interview on Jack Cole.