Scholarship honors choreographer Reinking
Long before she became a Tony Award-winning choreographer, Ann Reinking waited tables to save up enough money to move to New York City. She arrived with $500, no job lined up and no connections.
When she died at 71 last year, Reinking left behind many fans, friends and students as well as a legacy of a cool, muscular dance hybrid of jazz and burlesque.
In her honor, friends and admirers have established The Ann Reinking Scholarship, a $5,000 annual award and mentorship for a young dancer moving to New York City to help support them in their artistic endeavors. “She was one of the most profoundly generous people that I’ve known,” said actress Bebe Neuwirth, who starred with Reinking in “Chicago” on Broadway. “This honors that in a way that also references her story of coming to New York.”
The scholarship is being awarded by Off the Lane, a mentorship program for young performers moving to New York.