Hinton Battle
Encyclopedia
Hinton Battle is an American
actor
, dancer, and dance instructor. He has won three Tony Award
s, all in the category of Featured Actor in a Musical
. He was the first to portray the Scarecrow
in the stage version of The Wiz
(a role assumed by Michael Jackson
in the 1978 film adaptation
).
, West Germany
, part of the Baumholder Army Military Community. and raised in Washington, D.C. and New York City. His mother was a homemaker and his father a U.S. army officer. Battle's tremendous talent became apparent at the early age of nine. After three years of studying ballet at the Jones-Haywood School of Ballet, he received a scholarship to The School of American Ballet
where he studied until the age of fifteen under the legendary George Balanchine. That same year, Hinton made his Broadway debut starring as the Scarecrow
in The Wiz
.
s and television
programmes, including Quantum Leap, Dreamgirls
, and Touched by an Angel. On Quantum Leap, he played Thames, the evil Observer from the future, in the final installment of the Evil Leaper trilogy of episodes. Battle played the role of the Cat in the first U.S. pilot for science-fiction sitcom Red Dwarf, based on the British
show of the same name. Notably, he starred as Sweet the jazz demon, in "Once More, with Feeling
," Buffy The Vampire Slayers musical episode in which his spell forces the characters to sing their biggest secrets and fears.
Hinton’s other Broadway starring roles include Dancin, Dreamgirls, Sophisticated Ladies for which he won his first Tony Award, Chicago (Billy Flynn) and Ragtime (Coalhouse Walker Jr.), which garnered rave reviews from the Chicago press and earned him an Ira Aldridge Award. His role in The Tap Dance Kid also earned Hinton a second Tony Award, the NAACP Award and the Fred Astaire Award, and Miss Saigon for which he won his third Tony Award.
Hinton’s long list of television credits include: Shine, his one man show presented at the HBO Aspen Comedy Arts Festival; The Kennedy Center’s 25th Anniversary; These Old Broads co-starring Shirley MacLaine, Joan Collins, Debbie Reynolds and Elizabeth Taylor; and ABC/Disney’s Child Star: The Shirley Temple Story where Hinton served as choreographer and co-star playing Bill ‘Bojangles’ Robinson.
As choreographer, Hinton’s work has been seen on the musical episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Once More, with Feeling, These Old Broads, Foreign Student (With Charles Dutton), The Golden Globe Awards, Dance in America; the sitcoms Fired Up, Sister Sister, The Trouble with Normal, and The Boys. Hinton has choreographed promos for Warner Brothers, commercials for Coca-Cola, Chicago The Millie and New York Top Appliances. He served as Associate Choreographer on the 65th and 66th Annual Academy Awards with Debbie Allen.
Off-Broadway Hinton has served as co-director and choreographer for Evil Dead: The Musical. Having just finished choreographing last season's movie musical Idlewild
, this season brings him together with Wynton Marsalis
for The Buddy Bolden Story, a feature film about the untold story of the man who created jazz in America. He is currently directing the stage musical Respect, a musical journey of women from the 1900s – 2007. Hinton’s most recent creation, a dance form called Swop
that combines swing and hip-hop, was performed on the highly rated Dancing With The Stars
in 2006.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, dancer, and dance instructor. He has won three 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...
s, all in the category of Featured Actor in a Musical
Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical
This is a list of the winners and nominations of Tony Award for the Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical. The award has been presented since 1947...
. He was the first to portray the Scarecrow
Scarecrow (Oz)
The Scarecrow is a character in the fictional Land of Oz created by American author L. Frank Baum and illustrator William Wallace Denslow. In his first appearance, the Scarecrow reveals that he lacks a brain and desires above all else to have one. In reality, he is only two days old and merely...
in the stage version of The Wiz
The Wiz
The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz" is a musical with music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls and book by William F. Brown. It is a retelling of L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in the context of African American culture. It opened on October 21, 1974 at the Morris A...
(a role assumed by Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
in the 1978 film adaptation
The Wiz (film)
The Wiz is a 1978 musical film produced by Motown Productions and Universal Pictures, and released by Universal on October 24, 1978. An urbanized retelling of L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz featuring an entirely African-American cast, The Wiz was adapted from the 1975 Broadway musical...
).
Early life
Battle was born in Neubrücke, HoppstädtenHoppstädten
Hoppstädten is a municipality in the district of Kusel, in Rhineland-Palatinate, western Germany....
