Biography

Early life

Reinking was born in Seattle, Washington, the third of seven children born to Frances and Walter Reinking. She grew up in the affluent Seattle suburb of Bellevue. She began ballet lessons at the age of 10, studying with Marian and Illaria Ladre in Seattle. They were a professional ballet couple who had danced for years with the Ballets Russes, which later became the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo.

Reinking made her professional performing debut at the age of 12 in a production of Giselle with the English Royal Ballet. She spent summers in junior high and high school dancing at the San Francisco Ballet, and moved to New York City at the age of 17 following her graduation from Bellevue High School.

Career

In New York, Reinking danced as a member of the corps de ballet at the Radio City Music Hall, performed in the ensemble of the second national tour of Fiddler on the Roof, and at the age of 19 made her Broadway debut as Kit Kat Klub girl Lulu in the musical Cabaret. She was a chorus dancer in Coco (1969), Wild and Wonderful (1971), and Pippin (1972). During Pippin she came to the attention of the show's director and choreographer Bob Fosse. Reinking became Fosse's protégé and romantic partner.

In 1974, Reinking came to critical notice in the role of Maggie in Over Here!, winning a Theatre World Award. She starred as Joan of Arc in Goodtime Charley in 1975, receiving Tony Award and Drama Desk nominations for Best Actress in a Musical.

In 1976 she replaced Donna McKechnie as Cassie in A Chorus Line; in 1977 she replaced Gwen Verdon in the starring role of Roxie Hart in Chicago, a show directed and choreographed by Fosse. In 1978 she appeared in Fosse's review Dancin', and received another Tony nomination.

In that year Reinking and Fosse ended their romance and separated. They continued to have a professional, creative collaboration. Reinking has acknowledged Fosse as the major influence on her work as a choreographer.

In 1979, Reinking appeared in Bob Fosse's semi-autobiographical film All That Jazz, as Katie Jagger, a role loosely based on her own life and relationship with Fosse.

Reinking remained in Hollywood for several years after All That Jazz, and appeared in several feature films, including Annie (as Grace Farrell) and Micki & Maude (as Micki).

In March 1985, Reinking appeared at the 57th Academy Awards to give a mostly lip-synced vocal performance accompanied by a dance routine of the Academy Award-nominated Phil Collins single "Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now)". The routine was poorly received by critics from the Los Angeles Times and People, as well as by Collins himself in a Rolling Stone interview.

In 1986, she returned to Broadway, starring in a successful revival of Fosse's production of Sweet Charity. In 1991, she appeared in her first theatre production following the birth of her son, the Broadway National Tour of Bye Bye Birdie, costarring Tommy Tune. In 1992 she contributed choreography to Tommy Tune Tonite!, a three-man review featuring Tune.

Reinking founded the Broadway Theater Project, a Florida training program connecting students with seasoned theater professionals, in 1994. In 1995, she choreographed the ABC television movie version of the Broadway musical Bye Bye Birdie.

Reinking had retired from performing by this time. In 1996, she was asked to create the choreography "in the style of Bob Fosse" for an all-star four-night-only concert staging of Chicago for City Center's annual Encores! Concert Series. When the producers could not obtain a suitable actress for the role of Roxie Hart, Reinking agreed to reprise the role after almost 20 years. This concert staging of Chicago was a hit, and a few months later the production (in its concert staging presentation) was produced on Broadway, with the Encores! cast: Reinking, Bebe Neuwirth, Joel Grey, James Naughton, and Marcia Lewis. In November 2014 the revival celebrated its 18th year on Broadway and became the second-longest running Broadway show of all time. The revival of Chicago won numerous Tony Awards, and Reinking won the Tony Award for Best Choreography. She recreated her choreography for the 1997 London transfer of Chicago, which starred Ute Lemper and Ruthie Henshall.

In 1998 she co-created, co-directed and co-choreographed the revue Fosse, receiving a Tony Award co-nomination for Best Direction of a Musical. For her work on the West End production of Fosse, Reinking (along with the late Bob Fosse himself) won the 2001 Olivier Award for Best Theatre Choreographer.

