Andy Blankenbuehler (born March 7, 1970) is an American dancer,

choreographer Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which Motion (physics), motion or Visual appearance, form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A chor ...

and director primarily for

stage Stage, stages, or staging may refer to: Arts and media Acting * Stage (theatre), a space for the performance of theatrical productions * Theatre, a branch of the performing arts, often referred to as "the stage" * ''The Stage'', a weekly Brit ...

and concerts. He has been nominated for the Tony Award for Best Choreography five times, and has won three times: for '' In the Heights'' (2008), ''

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

'' (2016), and ''

Bandstand A bandstand (sometimes music kiosk) is a circular, semicircular or polygonal structure set in a park, garden, pier, or indoor space, designed to accommodate musical bands performing concerts. A simple construction, it both creates an ornamen ...

'' (2017). Blankenbuehler's other Broadway choreography work includes ''

9 to 5 Working time or laboring time is the period of time that a person spends at paid Wage labour, labor. Unpaid work, Unpaid labor such as personal housework or caring for children or pets is not considered part of the working week. Many countri ...

, Bring it On: The Musical'', and the 2016 ''

Cats The cat (''Felis catus''), also referred to as the domestic cat or house cat, is a small domesticated carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species of the family Felidae. Advances in archaeology and genetics have shown that the ...

'' revival. Blankenbuehler was awarded the Kennedy Center Honor in 2018 for his work on ''Hamilton''. He also choreographed the movie adaptation of ''Cats''. Most recently he choreographed, directed and co-wrote Only Gold - a new musical with Music by

Kate Nash Kate Marie Nash (born 6 July 1987) is an English musician and actress from North Harrow. Her singles "Foundations (song), Foundations" (2007) and "Do-Wah-Doo" (2010) charted at numbers 2 and 15 on the UK singles chart and her albums ''Made of Bri ...

at MCC Theater.

Life and career

Blankenbuehler was born in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, and is a 1988 graduate of St. Xavier High School and 1984 graduate of Nativity School in Cincinnati. He received his bachelor's degree from

Southern Methodist University Southern Methodist University (SMU) is a Private university, private research university in Dallas, Texas, United States, with a satellite campus in Taos County, New Mexico. SMU was founded on April 17, 1911, by the Methodist Episcopal Church, ...

in Dallas, Texas. As a performer, he has appeared on Broadway in many musicals, from ''

Guys and Dolls ''Guys and Dolls'' is a musical theater, musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows. It is based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" (1933) and "Blood Pressure", which are two short stories by Damon Run ...

'' (1992–1995) to '' Fosse'' (1999–2001). His Broadway work as a choreographer includes the musicals '' In the Heights'' (2007–08) and ''

'' (2008–09). He won the

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

and

Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Awards are among the most esteemed honors in New York theater, recognizing outstanding achievements across Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway productions within the same categories. The awards are considered a signific ...

for his choreography for ''In the Heights''. Other New York work includes choreography for the "Broadway By The Year:1930, 1938 and 1978" series, and the City Center

Encores! Encores! is a Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre, Tony-honored concert series dedicated to reviving United States, American Musical theatre, musicals, usually with their original orchestrations. Presented by New York City Center since 1994, E ...

productions of '' The Apple Tree'' (2006) and ''

The Wiz ''The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz"'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls (and others) and book by William F. Brown. It is a retelling of L. Frank Baum's children's novel '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' ...

'' (2009). He is the director and choreographer of '' Bring It On: The Musical'', written by Jeff Whitty, with music by

Lin-Manuel Miranda Lin-Manuel Miranda (; born January 16, 1980) is an American songwriter, actor, singer, filmmaker, rapper, and librettist. He created the Broadway musicals '' In the Heights'' and ''Hamilton'', and the soundtracks for the animated films '' Moana' ...

and Tom Kitt and lyrics by

and

Amanda Green Amanda Green (born December 29, 1963) is an American actress, singer, and songwriter. In 2021, she was elected president of the Dramatists Guild of America, the first woman to hold the role in the Guild's 100-year history. Early life and edu ...

