A Chorus Line

The most tragic story in A Chorus Line is one where a relatively famous dancer, who once was a star, was relegated to the chorus line - one nameless of many. She is desperate for any kind of work; she last worked two years ago. Even if the work is unbefitting of her talents, even when it is a massive step back from her heydays. To tell you this is not a major spoiler of any kind, since in A Chorus Line, there is no overarching story, no metaphorical morals, no red herrings or plot twists. Instead, this musical stands on its own through the solid acting, catchy numbers and personable stories we can, in one way or another, relate to. There is, as seems to be the case in anything artistic, a story of an outcast for his preferences, of work and sexuality. There is a story of a dancer, with a burning passion overpowering the ones next to her who cannot find work due to her looks. Superficiality, who has not been through it? There are stories of dance providing an escape from home and families. First experiences I have been to countless movies, and not one play. Except for one in which I was very much young and dumb, but it doesn't really count if you are too young to appreciate anything. Especially as a film student, do I need to say that I am familiar with the techniques used in films? It is thus, refreshing, to watch a play and marvel at the ingenious (to me at least) methods used to convey emotions and hold one's attention. Different camera angles are the bread and butter of any film. Indeed, they are so rudimentary that a filmmaker is praised adoringly if he manages to tell a story using a single shot, a la plays. But as I watched A Chorus Line, I was struck by how little I thought of of multiple camera angles. To watch anything from one angle is not easy, more so in today's fast paced world; to sustain attentions for more than two hours is amazing. And yet, the ease with which A Chorus Line accomplishes this is, for me, noteworthy. I have read reviews, some people scoff at the simplicity of the stage and costume. Ironically, in films, nothing is more beautiful than a simple, captivating movie. Rated M18 A Chorus Line is crude, but not vulgar. This is a surprise, I feel, not only for me, but to many people as well, who assumes that highbrow entertainment like these will be more permissive to people. A play can be about radical or offensive subjects of course, but it is never offensive by itself, in its language. Needless to say, there will never be a song called Tits and Ass. I must confess, a certain glee when the song was sung. I was seated next to a girl who was not older than 14, with her mother, both having the looks of an upper-class family where everything was prim and proper. I can only imagine the look on their faces; I didn't dare look - it would be too obvious. However, while I delight in the potentially offensive words, I have never felt that A Chorus Line was striving to be edgy or offensive. The song was sung by a Texan dancer, perhaps somewhat stereotypically, but I felt that the words were merely what the dancer would have used. In other words, there was never an intention to be vulgar for the sake of being vulgar. She was singing her earnest feelings.