![\"Mckneely\"](\"http:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/08\/Mckneely.jpg\" "\\"Mckneely\\"")
<\/a><\/a><\/p>\nIn a phone interview, McKneely talked about his ongoing romance with the musical. A self-confessed \u201cdisco baby\u201d McKneely had no formal dance training but says, \u201cI was always shaking my ass as a kid in the 70s.\u201d Discovering dance at age 17, he was not much more than a kid when he found himself on Broadway a year and a half later, and after the same interval, dancing in \u201cJerome Robbin\u2019s Broadway,\u201d where he learned the choreography to West Side Story.<\/p>\n
Stories abound about Robbins as a harsh taskmaster, fiercely devoted to perfecting his art. McKneely says, \u201cThey\u2019re all true. Working with Robbins was a revelation, a learning experience. I had no idea about the history [of West Side Story], I was just a kid. But the choreography made sense to me; I could understand how and why it was done. He was at the end of his career, in his 70s, his temper had diminished. He was somebody who wanted to leave a legacy, to pass that on. That is why I became a choreographer \u2013 because of the experience of working with Robbins. Who else was there to work for?\u201d<\/p>\n
After 7 years as a dancer, performing in productions such as Starlight Express and Carrie, McKneely turned to choreography. He has worked on diverse projects (including the choreography for the movie Zoolander) and receiving Tony nominations for Smokey Joe\u2019s Caf\u00e9 in 1995, and The Life in 1997. In 2000 he both directed and choreographed the La Scala di Milano production of West Side Story, and then for the musical\u2019s 50th anniversary, he was invited to choreograph the Broadway revival alongside Arthur Laurents. McKneely is appreciative of \u201cthe good fortune to work with Laurents,\u201d saying, \u201cThis gave me another insight \u2013 that of the writer\u2019s standpoint \u2013 understanding where character comes from.\u201d<\/p>\n
Reviving a work still so vivid in cultural memory presents a unique choreographic challenge. As McKneely expressed it, \u201cYou have to bring it to 2009 \u2013 it\u2019s not 1957 anymore \u2013 while staying true to the material.\u201d Always striving to \u201clift it to a higher standard in terms of the execution, casting, to get the highest quality performance,\u201d he places the emphasis on the emotional aspect of the production because \u201cthat is what an audience feels. The storytelling in West Side Story is driven by these kids\u2019 anger, hostility, and violence. They reveal their emotions through the movement.\u201d
\nIn casting the international tour he tried to find \u201cthe youngest people possible,\u201d saying, \u201cIt\u2019s a story about teenagers. Actors and dancers who are closer to that age have the same hormonal energy \u2013 they like to stay out late and party and sometimes get into trouble and fights. When you get older, into your 30s, you think differently, you act differently.\u201d<\/p>\n
Working with such young performers requires more than conveying the steps and counts for each number. McKneely says, \u201cThey don\u2019t have acting experience. They are skillful in their vocation (singing or dancing), but in terms of acting on this level \u2013 they are not trained.\u201d His approach seems to be worlds apart from his mentor Robbins. He seeks to \u201cunderstand the performer, who they are, their fears, issues. I try to help them become more open emotionally. I get them comfortable expressing their emotions, letting themselves be vulnerable, sharing pain and anger. Help them learn how to access their emotions freely, as themselves, onstage. It\u2019s more of a psychological process.\u201d<\/p>\n
When I tell him that I have been watching the 1961 movie to remind myself of the show, he immediately cautions, \u201cBe careful of that,\u201d explaining that there is a vast difference between the film and theatre versions of West Side Story. \u201cThe movie is not the stage show. The movie changed the show. Men are not in \u201cAmerica\u201d [the song], Anita was always raped [this is toned down to \u201calmost raped\u201d in the movie]. The movie had to deal with the censors. The movie is an MGM style fantasy. The stage show has more of a sense of reality; there is a naturalism and truth in the environment.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEven musically \u2013 the ballet doesn\u2019t exist in the movie. The scene which has the cornerstone thematic message [the ballet is set on the song \u201cSomewhere\u201d] \u2013 no racism, no ethnic violence, territorial disputes, harmony and peace\u2026a message of hope.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe reality of human nature is that we have been fighting with each other since the dawn of time. Based on Shakespeare\u2019s Romeo and Juliet, West Side Story put in the element of race, which is very modern. We\u2019ve made great leaps and bounds but it\u2019s [racial tensions] still very relevant. We\u2019re playing in Israel\u2026 I don\u2019t want to get into the whole political issue, but it\u2019s an ongoing issue.\u201d<\/p>\n
Having spent 7 years as a dancer, followed by 7 years as a choreographer, the ever-evolving McKneely has now embraced directing as well, giving him a more complete vision of each new work. He is currently working on three new projects, each very different. This is perhaps also due to Robbin\u2019s early influence, who, as McKneely points out, \u201cworked with such a variety: The King and I, Fiddler on the Roof, and West Side Story, all very different, with different vocabulary and characters.\u201d Of the new projects, one is about exotic dancer Josephine Baker, one is about the Empire State Building and the third is a play called \u201cShadows\u201d with dance.<\/p>\n
Does he have a dream project? \u201cYes,\u201d he responds, and one can almost hear the smile in his voice, \u201cthe next one that I\u2019m working on.\u201d<\/p>\n
Performances:
\nSeptember 2 \u2013 14
\nThe Israeli Opera
\n19 Shaul Hamelech Street
\nTickets and info: 03-6927777
\nwww.israel-opera.co.il<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Can\u2019t wait for the 50th anniversary production of West Side Story to come to Tel Aviv? The vibrant young cast will soon be here, accompanied by the show\u2019s choreographer, Joey McKneely. There will be 16 performances of the legendary musical at the Israeli Opera from September 2 \u2013 14, with Donald Chan conducting.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1153","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dance","category-music","category-theater"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1153","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1153"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1153\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1153"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1153"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.midnighteast.com\/mag\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1153"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}