Anthony Van Laast is a British choreographer born 31 May 1951 in

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

, UK."Anthony Van Laast – Holiday on Ice Mystery artistic director"
''Worthing Herald'', 14 November 2008 He has worked mainly for the stage, concerts, television and film. His works have appeared in the West End and on Broadway.

Career

Van Laast received dance training at the London School of Contemporary Dance, and both performed and choreographed with the company.Biography
www.mamma-mia.com, accessed March 14, 2011 In 1979, he worked with

Kate Bush Catherine Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, and dancer. Bush began writing songs at age 11. She was signed to EMI Records after David Gilmour of Pink Floyd helped produce a demo tape. In 1978, at the ...

in preparation for her tour. Among his prominent stage works as a choreographer are the musicals '' Sister Act'' (2011 on Broadway and 2009 West End), '' Bombay Dreams'' (2004),'' Mamma Mia!'' (2001), '' Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat'' (1993), '' Annie Get Your Gun'' (1986, West End), and '' Song & Dance'' (1982, West End). He co-directed and choreographed '' EFX'', the

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stage show at the MGM Grand starring Michael Crawford in 1995. He has choreographed for '' Holiday on Ice'', including "Extravaganza" in 1997, "Hollywood" (2002), and he is the artistic director for "Mystery" (2009). His television and film work includes the concert ''Sarah Brightman: Symphony in Vienna'' (2008), Beauty and the Beast (2017 film), and '' Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1''. He received a nomination for 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 ...

, Best Choreography, jointly with Farah Khan for ''Bombay Dreams''. For his work on the musical ''

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'' (

Old Vic Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...

) and for ''The Beggar's Opera'' (the Royal Shakespeare Company at the Barbican), he was nominated for the Olivier Award, Best Theatre Choreographer in 1994."Olivier Winners, 1994"
OlivierAwards.com, accessed March 14, 2011 Van Laast was awarded the MBE for Services to Dance and Choreography in 1999. He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2019 New Year Honours for services to Dance and Choreography. Van Laast is a patron of the Urdang Academy.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Van Laast, Anthony English choreographers English people of Dutch descent Musical theatre choreographers People from Sussex Living people Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Year of birth missing (living people)