Dan Knechtges
Encyclopedia
Dan Knechtges is a director and choreographer, for musicals
, opera, television, film and music videos.
and is a graduate of Midview High School and Otterbein College, with a degree in musical theatre. As a child, he took dance lessons in Elyria, Ohio
, where his sister was taking lessons. Immediately after college, he moved to New York where he began to work as a dancer and teacher, and soon he was getting choreography jobs.
Knechtges' work on Broadway
as choreographer includes the musicals The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
(2005), Xanadu
(2007), 110 in the Shade
(2007 Revival), You May Now Worship Me
(Special benefit concert, 2008), and Sondheim on Sondheim
(2010). He received nominations for the Tony Award
, Best Choreography and Drama Desk Award
, Outstanding Choreography for Xanadu. Knechtges' choreography for Sondheim on Sondheim "is very good. He makes excellent use of multiple layers offered to him by set designer Beowulf Boritt."
Knechtges choreographed the music video for Fatboy Slim
's "It's a Wonderful Night. In 2008, in Berlin, Germany, he choreographed Der Schuh Das Manitu. He has also choreographed many Gilbert and Sullivan
operas for New York City's Blue Hill Troupe.
His off-Broadway
work includes Nerds (2005); The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (2005), for which he received the Lucille Lortel Award nomination, Outstanding Choreographer; Vanities: A New Musical
(2009) (also at Theatreworks
, California); and Citizen Ruth (New York International Fringe Festival
, 2009). In regional theatre, he choreographed The Girl in the Frame at the Norma Terris Theatre
in Chester, Connecticut
(2005) and both directed and choreographed Give It Up!, with a book by Douglas Carter Beane
at the Dallas Theater Center
, Dallas, Texas
, from January 15 to February 14, 2010.
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
, opera, television, film and music videos.
Life and career
Knechtges is from Grafton, OhioGrafton, Ohio
Grafton is a village in Lorain County, Ohio, United States, along the East Branch of the Black River. The population was 2,302 at the 2000 census...
and is a graduate of Midview High School and Otterbein College, with a degree in musical theatre. As a child, he took dance lessons in Elyria, Ohio
Elyria, Ohio
-Community:Elyria has an extensive, although financially burdened, community food pantry and "Hot Meals" program administered through the Second Harvest Food Bank and several churches Elyria is served by Elyria Memorial Hospital.-Recreation and parks:...
, where his sister was taking lessons. Immediately after college, he moved to New York where he began to work as a dancer and teacher, and soon he was getting choreography jobs.
Knechtges' work on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
as choreographer includes the musicals The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is a one act musical comedy conceived by Rebecca Feldman with music and lyrics by William Finn, a book by Rachel Sheinkin and additional material by Jay Reiss. The show centers on a fictional spelling bee set in a geographically ambiguous Putnam Valley...
(2005), Xanadu
Xanadu (musical)
Xanadu is a musical comedy with a book by Douglas Carter Beane, music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar, based on the 1980 cult classic film of the same name which was, in turn, inspired by the 1947 Rita Hayworth film Down to Earth. The title is a reference to the poem, Kubla Khan, or A...
(2007), 110 in the Shade
110 in the Shade
110 in the Shade is a musical with a book by N. Richard Nash, lyrics by Tom Jones, and music by Harvey Schmidt.Based on Nash's 1954 play The Rainmaker, it focuses on Lizzie Curry, a spinster living on a ranch in the American southwest, and her relationships with local sheriff File, a cautious...
(2007 Revival), You May Now Worship Me
Everyday Rapture
Everyday Rapture is a musical with a book written by Sherie Rene Scott and Dick Scanlan and music by various composers. It ran Off-Broadway in 2009 and opened on Broadway in 2010...
(Special benefit concert, 2008), and Sondheim on Sondheim
Sondheim on Sondheim
Sondheim on Sondheim is a musical revue consisting of music and lyrics written by Stephen Sondheim for his many shows. It is conceived and directed by James Lapine. The revue had a limited run on Broadway in 2010.-Background:...
(2010). He received nominations for the Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
, Best Choreography and Drama Desk Award
Drama Desk Award
The Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category...
, Outstanding Choreography for Xanadu. Knechtges' choreography for Sondheim on Sondheim "is very good. He makes excellent use of multiple layers offered to him by set designer Beowulf Boritt."
Knechtges choreographed the music video for Fatboy Slim
Fatboy Slim
Norman Quentin Cook better known by his former stage name Fatboy Slim, is a British DJ, electronic dance music musician, and record producer. He is a pioneer of the big beat genre that achieved mainstream popularity in the 1990s...
's "It's a Wonderful Night. In 2008, in Berlin, Germany, he choreographed Der Schuh Das Manitu. He has also choreographed many Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the librettist W. S. Gilbert and the composer Arthur Sullivan . The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S...
operas for New York City's Blue Hill Troupe.
His off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
work includes Nerds (2005); The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (2005), for which he received the Lucille Lortel Award nomination, Outstanding Choreographer; Vanities: A New Musical
Vanities: A New Musical (Musical)
Vanities, A New Musical is a musical with music and lyrics by David Kirshenbaum and a book by Jack Heifner, based on the book and 1976 play of the same name. The musical premiered Off-Broadway in 2009, after an engagement at the Pasadena Playhouse, California in 2008.-Production history:Vanities, A...
(2009) (also at Theatreworks
TheatreWorks (Silicon Valley)
TheatreWorks is a non-profit, professional theater company based in Menlo Park, California and founded in July, 1970. The company is a member of the League of Resident Theatres and employs some 300 artists annually, including Equity and non-Equity actors, directors, designers and specialty artists...
, California); and Citizen Ruth (New York International Fringe Festival
New York International Fringe Festival
The New York International Fringe Festival, or FringeNYC, is a Fringe theater festival and one of the largest multi-arts events in North America. It takes place over the course of two weeks every August, spread across several neighborhoods in downtown Manhattan, notably the Lower East Side, the...
, 2009). In regional theatre, he choreographed The Girl in the Frame at the Norma Terris Theatre
Norma Terris Theatre
At the Norma Terris Theatre in Chester, Connecticut, Goodspeed Musicals develops new musicals and nurtures emerging artists. Dedicated in 1984, the theatre is named in honor of the actress Norma Terris, star of Jerome Kern’s Show Boat and a devoted patron and trustee of the Goodspeed Opera House...
in Chester, Connecticut
Chester, Connecticut
Chester is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 3,743 at the 2000 census. The town center is also defined by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census-designated place .-Geography:...
(2005) and both directed and choreographed Give It Up!, with a book by Douglas Carter Beane
Douglas Carter Beane
Douglas Carter Beane is an American playwright and screenwriter. Born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania and raised in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, Beane now lives in New York...
at the Dallas Theater Center
Dallas Theater Center
The Dallas Theater Center is a major regional theater in Dallas, Texas . It produces classic, contemporary and new plays. The theater was based in the Kalita Humphreys Theater, a building designed by famous American architect Frank Lloyd Wright, from 1959 to 2009...
, Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, from January 15 to February 14, 2010.