Have you ever wondered who are the most influential choreographers ever? The masterminds behind the best choreographies in history are often less known than their works or the performers who were lucky enough to interpret those unique pieces. So, we’ve decided to compile a list of the most influential choreographers of all times and genres.
I’m sure that this topic makes you feel like getting off the couch and start practicing your moves. If you feel like dancing, make sure you check out our list on the 10 Best Party Songs of All Time.
Are you curious about the most influential choreographers ever? Let’s put on some music and take a look at the countdown.
10. Shane Sparks
This influential hip-hop dancer and choreographer is best known for his work on the famous TV shows So You Think You Can Dance and America’s Best Dance Crew. Originally from Ohio, Sparks first moved to Los Angeles, California, in 1993 and has since then bloomed in the city as an artist, performer, and choreographer.
9. Farah Khan
Farah Khan is much more than a choreographer; she’s a film director, producer, and actress. Her prolific work in Bollywood, in all of her areas of expertise, has made her one of the best known names in the industry. Khan has choreographed dance routines in more than eighty Hindi films and over one hundred songs.
8. Katherine Dunham
Sometimes referred to as the “matriarch and queen mother of black dance”, Katherine Dunham was an American choreographer, dancer, author, educator, and social activist who had her own dance company for over thirty years. The Katherine Dunham Dance Company was very special, for at the time it was the only American dance troupe that was self-supported and consisted of all African-American members.
7. Jerome Robbins
Jerome Robbins was an American choreographer, director and producer who is probably best known for his extraordinary work in the beloved West Side Story, a film for which he won the Academy Award for Best Director along with Robert Wise. Jerome’s unforgettable job in Broadway productions such as On the Town, The Pajama Game, Gypsy, and Fiddler on the Roof, has deeply influenced the genre.
6. Marius Petipa
This French master of ballet is definitely one of the most influential choreographers of his kind. He was the mastermind behind more than fifty ballets including Don Quixote, La Bayadère, The Nutcracker, The Sleeping Beauty, and many more. Since he lived during the nineteenth century, his choreographies haven’t always survived in their full form, so some of the versions we see nowadays are either reconstructions of his works or pieces inspired by him.
5. Bob Fosse
The renowned Bob Fosse is without a doubt one of the most influential choreographers of all times. He managed to create a unique dancing style which was captured in unforgettable works like Cabaret, Chicago and Sweet Charity. Also a prominent director, exquisite dancer, and actor, Bob Fosse was awarded eight Tony Awards and even an Academy Award.
4. Maurice Béjart
Maurice Béjart was, apart from a dancer and choreographer, an opera director. He was born in France but moved to Lausanne, Switzerland, where he established one of the best known dance companies ever: the Béjart Ballet Lausanne. One of his many famous works was a version of The Nutcracker.
3. Pina Bausch
One of the most celebrated figures of modern dance was the German dancer, choreographer, director, and teacher, Pina Bausch. Her unforgettable and unparalleled style revolutionized contemporary ballet and influenced both dancers and choreographers of the genre. A documentary about her lifework directed by Wim Wenders was released in 2011, two years after the choreographer’s untimely death.
2. Martha Graham
Modern dance was forever altered after Martha Graham irrupted in its world. This unique woman’s influence, who worked relentlessly both dancing and choreographing for over seventy years, has been compared to that of Picasso’s on visual art and Stravinsky’s on music. Her dance company, the Martha Graham Dance Company, is still today one of the most famous dance troupes of contemporary dance.
1. Alvin Ailey
The most influential choreographer in the world was Alvin Ailey, an African-American activist who managed to make modern dance popular and revolutionize the ballet world. His company, which often toured internationally, gained the nickname of “Cultural Ambassador to the World”.
