You didn't need to see the movie to appreciate the show.
As part of the Dinner Show at the Spring District Showcase, over 50 Arthur Murray professionals put on a fantastic medley celebrating the music and moods of the Academy Award winning musical, "La La Land".
She assembled teachers and executives from the Arthur Murray Live studios of Hayward, Livermore, Redwood City, Walnut Creek, San Francisco, Stockton, and Fremont, and joined forces with the Sacramento area studios of Carmichael and Folsom to create a visual spectacle that had the audience standing in applause when it was finished.
We caught up with Tonia to ask her about the process, and her thoughts on the outpouring of superlatives describing the production.
AML: What went through your mind when this project was given the green light?
TONIA: Some would call it a complete nightmare, but I was born for these type of nightmares. Honestly, I thought 'no pressure at all. I am just going to create, in a very short amount of time, a ballroom dance show to the most talked about, award winning soundtrack, of the most talked about, and award winning movie - La La Land.'
Did I mention that I had not even seen the film yet? Didn't matter. Bring it on!
AML: That's the spirit! So how did you approach a production of this scale? That had to be challenging.
TONIA: Music. The very first hurdle was choosing which pieces of the soundtrack I wanted to use, and then have my music director put them together in such a way that we had fluidity from the beginning, a clear middle, and a show stopping end. Oh, and it had to be no more than 6 minutes. Big thank you to Alex Doan for making that possible.
Next was the Costumes. The theme for the District Showcase was 'Springtime in Paris', so naturally, the first images that popped into my head were floral 50's dresses, parasols, panama hats, and plenty of color.
From there it was the Dancers. I thought it would be tough to decide which school would dance to which part of the music, but as I listened to the music over and over, I could visualize each of them dancing to it. The music really chose them.
Next - Choreography. Oh my God, my neighbors would surely have been wondering what type of nutter I was playing La La Land on repeat all hours of the night, and hearing me dancing around my living room.
AML: That's brilliant. What would you say is your strategy when it comes to assembling a routine like this?
TONIA: My simple format is: Visualize, structure, choreograph, and simplify. Then I repeat, then take notes, create clear options... and take more notes.
AML: What were the biggest challenges to a show of this size?
TONIA: Naturally first concern was how am I going to get 50+ dancers from 9 difference schools together for a rehearsal before the show??? As a choreographer you lay your foundation, rehearse, and then you tweak here and there but that just wasn't going to happen!
So I was able to work with 6 out of the 9 schools and as each number started to come to life it made piecing it together easier, and thank God for our iPhones which enabled us to film and email clips out to everyone.
AML: A big shout out to Apple for helping to do their part, but didn't that limit you in other areas?
TONIA: Staging the show was also going to be a challenge, as you have to plan how dancers will enter and exit the dance floor. But if you don't have the room you are going to perform it in for rehearsals, it can cause some hiccups. But the one thing about ballroom dancers is that we learn to be versatile and adaptable, so we can always find a way!
AML: What was the turning point where you realized it was really coming together?
TONIA: The weekend before, I was out of town and sent an email to all the schools asking them that if they were up for it we could get together for a full rehearsal. Now, I was asking them to come in to the Livermore studio at 11pm after a full day of working in their studios. Seven out of the nine schools made it, naturally Folsom & Carmichael couldn't, due to their location, but that night we all knew 'we've got this'.
AML: What was something that moved you through the whole process. Anything touching?
TONIA: The Monday late night rehearsal. They all turned up tired, but pumped to do it, and on the last run through, as everyone dances back on for the finale, you could feel how they all felt they were part of something big.
AML: Overall, how would you describe the feeling of this performance now that it's finished? Is there an equivalent? If so, what?
TONIA: There is a special feeling when you are part of a group of dancers. What I mean is, you are not a robotic formation team, but you are all individual artists who are part of a big picture. The importance of your own performance for that big picture gives you a fresh sense of purpose as a dancer. It was totally like the first time I danced in 'Burn the Floor'. We were 44 dancers on stage together, and you could feel that energy from each other, the support for each other, and feeling united as you stand at the end to take your bow and soak up the applause.
With La La Land, they delivered a wow of a show, and the audience didn't slowly get to their feet for the standing ovation, they jumped up! It was touching as I know how fabulous they all felt. They did themselves proud!