About
COLE
'It's bigger than all of us.' - Chet Walker
The course of dance history was changed when the New Jersey-born Jack Cole (1911-1974), then a modern dancer with the Denishawn dance troupe, commenced extensive research into various global dance modalities. He trained with Uday Shankar and La Meri, becoming a master of the Classical Indian Dance form, Bharatanatyam, as well as Asadata Dafora, Mei Lanfang, Eduardo Cansino, all cultural movement experts, seeking profound physical immersion in an array of world and vernacular styles of dance.
Cole blended his interpretations of African dance, Bharatanatyam, and Afro-Latin dance styles, to name a few, with New York Lindy Hop and social dance, and European Ballet. Setting his choreography to popular Jazz and Swing music of the era, Cole charmed New York and Hollywood audiences with a new evocative type of entertainment no one had ever seen before. From there, Cole codified his own idiom and method of teaching this unique style of dancing.
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Thus was the birth of the first Theatrical Jazz Dance technique.
Cole's virtuosic and multi-cultural style, which he called 'urban folk dance,' bore influence on such iconic figures as Bob Fosse, Jerome Robbins, Matt Mattox, Luigi, Gwen Verdon, and Twyla Tharp. Though Cole went on to become a prolific Broadway and Film choreographer, his legacy has been widely forgotten. Those who do stumble upon this man's hidden, yet profound, legacy ultimately ask themselves... 'Why don't I know who this is?'
So was the question the late Broadway choreographer Chet Walker had when he began researching Jack Cole's work back in 2011. With the help of Dr. Linda Gold, who had been a student of Cole's at UCLA before his passing, Walker revived aspects of Cole's technique during a residency at Jacob's Pillow. Walker dedicated much of his later career to passing on the legacy of Jack Cole, continuing this mission for over a decade until his passing in 2022. Chet Walker's impact on the global Theater Dance community has led to multiple creative and educational ventures to keep both his and Jack Cole's stories alive. Having been by Chet's side up until his passing, Cam Loeser has taken the torch passed down to him, and devoted himself to advancing Cole's legacy in Chet's honor. ​
WHAT DO WE DO?
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​​COLE JAZZ aims to reignite the integrity held by Jack Cole's original work in the current Theater and Jazz dance scene. We carry his legacy forward by developing accessible Jazz-based performance projects through our in-house dance troupe, The NEW Jack Cole Dancers, evolving and teaching his training method, and curating spaces driven by curiosity, research, and an appreciation for where this art form comes from. We aim to uphold Jazz Dance as a powerful, necessary driving force within theatrical storytelling by creating theater Jazz work that is provocative and culturally significant.
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Jazz is, at its core, a shared cultural experience; it is a universal dialogue that has the power to ignite truth, collaboration, conversation, and understanding. COLE JAZZ works to create empowering, equitable space and opportunity for artistic expression, regardless of one's race, gender, sexual-orientation, socio-economic status or creed. We lead with the same care that Cole did by bringing those who have been historically underrepresented, but whose cultures undoubtedly influenced this legacy, back to the forefront of the conversation. We prioritize casting artists who reflect the global majority, and collaborating with creative leaders that hold authentic experience in and understanding for the cultures and world movements that inform Jazz's rich heritage.
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COLE JAZZ is fiscally sponsored by Slingshot.