Choreography is the art of devising dance. But what a choreographer creates is much more than steps. Choreography can be used to convey every human emotion, from anger to love, fear to humor.
Where writers use words, the choreographer uses movement. Instead of a painter’s canvas, the choreographer employs the human frame: from the broadest gesture to the blink of an eye, the body’s movements are the tools of the choreographer’s trade.
In addition to devising dance steps, choreographers work with actors to develop their characters, selecting rhythm and pacing to enhance their performances. In the same way, many singers, both on stage and in music videos, rely on choreographers to create their “signature” visual image.
But it is the full-blown “production number” that remains the most conspicuous example of the choreographer at work. Through a magical fusion of music and dance, the choreographer conjures up a spectacle that is at once thrilling and life-affirming: a feast for the eyes and a tonic for the soul.