, West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
, part of the Baumholder Army Military Community. and raised in Washington, D.C. and New York City. His mother was a homemaker and his father a U.S. army officer. Battle's tremendous talent became apparent at the early age of nine. After three years of studying ballet at the Jones-Haywood School of Ballet, he received a scholarship to The School of American Ballet
School of American Ballet
The School of American Ballet is one of the most famous classical ballet schools in the world and is the associate school of the New York City Ballet, a leading international ballet company based at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City. The school trains students from the...
where he studied until the age of fifteen under the legendary George Balanchine. That same year, Hinton made his Broadway debut starring as the Scarecrow
Scarecrow (Oz)
The Scarecrow is a character in the fictional Land of Oz created by American author L. Frank Baum and illustrator William Wallace Denslow. In his first appearance, the Scarecrow reveals that he lacks a brain and desires above all else to have one. In reality, he is only two days old and merely...
in The Wiz
The Wiz
The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz" is a musical with music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls and book by William F. Brown. It is a retelling of L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in the context of African American culture. It opened on October 21, 1974 at the Morris A...
.
Career
He has appeared in fifteen filmFilm
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
s and television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
programmes, including Quantum Leap, Dreamgirls
Dreamgirls (film)
Dreamgirls is a 2006 musical drama film, directed by Bill Condon and jointly produced and released by DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures. The film debuted in three special road show engagements beginning December 15, 2006 before its nationwide release on December 25, 2006...
, and Touched by an Angel. On Quantum Leap, he played Thames, the evil Observer from the future, in the final installment of the Evil Leaper trilogy of episodes. Battle played the role of the Cat in the first U.S. pilot for science-fiction sitcom Red Dwarf, based on the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
show of the same name. Notably, he starred as Sweet the jazz demon, in "Once More, with Feeling
Once More, with Feeling (Buffy episode)
"Once More, with Feeling" is the seventh episode of the sixth season of the fantasy television show Buffy the Vampire Slayer and the only one in the series performed as a musical...
," Buffy The Vampire Slayers musical episode in which his spell forces the characters to sing their biggest secrets and fears.
Hinton’s other Broadway starring roles include Dancin, Dreamgirls, Sophisticated Ladies for which he won his first Tony Award, Chicago (Billy Flynn) and Ragtime (Coalhouse Walker Jr.), which garnered rave reviews from the Chicago press and earned him an Ira Aldridge Award. His role in The Tap Dance Kid also earned Hinton a second Tony Award, the NAACP Award and the Fred Astaire Award, and Miss Saigon for which he won his third Tony Award.
Hinton’s long list of television credits include: Shine, his one man show presented at the HBO Aspen Comedy Arts Festival; The Kennedy Center’s 25th Anniversary; These Old Broads co-starring Shirley MacLaine, Joan Collins, Debbie Reynolds and Elizabeth Taylor; and ABC/Disney’s Child Star: The Shirley Temple Story where Hinton served as choreographer and co-star playing Bill ‘Bojangles’ Robinson.
As choreographer, Hinton’s work has been seen on the musical episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Once More, with Feeling, These Old Broads, Foreign Student (With Charles Dutton), The Golden Globe Awards, Dance in America; the sitcoms Fired Up, Sister Sister, The Trouble with Normal, and The Boys. Hinton has choreographed promos for Warner Brothers, commercials for Coca-Cola, Chicago The Millie and New York Top Appliances. He served as Associate Choreographer on the 65th and 66th Annual Academy Awards with Debbie Allen.
Off-Broadway Hinton has served as co-director and choreographer for Evil Dead: The Musical. Having just finished choreographing last season's movie musical Idlewild
Idlewild (film)
Idlewild is an American musical film, released August 25, 2006, written and directed by Bryan Barber. The film stars André 3000 and Big Boi of the hip hop duo OutKast, and Idlewild features musical numbers written, produced, and chiefly performed by OutKast...
, this season brings him together with Wynton Marsalis
Wynton Marsalis
Wynton Learson Marsalis is a trumpeter, composer, bandleader, music educator, and Artistic Director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. Marsalis has promoted the appreciation of classical and jazz music often to young audiences...
for The Buddy Bolden Story, a feature film about the untold story of the man who created jazz in America. He is currently directing the stage musical Respect, a musical journey of women from the 1900s – 2007. Hinton’s most recent creation, a dance form called Swop
Swop
SWOP is a fusion of swing and hip hop dances, created by person unknown but possible renamed from "Hip-Hop Lindy" to "Swop" by Hinton Battle in 2006. It contains steps from hip hop, break dancing, Lindy Hop and swing air steps...
that combines swing and hip-hop, was performed on the highly rated Dancing With The Stars
Dancing with the Stars (US TV series)
Dancing with the Stars is a reality show airing on ABC in the United States, and CTV in Canada in 2011. The show is the American version of the British BBC television series Strictly Come Dancing...
in 2006.