Katie Bays

 “Too Darn Hot”

 Kiss Me Kate
 Composed by Cole Porter
 Premiered December 30, 1948
o Closed July 28, 1951
 The show is a show within a show. It tells the story of The Taming of the
Shrew by William Shakespeare. A man and his exwife are the stars,
meanwhile the man, who is also the producer, is chasing after the new sexy
Lois Lane who is playing Bianca. Lois’s boyfriend Bill, however, has been
wildly gambling, and has gangsters coming after him. Many hijinks ensue and
eventually the gangsters end up on stage with the cast. At the top of act two,
the cast and crew lament that they won’t be able to go out with their lovers
tonight as it is too hot out. The play continues onstage, and the gangsters’
boss dies, making the IOU invalid. The musical ends with Fred and Lilli
together, and Bill and Lois together.
 Choreography by Hanya Holm. Original could not be found in video, but she
was a huge contributor to modern dance. She used elements of natural
movement and allowed discovery to be her basis.
o I extensively watched videos of the London revival from 2002,
however, which was choreographed by Kathleen Marshall.
o Very rarely was everyone doing the same thing in the same direction
at the same time. She utilized variety and variation.
o I thought that some of the lifts and tricks did not focus as much on
telling the story and were more a part of the flash of the moment than
telling the story through the movement. I absolutely loved all the
tricks and explosive nature of the choreography, but I felt there maybe
could have been simpler movement that told the story better.
 I watched the UK revival, a performance at TSU, the movie version, and some
other stand alone versions of the number. The UK revival was hands down my
favorite. I thought about the movement and it’s inspiration. I thought about
being in the crowded alley of NYC and wanting to break free from the heat,
but still wanting to be close to your lover. The story I was trying to tell was a
 man picking a woman up for a date, but realizing it’s too hot to go dancing,
they go wander the streets. The find themselves in a crowd, trying to break
free. They finally do, but are still under the stress of the heat. They enjoy
themselves, but they eventually have to stop to catch their breath.
 I learned a lot about tempo and the limitations it can place on choreography.
The actual recording was impossible to execute ideas with. I also learned a lot
about having to learn things not just so you can do them right but so that you
literally can’t do it wrong. I have also learned that you can do the same
movement 20 different times and just by changing the facial expression, the
entire intention of the movement seems to change.
 I learned that I wanted more creative control over where the percussive hits
in the music were too. I would really like to choreograph a new musical when
a choreographer would still have more of a say in that than in an already
established musical.