Wayne Lamb

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For the Australian rules footballer, see Wayne Lamb (footballer).

Wayne Lamb
Choreographer
  • Theatre director
  • Professor of dance

    • Michael "Wayne" Lamb (October 24, 1920 – June 5, 2001) was a

    choreographer, theatre director
    and professor of dance.

    Beginnings in Kansas

    Lamb was born in

    University of Wichita and the University of Kansas, where he studied dancing.[2]

    Earl Carroll's Vanities

    He left college to tour with Earl Carroll's Vanities, playing five shows a day on the movie circuit for three months.[2] "They said if I was interested in joining them, I had to be in Kansas City the next morning. So I quickly quit school and joined the show." The movie circuit consisted of performing between movie screenings at theatres across the country.[3]

    Military service

    His fledgling career was interrupted by the World War II draft. He spent the next three years in an Army uniform, chauffeuring officers and the occasional entertainer – such as Marlene Dietrich and Dinah Shore – around Europe.[3] He served in France, Belgium, Holland, England and Germany as a staff sergeant, and earned the Bronze Star.[1]

    Study in New York

    After his discharge and the

    African-American modern dance innovator Katherine Dunham.[2]

    Studying with Doris Humphrey

    Jack Ragotzy recalls a story that Lamb told about choreographing a poem for Doris Humphrey: "After the piece was presented," he said, "she gave me the best advice of my life. 'Never work on anything unless you can add something of yourself to the work. If you can't add something of yourself, the work is already complete and there is no need for you to spend your time or energy on it.'"[7]

    Professional beginnings

    Lamb joined the national touring company of The Day Before Spring, which closed three days after its debut in Chicago during a crippling coal strike.[3] A month later, he would receive his Broadway debut.

    Broadway

    Lamb appeared in six

    musical revue Make Mine Manhattan (1948–1949) at the Broadhurst Theatre with Sid Caesar, which ran for 429 performances.[11] Other Broadway shows included The Day Before Spring, which opened on November 22, 1945, at the National Theatre, where it ran for 167 performances, and the national company[7] of Call Me Mister, which included Bob Fosse, Carl Reiner and Buddy Hackett in the cast. Wayne was the ballet dancer and Bob Fosse the tap dancer in this production.[7] The show ran 15 months in venues all over the country.[5][3] Lamb was in the Pre-Broadway tryout of Bonanza Bound, choreographed by Jack Cole and included Gwen Verdon in the chorus with Lamb. Writer/Director Joe Stockdale recalls Jack Ragotsy's first impression of Lamb in Call Me Mister in Chicago: "As a young dancer he had an animal grace that was electric in its force and energy."[7]

    He also worked with actress Vivian Blaine, writer Mel Brooks, director George S. Kaufman and comedian Imogene Coca.[3]

    Off-Broadway

    Lamb is listed in the Broadway World Internet Database as the choreographer for two

    Jan Hus Playhouse and Twelfth Night in 1957 at the Shakespearewrights Theatre.[12]

    International tour

    Lamb toured internationally from 1948 to 1950 as a concert dancer with the Elena Imaz International Dance Trio, presenting Spanish dances created by Imaz, who was originally from

    Sarasota Herald Tribune.[13][14]

    Television

    Lamb performed as a regular dancer on The Admiral Broadway Review which became

    Tony Martin Show, The Ezio Pinza Show, the Bob Hope television specials, and The Colgate Comedy Hour.[12][5] Wayne himself declared that he was the first one to wear a dance belt on television in an early version of The Burl Ives Show. Lamb elaborated for the Kalamazoo Gazette: "They wouldn't allow me to stand up straight for fear the American public would see my crotch!"[3]

    Barn Theatre

    In 1955, Lamb's interest in choreography led him to

    summer stock theatre in Augusta, Michigan, where he began directing musicals and plays alongside his companion, Angelo Mango, who was also an actor. His first assignment for the Barn was choreography for Jack Ragotzy's South Pacific.[5] The Holland, Michigan Evening Sentinel from June 1971 states that Lamb's first show for the 1971 summer season was Hello Dolly, which opened June 29, 1971 with Jack Ragotzy as producer and Lamb as Associate Producer.[16] The cast included Angelo Mango. A 1978 Barn Theatre program bio states that Lamb had been with the Barn for 23 years and shares "top artistic and managerial decisions with Jack Ragotzy" (artistic director). Lamb was Associate Producer at that time.[5][17]

    Professional teaching

    Lamb was instructor of ballet classes for the New Dance Group in New York City and director of the ballet department for seven years, from 1950–57, 'teaching whenever I was in town.' In 1958, he was Director of the School of Dance and Fine Arts in Hastings, Michigan. In 1967, he taught dance classes for Diamond Head Theatre in Hawaii.[18]

