JoAnn M. Hunter (‘Bad Cinderella’ choreographer) loves to ‘dance on the precipice’ [Exclusive Video Interview]
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
JoAnn M. Hunter didn’t plan on becoming a choreographer. She built a successful life as a dancer with a dozen Broadway credits before ever having idea to make a career shift. She admits that a late career change is “so scary” but she soon fell in love with choreography because, as she simply states: “I love dancers.” The unique atmosphere of a rehearsal studio helped her find great satisfaction in this new line of work. “There’s a willingness to want to make the same thing, and create, and to trust. And I enjoyed that more than I ever anticipated,” she admits. As the choreographer for the new Broadway musical “Bad Cinderella,” Hunter has every ounce of her creativity, and love for dancers, on display. Watch the exclusive video interview above.
“Bad Cinderella” marks the latest in a string of collaborations with Andrew Lloyd Webber, which includes the London iteration of this new Cinderella story as well as “School of Rock’ on Broadway.
More from GoldDerby
'Night Court': John Larroquette could join distinguished group if he wins 5th Emmy for same category
'The Big Door Prize': Critics call Apple TV+ series 'one of the best comedy debuts in years'
WATCH 2023 Tony Awards slugfest: 15 productions vie for places in Musical races
The diversity in Webber’s music for “Bad Cinderella” fed into Hunter’s approach for the physical language of the show. “My training growing up was very diverse,” she notes. Her early dance instructors would bring in teachers from all over the country, across various styles. So when she listened to music for Webber’s update to the classic fairytale, she could hear the composer’s homage to Rodgers and Hammerstein, yet it has a contemporary edge that repositions the action in a “little bit more modern, more sexy world.” So Hunter combined many different genres of dance to tell the story. “I was able to then dive into stylistically to develop dance that would help continue plotline,” she explains.
It takes a large ensemble of highly skilled dancers to pull off Hunter’s high-energy routines. And the choreographer knows exactly what she is looking for. “I love dancers who dance on the precipice,” she gushes. “Just on the verge of falling off.” She encourages her dancers to tackle the moments that scare them instead of playing it safe. “I’m one of those people who believe…that we can see much more in a human being than they can maybe see in themselves,” reveals Hunter. Because of this encouragement, she frequently witnesses dancers realize their potential to accomplish more than they previously thought. It’s one of the most satisfying moments of the job.
SEE ‘KPOP’ composer Helen Park poised to make Tony Awards history
Born to a Japanese mother and an Irish and Scottish father, Hunter is one of the only women of Asian descent to choreograph for Broadway. It’s a small list consisting of Baayork Lee (who famously re-staged “A Chorus Line” in 2006 and received a Special Tony Award in 2017), Kimi Okada (who was Tony-nominated for her choreography of “Largely New York” with Bill Irwin in 1989), Farah Khan (Tony-nominated for “Bombay Dreams” alongside Anthony Van Laast in 2004) and Hunter. Since Okada and Khan received joint nominations with their collaborators, Hunter would be the first Asian woman to receive a solo Tony nomination for Choreography if she were to be recognized for her work in “Bad Cinderella.”
Where are the other AAPI women in the world of Broadway dance? “I think they’re out there, they just have not had an opportunity,” confesses Hunter. She admits to feeling pressure given her position in a majority white space. “I feel I have a responsibility to do good work…And I have the responsibility to say that there are others, there are always other people out there. You have to open the door for them,” she explains. “If I can continue to try and do the best work that I can do, and do it with grace and try to be a good human being, that alone should be able to open doors for other people that may be similar to me.”
PREDICT the 2023 Tony Award nominees through May 2
Make your predictions at Gold Derby now. Download our free and easy app for Apple/iPhone devices or Android (Google Play) to compete against legions of other fans plus our experts and editors for best prediction accuracy scores. See our latest prediction champs. Can you top our esteemed leaderboards next? Always remember to keep your predictions updated because they impact our latest racetrack odds, which terrify Hollywood chiefs and stars. Don’t miss the fun. Speak up and share your huffy opinions in our famous forums where 5,000 showbiz leaders lurk every day to track latest awards buzz. Everybody wants to know: What do you think? Who do you predict and why?
Best of GoldDerby
Sign up for Gold Derby's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
