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BlueTV: George Faison as Spring '08 ICON
George Faison's Tony Award-winning acceptance speech for Best Choreographer
Bleu Magazine No. 5
Spring '08
Icon: George Faison
Legendary Choreographer Looks to Future Generations to Build Upon His Past
So many embark on careers in the entertainment industry, hoping to make an impact like that of legendary choreographer George Faison. But to be a living legend takes equal parts talent, confidence and humility. Bleu was honored to sit and talk with Faison about where he has been, where he is going, and what he wants to leave behind.
Words by LaTanya Rene Spann
George Faison is the embodiment of humility. And it is with humility, grace and a lack of pretension that makes him an icon.
“Someone else will make you a legend,” Faison explains. “My legacy will be in the books that I’ve read, the books I will read, the influences that I’ve left, the dances that I’ve done, the scripts that I’ve written – I hope they exemplify a life well spent in art. That’s what I’m trying to leave my people and my culture – who I am.”
Legendary status is not assumed, but earned. As the first African American to win a Tony Award for Choreography (with probably one of the shortest, most expressive acceptance speeches in history), Faison understands the duty and responsibility that comes with breaking records. After all, he was a freedom fighter alongside the likes of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., James Baldwin and Mary McLeod-Bethune. “We were out there fighting for a dream called freedom and we didn’t stop until we attained that. That’s why we have to be bigger than the people that make us small. If we believe in the truth, then we will prevail.”
Faison’s responsibility is now to the children of our future. His truth is that the education system in America is “diminished because we don’t deal with the arts anymore.” He explains that “the arts and the humanities are a leveling field; by that criteria, you can interact with all kinds of people all over the world.”
Along Faison’s journey, he was fortunate enough to be able to to fraternize with the same society of which he speaks. “I’ve been very, very lucky. I’ve been mentored by some of the great people: Miles Davis, Alvin Ailey, Maya Angelou. I came into New York young but I was able to be in a circle of people who were the arbiters of good taste, style and discipline in their various fields of dance, music and literature. I’ve been blessed.”
It is with this fortuitous upbringing and stern discipline from years of dance that Faison approaches the youth of America. Through the Faison Firehouse Theater located in Harlem, NY, Faison hopes to open the doors to film festivals, plays, concerts, lectures, and seminars. One of his outreach programs, The Respect Project, focuses on mentoring 14-21 year old kids through creative expression where the kids write their own monologues, poems or just their thoughts on the page. His main goal is to get the kids to open up. “Gaining their trust is everything,” he clarifies.
“I think we are mesmerized and seduced by the bling in life, and not the substance in life, even though that will sustain you longer and make you more resourceful than the material things,” Faison says.
Faison’s ability to focus so thoroughly on the next generation stems from years of discipline in dance. From his studies at Howard University while still attending high school to joining the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, George continued to challenge himself. His pieces would evolve to have political and socio-economic themes.
Later, Faison would fall into a more musical world, choreographing concerts and videos for Ashford and Simpson, Natalie Cole, Stevie Wonder, Earth, Wind and Fire and Gladys Knight and the Pips. Faison has choreographed more than thirty plays and musicals. He even won an Emmy Award for his choreography of the HBO special The Josephine Baker Story in 1991.
Throughout his career, the record of history became an important issue. Due to restrictions with unions, recordings of Broadway plays have been limited. “We’ve only just started documenting black shows in the last twenty-five years,” Faison explains. “We as African American artists have got to start recording all of our dances, our songs and our plays. All media should be utilized…Our knowledge of what is out there is crucial to our survival right now. Some of us have to look at how the drum is beaten today. That’s why we want to turn it over to the young so they can filter the music and the rhymes in a new way. You’ve got to add to it and pass it on. That’s how a legacy is built, how a heritage is built and how a tradition sustains itself.”
Faison allows the disciplines of art to define his life. Through these disciplines, he creates a lasting impression on others. “I know it sounds odd but we can inspire people just by encouraging them and telling them that they can do it. Because we need them to be a part of this life, this survival. This world is changing so fast and we can become disconnected so easily. But it’s the greatest opportunity to reach out and become one.”