    University teaching

    Lamb taught dance for Eureka College (Illinois) in 1959, Williams College in 1962 and the University of Massachusetts Amherst from 1964 to 1966.[citation needed]

    Purdue University

    His teaching relationship with Purdue University began in 1960 and lasted until 1986.[19][18] He was promoted to assistant professor in 1971, and is listed as an associate professor in a 1978 Barn Theatre program bio.[5] He taught ballet, broadwayjazz dance, allroom] and tap dance, his specialty.[5]

    Choreography

    He provided choreography for

    Gypsy, The Me Nobody Knows, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Once Upon a Mattress, A Midsummer Night's Dream (twice), Bury the Dead and Guys and Dolls.[citation needed
    ]

    Direction and choreography

    He provided direction and choreography for

    George M, The Amorous Flea, Fiddler on the Roof, Our Town, Tobacco Road, The Music Man and Carousel, all with musical direction by longtime theatre colleague Dorothy Runk Mennen.[citation needed
    ]

    USO Show

    For Purdue, Lamb directed a 1974

    Okinawa, Taiwan, the Philippines, Guam and Hawaii.[19]

    Affiliations

    Lamb was a member of the

    Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers, Actors' Equity Association, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists and the American Association of Community Theatre.[19]

    Honors

    He received the title of

    Professor Emeritus of Theatre in 1987.[18]

    At the new Pao Hall for the Performing Arts on the Purdue University campus, the Wayne Lamb Lobby was dedicated soon after the center's opening.[citation needed]

    He was honored posthumously at Purdue University Theatre's October 2010 Legacy weekend. Purdue University Theatre's website explains: (This is an honor) 'recognizing and honoring professionals and professors who have had a profound impact upon Purdue Theatre and the professional theatre.' It was also a way for our current and future students – and the faculty and staff of Purdue Theatre – to know of our history, know about the careers of these individuals and the ways in which their contributions have shaped the lives and careers of so many others.'[13] In an evening of memories, former students Dr. Anne Fliotsos and Rev. Donald Stikeleather offered dance steps and memories of Wayne. A plaque with his name was placed adjacent to a theater on campus.[citation needed]

    Death

    After his retirement from Purdue, Lamb and partner Angelo Mango continued to live part time in Augusta and New York City, until his death on June 5, 2001, in Augusta, Michigan.[1]

    References

    1. ^ a b c "Barn Theatre's Wayne Lamb dies". Battle Creek Enquirer. Battle Creek, Michigan. June 7, 2001. p. 4A.
    2. ^ a b c "Wayne Lamb". The Legacy Project. Purdue University. Archived from the original on 14 February 2014. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
    3. ^ a b c d e f g Doug Pullen, "Wayne Lamb: still hoofing after all these years," Arts & Entertainment, Kalamazoo Gazette, August 11, 1985.
    4. ^ Donald Stikeleather, interview with Wayne Lamb, 1983.
    5. ^ a b c d e f g h Barn Theatre Archives, 1978 Barn Theatre program bio.
    6. ^ "Blogger". Accounts.google.com. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
    7. ^
      ISBN 978-1886167179
      .
    8. ^ "Danza Ballet – La danza y el ballet". Danza Ballet. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
    9. ^ Doug Pullen, "Wayne Lamb: still hoofing after all these years," Arts & Entertainment, Kalamazoo Gazette, August 11, 1985. This article names the musical as 'Yours is My Heart Alone.'
    10. ^ "Bloomer Girl – Broadway Musical – Original". IBdb.com. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
    11. ^ ​Make Mine Manhattan​ at the Internet Broadway Database
    12. ^ a b Stowe, Beulah (February 16, 1958). "Music and Art With a Local Angle". Battle Creek Enquirer. Battle Creek, Michigan. p. 7.
    13. ^ a b Upcoming Productions News Purdue University [dead link]
    14. ^ "Sarasota Herald-Tribune – Google News Archive Search". News.google.com. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
    15. ^ "Television". The New York Times. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
    16. ^ [1] [dead link]
    17. ^ "Theatre History Archives". Barntheatre.com. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
    18. ^ a b c "Board of Trustees minutes, 1987 Mar. 27 :: Board of Trustees Minutes". E-archives.lib.purdue.edu. Retrieved March 13, 2019.
    19. ^ a b c Lamb, Wayne (December 16, 1974). "Personal Resume of Wayne Lamb". Purdue University Theatre Archive. pp. 1–9.

    External links

    Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wayne_Lamb&oldid=1198778420"