Kristyn Pope is honored to serve as the head dance captain in” Irving Berlin’s White Christmas.”
“It’s great to do this for our choreographer Randy Skinner. I am maintaining his choreography. Randy has been a wonderful mentor to me and he gave me great advice and this great opportunity,” explained Pope who resides in New York.
She has been a part of “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas” four times two of them on Broadway and twice on the national tour. She started as a member of the ensemble cast, worked as a swing, and has played the role of the feisty Rita and assist dance captain before donning the hat of head dance captain for this national tour, which played at Pittsburgh’s Benedum Center from Dec. 23-28. Pittsburgh was the first stop on the national tour according to Pope.
In the role of dance captain, Pope is responsible for teaching dance steps, entry and exits and teach the choreography to new cast members. She is also a member of the ensemble for this tour, which ends on Jan. 4, 2015, so she is pulling double duty.
“There’s a delicate balance between being in the production and serving as dance captain. You have to be able to be able to present it in the moment,” she said. “We have a swing that can go on for me if needed so I can watch the show and take notes backstage.”
Pope uses a show bible, which contains photos of dance formations and all the steps in the show.
“With that I know where we’re supposed to be and what we’re supposed to do,” said Pope. “Everyone has been really wonderful and perfect with their execution. Regardless of what happens, the show must go on.”
The “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas” cast had about a month of rehearsal time before hitting the road.
“When you switch theaters you have to adapt the show to the space. But when you’re on Broadway, you have your own house and you fit into that house. On the road you have to think about things like backstage traffic for safety and efficiency,” Pope said.
“I love being on the road because we get to play all of these great and beautiful houses and we get to learn about the lineage and the heritage of the theaters,” she continued. “An hour before the show we go through the set layout and then we have a sound check.”
With music and lyrics by Irving Berlin, “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas” is based on the 1954 film of the same name. It tells the story of two show business friends putting on a show in a picture-perfect Vermont inn and finding true love.
“It’s nice to see these buddies have such love and respect. We have a lot of love and respect between the actors and the production team that put us together,” Pope said. “This is a beautiful, heart-warming story of people wanting to help other people and you see that around the holidays. Every time I get to do a show, I leave smiling. Each time I find new things to love about the show.”
The show premiered in San Francisco in 2004 and played in several cities throughout the United States. It played a limited engagement on Broadway in November of 2008 to early January, 2009, running for 12 previews and 53 shows.
“Irving Berlin’s White Christmas” returned to Broadway in 2009 and received two Tony Award nominations for Best Choreography and Best Orchestrations and several Drama Desk nominations.
The job of dance captain is the perfect fit for Pope who began dancing before she could walk. She took a break from the disciple midway through high school and during college where she majored in Psychology, but she realized something vital to her being was missing.
“I realized that my heart leapt when I danced,” recalled Pope who earned her B.A. in Psychology from Northwestern University.
She took classes in various areas of dance, which has made her able to adapt to different dance styles, which enabled her to land roles in “Radio City Christmas Spectacular,” and “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” and other shows.
“If it’s your goal to become a dancer or a dance captain, take different dance classes because you’ll be able to adapt to different shows,” she said. “You also have to be mindful of your work ethic because you have to take in a lot of information. I would suggest anyone wanting to work as a dance captain should talk to choreographers. They are good at mentoring.”
“Follow your dreams no matter what. Trust yourself and if you do what’s in your heart, it’ll lead you to the right place.”
