''Marie, Dancing Still'' is a

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

with music by

Stephen Flaherty Stephen Flaherty (born September 18, 1960) is an American composer of musical theatre and film. He works most often in collaboration with the lyricist/book writer Lynn Ahrens. They are best known for writing the Broadway musicals ''Ragtime'', whi ...

and book and lyrics by

Lynn Ahrens Lynn Ahrens (born October 1, 1948) is an American writer and lyricist for the musical theatre, television and film. She has collaborated with Stephen Flaherty for many years. She won the Tony Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Awa ...

, based on

Edgar Degas Edgar Degas (, ; born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas, ; 19 July 183427 September 1917) was a French Impressionist artist famous for his pastel drawings and oil paintings. Degas also produced bronze sculptures, prints and drawings. Degas is es ...

' 1880 statue ''

Little Dancer of Fourteen Years ''The Little Fourteen-Year-Old Dancer'' (French: ') is a sculpture begun c. 1880 by Edgar Degas of a young student of the Paris Opera Ballet dance school, a Belgian named Marie van Goethem. Description The sculpture is one-third life size and ...

''. The musical, then named ''Little Dancer'', premiered at the

Kennedy Center The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

in Washington, D.C. in 2014. The original production was directed and choreographed by

Susan Stroman Susan P. Stroman (born October 17, 1954) is an American theatre director, choreographer, film director and performer. Her notable theater productions include '' The Producers'', '' Crazy for You'', ''Contact'', and '' The Scottsboro Boys''. She i ...

. The musical was retitled ''Marie, Dancing Still – A New Musical'' in 2018, prior to the production opening at the

5th Avenue Theatre The 5th Avenue Theatre is a landmark theatre located in Seattle's Skinner Building, in the U.S. state of Washington. It has hosted a variety of theatre productions and motion pictures since it opened in 1926. The building and land are owned b ...

, Seattle in March 2019.

Production history

The musical premiered at the Kennedy Center's Eisenhower Theatre on October 25, 2014. The production closed on November 30, 2014. The writing team passed on a potential Los Angeles run in 2015 in order to do rewrites and revisions on the piece. The invitation - only March 28, 2016 industry reading featured a newly revised draft of the show. Participants included a number of cast members from the original Kennedy Center production, including New York City Ballet principal dancer Tiler Peck, Rebecca Luker, Karen Ziemba, Kyle Harris and Michael X. Martin. A private reading was held in June 2018. The reading featured Tiler Peck, Robert Lindsay, Kate Baldwin and Karen Ziemba. The musical was retitled ''Marie, A New Musical'' in 2018, and then ''Marie, Dancing Still''. This is based on the "developmental work done by the creators to focus on the once “unknown” woman at the heart of the story." The musical opened at the

, Seattle on March 22, 2019 and will run to April 14. The cast for the 5th Avenue Theatre production includes Tiler Peck (Marie), Terrence Mann (Degas), Louise Pitre (Adult Marie), Dee Hoty (Mary Cassat) and Karen Ziemba (Martine Van Goethem), with direction and choreography by Stroman.''Marie''
5thavenue.org, access April 2, 2019

Synopsis

The musical is inspired by the story of

Marie van Goethem Marie Geneviève van Goethem (or Goetham or Goeuthen; born 7 June 1865) was a French ballet student and dancer with the Paris Opera Ballet, and the model for Edgar Degas's statue ''Little Dancer of Fourteen Years'' (''La Petite Danseuse de Quatorz ...

, a young ballerina who posed for

. Marie became, inadvertently, the most famous dancer in the world. Torn by her family's poverty, her debt to the artist, and the lure of wealthy men, she struggles to keep her place in the corps de ballet. She is a girl on the verge of womanhood, caught between the conflicting demands of life and art.

Musical numbers

Washington, D.C.

;Act 1 * "C'est le Ballet" – Adult Marie, Company * "Little Hole in the Wall" – Young Marie, Charlotte, Adult Marie * "Eye Examination" – Doctors * "Unfinished" – Degas, Mary Cassatt * "A Rat" – Rats, Adult Marie, Company * "Musicians and Dancers and Fools" – Christian * "Laundry" – Martine, Adult Marie, Antoinette, Young Marie, Charlotte, Laundresses * "Little Opportunities" – Antoinette, Company * "Petite Chanson" – Martine, Bar Patrons, Young Marie * "Ballerina" – Charlotte, Young Marie * "In Between" – Degas * "Act One Finale" – Degas, Adult Marie, Young Marie ;Act 2 * "Looking Back at Myself" – Adult Marie * "At the Dressing Table" – Antoinette, Martine, Young Marie * "Les Petites Danseuses" – Corbeil, Abonnes * "I'll Follow You" – Philippe * "Observations " – Mary Cassatt * "Little Opportunities (Reprise) " – Antoinette * "Moving Up in the World" – Martine, Laundresses, Adult Marie, Young Marie, Charlotte * "Dancing Still" – Christian * "A Box of Things" – Degas, Young Marie * "The Exposition" – Degas, Company * "What You Made of Me" – Adult Marie * "The Little Dancer Ballet " – Young Marie, Company * "Finale" – Company

Seattle, WA.

;Act 1 * "Prologue" – Young Marie * "C'est le Ballet" – Adult Marie, Company * "Laundry" – Martine, Young Marie, Charlotte, Laundresses * "The Eye Examination" – Doctors * "Never Done Before" – Degas * "A Rat" – Young Marie, Adult Marie, Company * "Musicians and Dancers and Fools" – Christian * "Little Opportunities" – Antoinette, Degas, Company * "Petite Chanson" – Martine, Le Rat Mort Patrons, Young Marie. Charlotte * "The Audition" – Adult Marie * "Marie" – Degas * "Act One Finale" – Degas, Adult Marie, Young Marie ;Act 2 * "Looking Back at Myself" – Adult Marie, Company * "At the Dressing Table" – Young Marie, Rats * "Les Petites Danseuses" – Corbeil, Abonnes * "Observations " – Mary Cassatt * "Little Opportunities (Reprise) " – Antoinette * "Laundry (Reprise)" – Martine, Laundresses, Adult Marie * "A Box of Things" – Degas, Young Marie * "The Life of the Person" – Degas * "Between Us" – Christian, Young Marie * "The Exposition" – Degas, Company * "What You Made of Me" – Adult Marie * "The Choices: A Ballet " – Young Marie, Company * "Finale" – Company

Cast

Awards and honors

Original Washington, D.C. production (2014)

References

{{Edgar Degas 2014 musicals Original musicals Dance in theatre Cultural depictions of Edgar Degas Musicals by Lynn Ahrens Musicals by Stephen Flaherty