If you close your eyes and think of Bob Fosse, you probably see a bowler hat, a single black glove, and maybe a pair of legs that seem to go on for miles. Those legs? Usually, they belonged to Ann Reinking.
Most people associate the song "All That Jazz" with the opening of the musical Chicago. They think of the smoky stage, the rising elevator, and the gravelly voice of Velma Kelly. But for those who really know the history of dance, Ann Reinking and All That Jazz represent something much deeper than just a catchy opening number. It’s a messy, beautiful, and slightly tragic overlap of a real-life romance and a legendary career that redefined how we look at Broadway.
Honestly, it’s kinda wild how many people forget that Reinking wasn't just a performer in Fosse's world. She was the architect of his legacy.
The Muse Who Outran the Myth
Ann Reinking didn't just dance "All That Jazz." She lived it. In 1979, Bob Fosse released his semi-autobiographical masterpiece, All That Jazz. It’s a brutal, honest film where Roy Scheider plays Joe Gideon—a thinly veiled version of Fosse himself.
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The character of Kate Jagger, Gideon's girlfriend, was played by Reinking.
The twist? She was playing a version of herself. She was dating Fosse in real life while playing his girlfriend on screen, all while he directed her in a movie about how he was a terrible boyfriend who couldn't stop cheating. Talk about awkward. But that’s the "jazz" of it all, isn't it? The blurring of the line between the sweat on the stage and the chaos in the bedroom.
In the film, there’s this specific scene where Reinking dances to "Everything Old Is New Again" with Fosse’s daughter (played by Erzsébet Földi). People often mix this up with the song "All That Jazz," but the energy is exactly the same. It’s that precise, percussive, "Fosse" style that Reinking mastered better than anyone else.
Why the 1996 Chicago Revival Changed Everything
You can't talk about Ann Reinking and All That Jazz without talking about the 1996 revival of Chicago.
When the show first premiered in 1975 with Chita Rivera and Gwen Verdon, it was actually a bit of a flop. Well, not a total flop, but it was overshadowed by A Chorus Line. People found it too cynical. Too dark. Too... mean?
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Fast forward twenty years.
Reinking was tasked with choreographing a concert version of the show. She didn't just copy Fosse’s old moves. She "translated" them. She took the style—the turned-in knees, the hunched shoulders, the tiny finger wags—and made it sleeker. More athletic.
The Difference in the Dance
- The Original (1975): Chita Rivera’s "All That Jazz" was grounded, earthy, and dangerous.
- The Reinking Version (1996): It became more sculptural. Because Ann was trained in ballet (she studied with the San Francisco Ballet and Joffrey), she brought a verticality to the slouch.
She wasn't just "keeping the flame" for Fosse. She was making the fire hotter. The 1996 revival became a massive hit because the world had finally caught up to the cynicism. We’d seen the O.J. Simpson trial. We understood the "celebrity criminal" vibe. Reinking’s choreography—credited as "in the style of Bob Fosse"—is what we now think of as the definitive version of the show.
The "All That Jazz" Technique: It’s All in the Shoulders
If you’ve ever tried to do a Fosse move in your living room, you probably looked like a confused penguin. Don't worry, most professionals do too.
The Ann Reinking and All That Jazz connection works because she understood the why behind the move. Fosse was self-conscious about his posture and his thinning hair, which is why his dancers slouch and wear hats. Reinking took those insecurities and turned them into power.
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One of the most famous moments in her "All That Jazz" performance is the "teeny shoulder flips." It’s not a big jump. It’s not a triple pirouette. It’s a tiny, rhythmic twitch of the shoulders.
It’s frighteningly precise.
What Most People Get Wrong
There’s a common misconception that Reinking was just a "replacement" for Gwen Verdon (Fosse's wife and greatest star). That’s just wrong. While Verdon was the soul of Fosse’s work, Reinking was the engine.
She took a style that was very specific to one man’s body and turned it into a vocabulary that other dancers could speak. Without her, Fosse's choreography might have died with him in 1987. Instead, she spent the rest of her life teaching it, refining it, and making sure that when someone sings those opening notes of "All That Jazz," the dance looks exactly as sharp as it did in 1975.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Dancers
If you’re looking to truly appreciate the legacy of Ann Reinking and her connection to this iconic number, here is how to dive deeper:
- Watch the 1979 film "All That Jazz" first. Don't just look for the song; look at how Reinking moves in the background of scenes. Her presence is magnetic even when she’s just standing there.
- Compare the intros. Find a clip of Chita Rivera’s 1975 "All That Jazz" and compare it to Reinking’s 1996 version. Notice the "clump"—that group of dancers moving like a single organism.
- Look for the "tacit" counts. Reinking always emphasized the silence between the beats. In Fosse's world, the moments where you don't move are just as important as the ones where you do.
- Study the isolation. If you're a dancer, focus on moving one part of your body (like a hip or a finger) while keeping everything else perfectly still. That was Reinking's superpower.
Ann Reinking passed away in 2020, but every time a curtain rises on a production of Chicago and a woman in a black leotard steps into the spotlight, Reinking is there. She didn't just perform "All That Jazz"—she made sure it would never be forgotten.