Wayne Cilento
| Wayne Cilento | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Wayne Louis Cilento August 28, 1949 New York City, New York, USA |
| Occupation | Director, Choreographer |
Wayne Louis Cilento (born August 28, 1949) is an American director and choreographer. He is best known for originating the role of Mike in the Broadway show A Chorus Line, and later becoming one of Broadway's most prolific choreographers.
Cilento was born in the Bronx, New York City, and later moved to suburban Westchester County. Though he attended one dance class when he was seven or eight, the teacher zeroed in on him; he panicked and didn't return. When he was in high school, he saw the original production of Cabaret and was so taken with the show, he decided "I really could do that." He auditioned for his high school musicals, got the dance leads, and started taking dance class twice a week. He continued to study dance in college where he met his mentor Bill Glassman of the American Ballet Theatre. "He was short and straight--someone I could use as a role model."
Not long after he married high school sweetheart Cathy Colety, Cilento made his Broadway musical debut in the chorus of Seesaw. This marked his first exposure to working with Michael Bennett as choreographer. He worked on the infamous Rachael Lily Rosenbloom and Don't You Ever Forget It, where he met many of his future A Chorus Line co-stars, and Irene when he was invited to attend Bennett's workshop sessions of A Chorus Line in 1974-5.
As a member of the original cast, the role of Mike, the short, athletic and aggressive dancer, was based on Cilento's own personality. He introduced the song "I Can Do That", although the specific story was actually that of another performer, Sammy Williams. One of the larger roles in the show, he was a standout and received much attention at the time. During the development of the show, the creators also toyed with Cilento having a second solo titled "Joanne" about his first crush on a girl (done in a Gene Kelly style dance), and appearing as a backup dancer for Cassie's nightclub act, which was later cut. Along with the rest of the cast, he is featured on the iconic marketing materials for the show, and he won the Theater World Award for ensemble in 1976.
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