Joe Langworth
Encyclopedia
Joe Langworth is an American
choreographer, casting director, singer
and dancer.
From 1990 - 2005, Langworth appeared in a number of major Broadway musicals, including the closing company of the original production of A Chorus Line
, the Tony Award
-winning production of Ragtime
with Audra McDonald
, Marin Mazzie
and Brian Stokes Mitchell
, and the 2001 revival of Stephen Sondheim
's Follies
. He was also assistant dance captain of the national tour of the Tony Award-winning musical Thoroughly Modern Millie
.
He grew up in Port Chester, NY and graduated from the State University of New York
at Geneseo, where he studied communications. He returned to his alma mater
to be an associate professor of Dance.
In 2006, Langworth retired from performing to join the New York-based casting agency, Bernard Telsey Casting, Inc. During this time, the Telsey agency supplied casts for Broadway productions like Rent
, The Color Purple
, Wicked
, Legally Blonde
and The Drowsy Chaperone
. In a February 26, 2006 article in the New York Times entitled "Far From the Spotlight, the True Powers of Broadway," Jesse McKinley named it one of the premier casting agencies in New York. At Telsey, Langworth was responsible for casting Broadway musicals, most notably the first Broadway revival of South Pacific
opening at the Lincoln Center Theater in April 2008 and starring Kelli O'Hara
, Paulo Szot
and Loretta Ables Sayre. Langworth also served as associate choreographer for this production which was awarded seven Tony Awards in 2008 and as dance captain for the national touring company.
In 2009 - 2010, he was associate director to Sheryl Kaller on the off-Broadway
and Broadway
productions of Geoffrey Nauffts' play Next Fall
. The play was nominated for Best Director
and Best Play in the 2010 Tony Awards.
His partner is James Matthew Jones
, a leading global public health consultant who served as press secretary to Senator John Kerry
(D-MA) and as executive vice president of The Vaccine Fund, a multi-billion dollar charity founded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
choreographer, casting director, singer
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
and dancer.
From 1990 - 2005, Langworth appeared in a number of major Broadway musicals, including the closing company of the original production of A Chorus Line
A Chorus Line
A Chorus Line is a 1975 musical about Broadway dancers auditioning for spots on a chorus line. The book was authored by James Kirkwood, Jr. and Nicholas Dante, lyrics were written by Edward Kleban, and music was composed by Marvin Hamlisch....
, the Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
-winning production of Ragtime
Ragtime
Ragtime is an original musical genre which enjoyed its peak popularity between 1897 and 1918. Its main characteristic trait is its syncopated, or "ragged," rhythm. It began as dance music in the red-light districts of American cities such as St. Louis and New Orleans years before being published...
with Audra McDonald
Audra McDonald
Audra Ann McDonald is an American actress and singer. She currently stars in the ABC television drama Private Practice as Dr. Naomi Bennett. She has appeared on the stage in both musicals and dramas, such as Ragtime and A Raisin in the Sun...
, Marin Mazzie
Marin Mazzie
Marin Joy Mazzie is an American actress and singer known for her work in musical theater. She was nominated for the Tony Award, Drama Desk Award and Olivier Award for her role as Lilli/Katharine in Kiss Me, Kate, and won the Outer Critics Circle Award...
and Brian Stokes Mitchell
Brian Stokes Mitchell
Brian Stokes Mitchell is an American stage, film and television actor. A powerful baritone, he has been one of the central leading men of the Broadway theatre since the early 1990s...
, and the 2001 revival of Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Joshua Sondheim is an American composer and lyricist for stage and film. He is the winner of an Academy Award, multiple Tony Awards including the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, multiple Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize and the Laurence Olivier Award...
's Follies
Follies
Follies is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman. The story concerns a reunion in a crumbling Broadway theatre, scheduled for demolition, of the past performers of the "Weismann's Follies," a musical revue , that played in that theatre between the World Wars...
. He was also assistant dance captain of the national tour of the Tony Award-winning musical Thoroughly Modern Millie
Thoroughly Modern Millie
Thoroughly Modern Millie is a 1967 American musical film directed by George Roy Hill and starring Julie Andrews. The screenplay by Richard Morris focuses on a naive young woman who finds herself in the midst of a series of madcap adventures when she sets her sights on marrying her wealthy boss.The...
.
He grew up in Port Chester, NY and graduated from the State University of New York
State University of New York
The State University of New York, abbreviated SUNY , is a system of public institutions of higher education in New York, United States. It is the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the United States, with a total enrollment of 465,000 students, plus...
at Geneseo, where he studied communications. He returned to his alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
to be an associate professor of Dance.
In 2006, Langworth retired from performing to join the New York-based casting agency, Bernard Telsey Casting, Inc. During this time, the Telsey agency supplied casts for Broadway productions like Rent
Rent (musical)
Rent is a rock musical with music and lyrics by Jonathan Larson based on Giacomo Puccini's opera La bohème...
, The Color Purple
The Color Purple
The Color Purple is an acclaimed 1982 epistolary novel by American author Alice Walker. It received the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction...
, Wicked
Wicked (musical)
Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. It is based on the Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West , a parallel novel of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and L. Frank Baum's classic story The Wonderful Wizard...
