and 5, 6, 7, 8...SMASH!

Last night marked the moment we’ve all been waiting for: the premiere of NBC’s making-of-a-musical series, the "Great White Way of Hope" (LA Times) SMASH. Choreographed by Broadway Dance Center’s very own Josh Bergasse and starring many BDC dancers (did you spot Ricky Tripp in the baseball number?), the show boasts stars like Debra Messing (“Will and Grace”), Angelica Huston (“The Addams Family,” “Ever After”), Megan Hilton ("Wicked, the musical") and Katherine McPhee(“American Idol”). The much-anticipated series which was honored in 2011 Critic’s Choice Awards as one of the “Most Exciting New Series,” accounts the making of a new Broadway musical about the life and legacy of Marilyn Monroe and shows that most of the “drama” occurs off stage, behind the scenes.

We hosted some pretty SMASH-ing events yesterday in honor of the show's premiere. Kiira Schmidt, assistant to Josh Bergasse, taught a SMASH-inspired theater master class.

"The SMASH class was a blast; it was a privilege to not only work with someone so heavily involved in this new series, but to also get an inside look at the authentic choreography and put it on our own bodies." - Lizz Picini (BDC student)

And at 10pm, BDC students and staff rushed to studio 4 to watch SMASH on a big-screen projector while munching on popcorn. The events were sponsored by LaDuca Shoes who gave away free dance shoe bags and even raffled off a pair of their beautiful character heels (also adorned by the dancers on SMASH)!

True story! While shopping for snacks at Food Emporium for our own SMASH premiere party, Emily Bass (Marketing/Events Coordinator @ BDC) ran into Katherine McPhee (star of SMASH) at the checkout line! McPhee obviously would have stopped by our BDC SMASH Extravaganza but she was planning for her own casual get-together with a few of her friends.

The baseball routine, "The National Pastime," seemed to jump off the screen with its innovative choreography, clever humor, and talented performers. Keep your eye out for many other BDC-goers dancing in upcoming episodes!

“We have great dancers, very quick, very smart, very athletic. The music’s great – I saw my choreography have an entirely new life.” – Joshua Bergasse

So what are critics saying about SMASH? Take a look!

"The show seems to have a lot of promise, and the musical numbers dazzled." - The Wall Street Journal

"Glee for grown-ups" - The Hollywood Reporter

"Quite the little sunbeam...endearing characters, an instinct for backstage meows and a firm grip on its own sense of camp control.” - The Washington Post

But we want to know what YOU thought! Share your opinion of the SMASH pilot by commenting on this post!