A Chorus Line No. 27 - Opening Night

Photo by Martha Swope, 1975

"But we didn't need any high-tech help to fill every seat in the Public Theater on April 15, 1975. The inevitable New York City grapevine that can make or break a show before it even opens came through for us that night beyond our wildest dreams, followed by New York Times critic Clive Barnes, who kicked off an avalanche of thrilling reviews with such comments as 'the conservative word for A Chorus Line is tremendous, or perhaps terrific' and 'the reception was so shattering that it is surprising if by the time you read this, the New York Shakespeare Festival has got a Newman Theater still standing in its Public Theater complex on Lafayette Street.'

"One night after a performance, about three weeks after we'd opened, we were all summoned to the big common room backstage at the Public Theater, where Michael Bennett made the announcement: A Chorus Line was moving to the Shubert Theatre on Broadway! We took a two-week break while the crew transported the show from Lafayette Street to West Forty-Fourth Street. Then, to the surprise of no one after that amazing launch, A Chorus Line sold out for opening night at Broadway's Shubert Theatre on July 25, 1975. What did surprise us was the unbelievable news that we weren't just sold out for opening night—we were sold out for months in ad-vance. We instantly became one of New York City's most popular tourist attractions, and we were credited with being "the show that saved Broadway."

--The Third Gilmore Girl: A Memoir by Kelly Bishop

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Photo by Martha Swope, 1975

“Still, it was opening night on Broadway. The ultimate test. The dancers warmed up, dressed, and took their places in the wings. At the call of "Hit it" they swarmed onto the stage in the dark and waited for the familiar piano chords. A blaze of light struck the stage, and they danced. Those in the audience that night did more than applaud, they stood and screamed. That evening the theater community took an extraordinary new musical into its heart.”

"After we finished each number," Don Percassi remembers, "the warmth, the love, just came over the stage like a wave. You could feel it come and feel it go. It was unbelievable. It was metaphysical almost. You didn't hear the applause—warmth just enveloped. Everybody was sort of connected for an instant. God, it was fantastic."

“After they sang "What I Did for Love," each dancer stepped back into the line for the final elimination. As they did, each one received applause. As they performed their final kick line, the response was deafening. Twenty-seven gypsies had arrived on Broadway that night. They felt it, and the audience felt it.”

—What They Did for Love by Denny Martin Flinn