|
EVERY LITTLE STEP Send This Review to a Friend
Showcased in the 2009 New Directors/New Films series, the documentary “Every Little Step,” directed by James D. Stern and Adam Del Deo, chronicles the auditions for a revival of the hit show “A Chorus Line” on Broadway. Formidably talented dancers and singers compete to get the coveted spots in the show as the director and associates evaluate them and winnow the applicants into the final few, with further eliminations until the show is cast. The result is a deeply moving ode to the hunger for success in show business.
The film in effect makes each member of the audience a “casting director” who can watch the various candidates and decide who is best, then see if the choices match the choices of those doing the auditioning.
Apart from the exhilaration of the dancing, singing and impassioned line readings, we get the stories of various performers with their hopes, aspirations and frustrations. There is heartbreak for those who don’t make the cut, and joy for those who do.
One actor, Jason Tam, is so superior in his long monologue as Paul, who tells a heartbreaking story of his coming out as gay, that he elicits tears from those auditioning him. Most likely he will from you too. He gets the part.
The film contains an assortment of intriguing interviews, including with Donna McKechnie, Cassie in the original cast. The documentary is extraordinarily revealing about how a show is put together in general, but more specifically provides insight into the dynamics that have made “A Chorus Line” such a memorable work. The creation directed by Michael Bennett, with music by Marvin Hamlisch, lyrics by Edward Kleban and a book co-written by James Kirtkwood and Nicholas Dante, lives on in show biz lore. “Every Little Step” adds to the aura. A Sony Pictures Classics release.
|