A Chorus Line No. 5 - Kay Cole
- Lauryn Johnson
- Jul 4
- 3 min read
"Kay Cole, who is nearsighted, had gotten contact lenses for A Chorus Line so she could see the marks on the stage clearly. But it was the other things she saw that impressed her the most. "I actually for the first time in my life could see faces in the audience and you could feel their reactions, they were so intense. I remember a lot of applause and intense crying, because the Newman [stage] is fairly close [to the audience]. That's what amazed me. My roommate came backstage and said, 'Oh my God, it's magic!' And I kept saying, 'Really? You really like it?'"
—On the Line: The Creation of A Chorus Line by Robert Vargas, Baayork Lee, & Thommie Walsh
"On the recording Cole is heard riding the theme through the climax of the number- 'And he said, 'Maggie, do you want to dance?' And I said, Daddy, I would love to—that had made [Kelly] Bishop and the others cry. At that point the music modulates and the 'At the Ballet' music returns. This theme builds to a single sustained note on the open second syllable of the word 'ballet.' She holds it for eight beats."
"[Kelly] Bishop said, "Kay, not having had that experience but only having the song, sang it so simply and purely that the same effect came out of the audience. I'd say ninety percent of the time I was doing 'At the Ballet' in the show, shed get to 'Maggie, do you want to dance?' and tears would come to my eyes. There's something about Kay's voice; it's almost like a castrato's voice. The most pure, beautiful, oh, it knocks me out. I loved harmonizing with her."
"Bishop said she felt no animosity because what had originated as 'her' song became a showcase for Kay Cole. "' had no trouble with that at all. I get the lion's share up front, Kay gets the lion's share at the end. I was glad to have anyone singing with me.'"
—On the Line: The Creation of A Chorus Line by Robert Vargas, baayork Lee, & Thommie Walsh
KAY COLE: People feel they know a little bit of very personal information about me. To everyone I have ever met, 'At the Ballet' has meant something very special. And they all have some kind of wonderful reaction to the song and to me. I'm very proud to have given them that feeling, and to be that person.
----The Longest Line by Gary Stevens and Alan George
"KAY COLE: I guess I was the only Original to come back in a different role. I played Diana at the Shubert for about three months. It was actually a wonderful experience. I heard they needed a Diana and called Michael and asked him if I could do it. He was surprised and he said, 'I think of you as Maggie. I don't know, come in and read.'
"So I did and I auditioned with Debbie Allen. Michael said, 'Okay,' gave me the role and I had a wonderful time. Sharing a dressing room with five girls, including the current Maggie, Pam Klinger, I heard stories about what was connecting to them. In some ways, I was seeing myself when I was first doing it. In learning Diana, obviously I knew things by instinct, but I had to learn it like a new part. Especially viewing everything from the other end of the line, which totally changed the perspective and the focus for me, because we start the show on stage right and it dominoes from that viewpoint down the line to the left. It was a totally different feeling on the other end of the stage.
"Michael called sometime later and asked if I would come back again as Maggie. I just couldn't do that. It's hard to go backwards when you're starting to move forward in your life."
----The Longest Line by Gary Stevens and Alan George
Comments