, which premiered at the Alliance Theatre, Atlanta, Georgia, on January 16, 2011. This production also performed at the Ahmanson Theater in Los Angeles where Blankenbuehler won the 2011 L.A. Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Choreography. Additionally, Blankenbuehler choreographed the

Frank Wildhorn Frank Wildhorn (born November 29, 1958) is an American composer of both musicals and popular songs. His musical ''Jekyll & Hyde (musical), Jekyll & Hyde'' ran for four years on Broadway. He also wrote the hit song "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" for ...

world premiere production of '' Waiting for the Moon''. The show featured 6 full-length dance sequences, including one that lasted over 10 minutes. He was nominated for a Barrymore Award for Choreographing the show. Blankenbuehler has choreographed for

Bette Midler Bette Midler ( ;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American actress, comedian, singer, and author. Throughout her five-decade career Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Bette Midler, numero ...

and directed, choreographed, and co-conceived the production "Nights On Broadway" at

Caesars Palace Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The hotel is situated on the west side of the Las Vegas Strip between Bellagio and The Mirage. It is one of Las Vegas's largest and best known landmarks. Caesar ...

. Blankenbuehler appears briefly in the 2008 documentary ''

Every Little Step "Every Little Step" is a 1989 single by American singer Bobby Brown, written by L.A. Reid and Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds and released by MCA Records. Released as the fourth single on his second album '' Don't Be Cruel'' it reached number three ...

'' about the 2006 Broadway revival of ''

A Chorus Line ''A Chorus Line'' is a 1975 musical conceived by Michael Bennett with music by Marvin Hamlisch, lyrics by Edward Kleban, and a book by James Kirkwood Jr. and Nicholas Dante. Set on the bare stage of a Broadway theater, the musical is cent ...

'', with his Polaroid shown as one of the people being cut from a callback for the show. He choreographed the 2012 Broadway revival of '' Annie''. He is the choreographer for the musical ''

'' (2015), both Off-Broadway and on Broadway. He received a special 2015 Drama Desk Award for ''Hamilton''. The award was described: "For his inspired and heart-stopping choreography in ''Hamilton'', which is indispensable to the musical's storytelling. His body of work is versatile, yet a dynamic and fluid style is consistently evident. When it's time to 'take his shot,' Blankenbuehler hits the bull's-eye." His choreography for ''Hamilton'' won the Tony Award for Best Choreography in 2016. He both directed and choreographed a new musical, ''

'', which premiered at the

Paper Mill Playhouse Paper Mill Playhouse is a regional theater containing approximately 1,200 seats located in Millburn, within Essex County, New Jersey, United States, on the banks of the Rahway River. Due to its relative proximity to Manhattan, the theater draw ...

(New Jersey) in October 2015. The music is by

Richard Oberacker Richard Oberacker is an American composer, lyricist, conductor, and playwright best known for composing and co-writing the musical theatre, musical ''Bandstand (musical), Bandstand'' with writing partner Robert Taylor. He also conducts for Cirque ...

and book and lyrics by Robert Taylor and Oberacker. He directed and choreographed a developmental lab of this musical in August and September 2014, then titled ''Bandstand: A Musical''. In 2016, Blankenbuehler choreographed the revival of the movie ''

Dirty Dancing ''Dirty Dancing'' is a 1987 American romance film, romantic drama film, drama Dance in film, dance film written by Eleanor Bergstein, produced by Linda Gottlieb, and directed by Emile Ardolino. Starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey, it tel ...

'' starring

Abigail Breslin Abigail Breslin (born April 14, 1996) is an American actress. Following a string of film parts as a young child, she rose to prominence at age 10 after playing Olive Hoover in ''Little Miss Sunshine'' (2006), for which Breslin received a nomin ...

and Shane Harper. He also choreographed the revival of the Broadway musical ''

'' with previews beginning July 14 and an August 2 opening.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* *
Interview
with ''AtlantaBoy.com'' (February 16, 2011)
Interview
with ''

Playbill ''Playbill'' is an American monthly magazine for Audience, theatergoers. Although there is a subscription issue available for home delivery, most copies of ''Playbill'' are printed for particular productions and distributed at the door as the ...

'' (June 4, 2008) {{DEFAULTSORT:Blankenbuehler, Andy 1970 births Living people American choreographers American male dancers Drama Desk Award winners Kennedy Center honorees Modern dancers Musical theatre choreographers Tony Award winners People from Cincinnati So You Think You Can Dance choreographers St. Xavier High School (Ohio) alumni