Fosse/Verdon tells the story of the romantic and creative partnership between Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon. Fosse was a filmmaker and one of theater's most influential choreographers and directors. Verdon was a critically acclaimed actress and Broadway dancer who won 4 Tony Awards.[1]
The story of the entire series unfolds through back-and-forth flashes of the couple's relationship through the years.[2] It includes the reversals of power and status as well as the contexts in which they happened.[3] It also presents Fosse and Verdon's contributions to the entertainment industry.[2]
Following the commercial failure of his filmmaking debut, Sweet Charity, Broadway director-choreographer Bob Fosse is determined to make his next directorial project, Cabaret, a success, even if it means defying producer Cy Feuer and cheating on his wife and creative collaborator, actress-dancer Gwen Verdon.
As Gwen and Bob's marriage deteriorates following the discovery of his latest extramarital affair, Gwen reflects on how they first met during pre-production for Damn Yankees as well as how their personal and professional relationship began at the cost of Bob's marriage to ailing Broadway star Joan McCracken.
With Bob focused on editing Cabaret, Gwen auditions for the leading role in a straight play that forces her to reflect on her disastrous first marriage and a career change that led to her breakthrough performance in Can-Can.
As Gwen struggles with her personal life following the opening (and closing) performance of Children! Children!, Bob juggles dealing with the success of Cabaret, spearheading production on Liza with a Z and Pippin, and grappling with the price of fame.
Three months after Joan Simon's death, and after Bob's stay in psychiatric care, tensions rise during a rainy night in Bob's Southampton summer home among his guests, including Gwen, Neil Simon, Paddy Chayefsky, and Ann Reinking.
An overworked Bob suffers a heart attack while balancing the editing of Lenny and the rehearsals for Chicago. In the hospital, he remembers the sexual abuse he endured as a teenager.
Gwen and Bob continue work on Chicago, which Bob keeps pulling in a darker direction. The show opens to middling reviews. Later in the run, Gwen gets a vocal infection, and Bob gets Liza Minnelli to go on for her in her absence.
8
"Providence"
Thomas Kail
Story by : Joel Fields & Steven Levenson Teleplay by : Steven Levenson
The final years of Bob's life are portrayed, from filming All That Jazz through directing and choreographing the revival of Sweet Charity, up to the final moment where he has a heart attack in D.C. and collapses in Gwen's arms.
Music
Fosse/Verdon released weekly albums, available for streaming and download on multiple platforms, with the release of each new episode.[12] In addition to original music, the soundtracks feature the cast singing popular songs from Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon's various careers, including "Big Spender" from Sweet Charity and "Corner of the Sky" from Pippin.[13]
Episode 1 ("Life is a Cabaret")
No.
Title
Artist(s)
Length
1.
"Big Spender"
Bianca Marroquin, Rema Webb & The Fandango Girls
3:34
2.
"Cabaret"
Kelli Barrett
3:34
3.
"Fosse/Verdon Theme"
Alex Lacamoire
1:01
Episode 2 ("Who's Got the Pain?")
No.
Title
Artist(s)
Length
1.
"Heart"
P. J. Benjamin, Nick Blaemire, Brian Cali & Aaron Kaburick
3:00
Episode 3 ("Me and My Baby")
No.
Title
Artist(s)
Length
1.
"Mein Herr"
Kelli Barrett & The Kit Kat Girls
3:17
2.
"Two Ladies"
Ethan Slater, Alysha Umphress & Morgan Weed
2:14
Episode 4 ("Glory")
No.
Title
Artist(s)
Length
1.
"Corner of the Sky"
Tim Young
3:17
2.
"I Guess I'll Miss the Man"
Blake Baumgartner
2:09
Episode 5 ("Where Am I Going?")
No.
Title
Artist(s)
Length
1.
"Pas De Deux"
Nathan Barr
1:35
2.
"Where Am I Going?"
Alex Lacamoire
1:52
Episode 6 ("All I Care About Is Love")
No.
Title
Artist(s)
Length
1.
"All That Jazz"
Bianca Marroquin
2:52
Episode 7 ("Nowadays")
No.
Title
Artist(s)
Length
1.
"We Both Reached For The Gun"
Tyler Hanes, Sean Patrick Doyle & The Cast of Fosse/Verdon
3:45
2.
"Razzle Dazzle"
Michelle Williams & The Cast of Fosse Verdon
2:13
Episode 8 ("Providence")
No.
Title
Artist(s)
Length
1.
"Mr. Bojangles"
Lin-Manuel Miranda
4:14
Production
Development
The rights to produce a limited-series based on Sam Wasson's biography Fosse were sold to FX Network by executive producer George Stelzner. In the summer of 2016, with the approval of FX creative executives, Stelzner pursued actor/writer Lin-Manuel Miranda and director Thomas Kail, of Hamilton, to join the project. Both Miranda and Kail were familiar with the Wasson biography as Miranda and Wasson were classmates at Wesleyan University years earlier. Tony Award-winning writer Steven Levenson (Dear Evan Hansen) was next to join the production team. Levenson and Kail would go on to earn the WGA credit designation of "developed for television by" for the limited-series. During the early stages of the development process, the two were instrumental in attracting the participation of Nicole Fosse, the only child of Bob and Gwen and the executor of the Fosse/Verdon estate.
On July 5, 2018, FX announced an eight-episode order for a limited-series entitled Fosse/Verdon, with Sam Rockwell playing the role of Bob Fosse and Michelle Williams playing Gwen Verdon. On October 25, 2018, it was reported that Kail would direct at least four of the series' eight episodes.[14] and he would go on to direct a total of five episodes. Executive producers included Levenson, Kail, Miranda, Stelzner, Rockwell and Williams, with Nicole Fosse as a co-executive producer, and choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler (Hamilton) as co-producer. On October 26, 2018, it was announced that Joel Fields, the showrunner of the acclaimed FX Network drama series The Americans would join the Fosse/Verdon production as an additional writer and executive producer.[15] On January 23, 2019, the premiere date of April 9, 2019 was announced.[16]
Casting
Alongside the series order announcement, it was confirmed that Rockwell and Williams had been cast as the leads.[1] On November 19, 2018, it was announced Margaret Qualley and Norbert Leo Butz had been cast in series regular roles and that Aya Cash, Nate Corddry, Susan Misner, Bianca Marroquín, Kelli Barrett, Evan Handler, Rick Holmes, Paul Reiser, Ethan Slater, Byron Jennings, and Laura Osnes had joined the cast in a recurring capacity.[17]
Qualley consulted heavily with Reinking on her performance, with the two holding chats twice a week for the duration of the shoot.[18] Reinking was not a consultant on the series but praised the performances of Rockwell and Williams, though she was conflicted about the portrayal of Fosse as an abusive partner.[19]
On January 6, 2019, a teaser trailer for the series was released.[21] In the United Kingdom, the BBC picked up the rights and the show premiered on BBC Two.[22]
Reception
Critical response
On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 81% based on 88 reviews, and an average rating of 7.12/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Sam Rockwell and Michelle Williams give viewers plenty of razzle and dazzle in Fosse/Verdon - a straightforward miniseries that is hampered by rote biographical tropes, but still shimmies with the requisite glitz, grit, and all that jazz audiences crave."[23]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the series a score of 68 out of 100, based on 34 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[24]
Ratings
Viewership and ratings per episode of Fosse/Verdon
Thomas Kail, Steven Levenson, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Joel Fields, George Stelzner, Sam Rockwell, Michelle Williams, Tracey Scott Wilson, Charlotte Stoudt, Nicole Fosse, Erica Kay, Kate Sullivan & Brad Carpenter