In 2001, she received an honorary doctorate from Florida State University for her contribution to the arts.

Reinking continues to choreograph for theatre, television, and film. Reinking served as a judge of annual New York City public school dance competition for inner-city youth, and appeared in Mad Hot Ballroom, the 2005 documentary film about the competition. In 2012, she contributed choreography for the Broadway production of An Evening with Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin. She currently serves as a member of the advising committee for the American Theatre Wing.

Personal life

Reinking was briefly married three times between 1970 and 1991; each of these marriages ended in divorce. Firstly, she was married in 1970 to Larry Small; they divorced later that year. Secondly, she married in 1982 Herbert Allen, Jr., from whom she was divorced in 1989. Thirdly, she married in 1989 James Stuart, with whom she had one child, son Christopher, before their divorce in 1991. Reinking has been married since 1991 to Peter Talbert.

Reinking lives primarily in Phoenix, Arizona, but frequently returns to New York City.

Reinking's son, Chris, suffers from Marfan syndrome, and she works closely with the Marfan Foundation, which is dedicated to raising awareness of the disease. She produced the 2009 documentary, In My Hands: A Story of Marfan Syndrome.

Credits

Filmography

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1976	Ellery Queen	Lorelie Farnsworth
1977	The Andros Targets	Laura Harper
1978	Movie Movie	Troubles Moran
1979	All That Jazz	Kate Jagger
1982	Annie	Grace Farrell
1984	Micki + Maude	Micki Salinger
1987	The Cosby Show	Jill Kelly

Broadway Theater

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1969	Cabaret	Lulu
1969	Coco	Ensemble, Jeanine
1971	Wild and Wonderful	Ensemble
1972	Pippin	Ensemble, Catherine understudy
1974	Over Here!	Maggie
1975	Goodtime Charley	Joan of Arc
1976	A Chorus Line	Cassie Ferguson
1977	Chicago	Roxie Hart
1978	Dancin'	Ensemble
1986	Sweet Charity	Charity Hope Valentine
1996	Chicago	Roxie Hart
2001	Fosse	Ensemble

Other Theater

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1965	Bye Bye Birdie	Ensemble	Seattle Opera House
1968	Fiddler on the Roof	Ensemble	Broadway National Tour
1975	Girl Crazy	Molly Gray	The Muny
1976	A Chorus Line	Cassie Ferguson	Broadway National Tour
1982	The Unsinkable Molly Brown	Molly Brown	The Muny
1988	Pal Joey	Melba Snyder	Goodman Theatre
1991	Bye Bye Birdie	Rose Alvarez	Broadway National Tour

Awards

List of awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Result	Title
1974	Theatre World Award	Theatre World Award	Won	Over Here!
	Clarence Derwent Award	Most Promising Female Performer	Won
	Outer Critics Circle Award	Outstanding Actress in a Musical	Won
1975	Tony Award	Best Actress in a Musical	Nominated	Goodtime Charley
	Drama Desk Award	Outstanding Actress in a Musical	Nominated
1978	Tony Award	Best Featured Actress in a Musical	Nominated	Dancin'
1997		Best Choreography	Won	Chicago
	Outer Critics Circle Award	Outstanding Choreography	Won
	Drama Desk Award	Outstanding Choreography	Won
	Astaire Award	Best Female Dancer	Won
		Best Choreographer	Won
1998	Laurence Olivier Award	Best Choreography	Nominated
1999	Tony Award	Best Director	Nominated	Fosse
	Outer Critics Circle Award	Outstanding Choreography	Nominated
	Outer Critics Circle Award	Outstanding Director of a Musical	Nominated
	Drama Desk Award	Outstanding Director of a Musical	Nominated
2001	Laurence Olivier Award	Best Choreography	Won
	Helpmann Award	Best Choreography	Won	Chicago

[ Source: Wikipedia ]