, Legally Blonde
Legally Blonde
Legally Blonde is a 2001 American comedy film directed by Robert Luketic, written by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith, and produced by Marc E. Platt...
and The Drowsy Chaperone
The Drowsy Chaperone
The Drowsy Chaperone is a musical with book by Bob Martin and Don McKellar and music and lyrics by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison. It debuted in 1998 at The Rivoli in Toronto and opened on Broadway on 1 May 2006. The show won the Tony Award for Best Book and Best Score. It started as a spoof of old...
. In a February 26, 2006 article in the New York Times entitled "Far From the Spotlight, the True Powers of Broadway," Jesse McKinley named it one of the premier casting agencies in New York. At Telsey, Langworth was responsible for casting Broadway musicals, most notably the first Broadway revival of South Pacific
South Pacific (musical)
South Pacific is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and book by Hammerstein and Joshua Logan. The story draws from James A. Michener's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1947 book Tales of the South Pacific, weaving together characters and elements from several of its...
opening at the Lincoln Center Theater in April 2008 and starring Kelli O'Hara
Kelli O'Hara
Kelli O'Hara is an American actress, singer, and songwriter.O'Hara has been nominated for three Tony Awards: for her performance as Clara Johnson in The Light in the Piazza; for her performance as Babe Williams in the Roundabout Theatre Company's revival of The Pajama Game, where she starred...
, Paulo Szot
Paulo Szot
Paulo Szot is a Brazilian opera baritone singer and actor. In 2008, he made his Broadway debut as Emile De Becque in a revival of South Pacific. He won the Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical for his performance in the musical, becoming the first Brazilian to receive...
and Loretta Ables Sayre. Langworth also served as associate choreographer for this production which was awarded seven Tony Awards in 2008 and as dance captain for the national touring company.
In 2009 - 2010, he was associate director to Sheryl Kaller on the off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
and Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
productions of Geoffrey Nauffts' play Next Fall
Next Fall (play)
Next Fall is a play written by Geoffrey Nauffts. The play is about two gay men in a committed relationship with a twist, with one being devoutly religious and the other an atheist. The play revolves around their five-year relationship and how they make it work despite their differences...
. The play was nominated for Best Director
Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play
The Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play has been given since 1960. Before 1960 there was only one award for both play direction and musical direction, then in 1960 the award was split into two categories: Dramatic and Musical. In 1976 the Dramatic category was renamed to Play...
and Best Play in the 2010 Tony Awards.
His partner is James Matthew Jones
James Matthew Jones
James Matthew Jones is an American global public health expert and consultant. Jones is the oft-quoted former communications director for U.S. Senator John Kerry. At the forefront of many of the gay rights debates in the U.S...
, a leading global public health consultant who served as press secretary to Senator John Kerry
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...
(D-MA) and as executive vice president of The Vaccine Fund, a multi-billion dollar charity founded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is the largest transparently operated private foundation in the world, founded by Bill and Melinda Gates. It is "driven by the interests and passions of the Gates family"...
.
Broadway appearances
- Next FallNext Fall (play)Next Fall is a play written by Geoffrey Nauffts. The play is about two gay men in a committed relationship with a twist, with one being devoutly religious and the other an atheist. The play revolves around their five-year relationship and how they make it work despite their differences...
as associate director (Original, Drama) - South PacificSouth Pacific (musical)South Pacific is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and book by Hammerstein and Joshua Logan. The story draws from James A. Michener's Pulitzer Prize-winning 1947 book Tales of the South Pacific, weaving together characters and elements from several of its...
as associate choreographer (Revival, Musical) - On the Twentieth CenturyOn the Twentieth CenturyOn the Twentieth Century is a musical with book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Cy Coleman. Part operetta, part farce, part screwball comedy, the story involves the behind-the-scenes relationship of a temperamental actress and a director.-Background:Comden and Green based...
(Revival, Special, Musical, Comedy) - RagtimeRagtime (musical)Ragtime is a musical with a book by Terrence McNally, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens, and music by Stephen Flaherty.Based on the 1975 novel by E. L. Doctorow, Ragtime tells the story of three groups in America, represented by Coalhouse Walker Jr., a Harlem musician; Mother, the matriarch of a WASP family in...
(Original, Musical, Drama) - FolliesFolliesFollies is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman. The story concerns a reunion in a crumbling Broadway theatre, scheduled for demolition, of the past performers of the "Weismann's Follies," a musical revue , that played in that theatre between the World Wars...
(Revival, Musical, Drama) - A Chorus LineA Chorus LineA Chorus Line is a 1975 musical about Broadway dancers auditioning for spots on a chorus line. The book was authored by James Kirkwood, Jr. and Nicholas Dante, lyrics were written by Edward Kleban, and music was composed by Marvin Hamlisch....
(Original, Musical, Drama)
Sources
- http://www.ibdb.com/person.asp?id=70222
- http://www.achorusline.org/Interviews/JoeLangworth.html
- http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/26/theater/newsandfeatures/26mck4.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
- http://www.danceruniverse.com/stories/issues/200801/joe-langworths-transition-to-casting-director/index.html
- http://media.www.thelamron.com/media/storage/paper1150/news/2009/04/16/ArtsEntertainment/Geneseo.Alumnus.Brings.Broadway.Wisdom.Into.Brodie.Classrooms-3713578.shtml