Ron Field

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Ron Field (1934 - 1989) was an American choreographer, director, and dancer.

He was born Ronald Field in 1934 in New York City. He made his Broadway debut as a child in Lady in the Dark (1941) with Gertrude Lawrence, and danced in the ensembles of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1949), Kismet (1954), and The Boy Friend (1955) before deciding to concentrate on choreography. His first two efforts Nowhere But Up (1962) and Cafe Crown (1964) were flops, but in 1966 he won his first Tony Award for his dazzling work in the smash hit Cabaret, the first of several noteworthy successes.

During rehearsals for Stephen Sondheim's trouble-plagued Merrily We Roll Along in 1981, Field was unceremoniously dropped from the creative team. It wasn't until a revival of Cabaret in 1987 that he was to have another Broadway success.

In addition to his work on Broadway, Field staged such diverse projects as Las Vegas nightclub acts, the 44th Annual Academy Awards telecast in 1972, a Hollywood Bowl concert and television special with Bette Midler in 1977, the opening ceremonies for the 1986 Los Angeles Olympics, and an acclaimed revival of Kiss Me, Kate in London's West End. He also choreographed Martin Scorsese's "New York, New York" (1977).

On February 6, 1989, Field died of brain lesions in New York City at the age of fifty-five.

[edit] Broadway credits

  • 1987 Cabaret (Choreography)
  • 1986 Rags (Choreography)
  • 1981 Merrily We Roll Along (Choreography; dismissed during previews)
  • 1980 Perfectly Frank (Choreography)
  • 1978 King of Hearts (Choreography and Direction)
  • 1971 On the Town (Choreography and Direction)
  • 1970 Applause (Choreography and Direction)
  • 1968 Zorba (Choreography)
  • 1966 Cabaret (Choreography)
  • 1964 Cafe Crown (Choreography)
  • 1962 Nowhere to Go But Up (Choreography)

[edit] Tony Awards and nominations

  • 1987 Best Choreography (Rags) (nominee)
  • 1970 Best Choreography (Applause) (winner)
  • 1970 Best Direction of a Musical (Applause) (winner)
  • 1969 Best Choreography (Zorba) (nominee)
  • 1967 Best Choreography (Cabaret) (winner)