by Ruthy Lawrence Doering, guest feature-writer
The “Ed Sullivan Show” … three men in a rehearsal studio doing a dance number from the Broadway show, Carnival in Flanders. Your eyes were drawn to one man, whose precision and dynamics as a dancer took your breath away.
His first big break was dancing in There’s No Business Like Show Business, although his most famous part, for which he is most known, is as Caleb in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. He continued to work in movie musicals and performed in films with Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse, Marilyn Monroe, Judy Garland, Mitzi Gaynor, and Gwen Verdon. But it was Matt’s seven-year association with Jack Cole that changed his direction from aspiring ballet dancer to the personification of perfection in a jazz dancer.
Dancers flocked to his classes – Broadway dancers, television dancers, ice skaters – everyone wanting to learn to dance like Matt Mattox. These were the golden days, studying with Matt, Luigi, and Peter Gennaro, also teaching very different styles. The best studied with all three – and you were in dance heaven!
Most of the time these days, you will find Matt in the Mediterranean city of Perpignan, which is French but Catalan by culture, and less than 10 miles from the Spanish border. He moved to the area of France known as Roussillon in 1980. He is there with his wife, Martine Limeul Mattox, whose family hails from one of the hill towns in the area. They met in the 1970s and both maintain intense teaching schedules in the area.
After reading Ulrich’s article, I wrote to Matt, thanking him for his teaching. I received a reply – he told me that people thank him all the time for what he did for them as a teacher. He didn’t seem to realize what a profound effect he had on those who were privileged enough to study with him through the years.
The “Ed Sullivan Show” … three men in a rehearsal studio doing a dance number from the Broadway show, Carnival in Flanders. Your eyes were drawn to one man, whose precision and dynamics as a dancer took your breath away.
That man was Matt Mattox, performing choreography by Jack Cole.
Matt was born in the city of Tulsa in Oklahoma in 1921. He began dancing at the early age of eleven. In 1948, he met Jack Cole, who became Mattox’s inspiration. Then Mattox tried out the Hollywood scene. He made connections with two big influential Hollywood dancers, Nico and Cyd Chraisse. They set up auditions for him at MGM. MGM was so impressed, they signed him to a two-year contract as a stock contract dancer.
His first big break was dancing in There’s No Business Like Show Business, although his most famous part, for which he is most known, is as Caleb in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. He continued to work in movie musicals and performed in films with Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse, Marilyn Monroe, Judy Garland, Mitzi Gaynor, and Gwen Verdon. But it was Matt’s seven-year association with Jack Cole that changed his direction from aspiring ballet dancer to the personification of perfection in a jazz dancer.
Above, Mattox with partner Ruta Lee in MGM's Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
Coming to New York to dance in Carnival in Flanders, which did not have a long Broadway run, gave Matt an opportunity to spread his wings in other directions. The buzz began, dancers talking about the teacher at the June Taylor Studio on Seventh Avenue in New York City.
Dancers flocked to his classes – Broadway dancers, television dancers, ice skaters – everyone wanting to learn to dance like Matt Mattox. These were the golden days, studying with Matt, Luigi, and Peter Gennaro, also teaching very different styles. The best studied with all three – and you were in dance heaven!
Right, Mattox teaching in the studio
Mattox choreographed for television during the 1950s and 1960s, particularly “The Bell Telephone Hour.” He also appeared on Broadway in Once Upon a Mattress. Then, after fourteen years of leading the jazz dance scene in Manhattan, Mattox moved to London and assumed the same position of leadership in English jazz dance. There he formed a concert jazz dance company called JazzArt, which he eventually brought to Paris in 1975. He was highly respected throughout Europe.
In 2003, while teaching at Principia College in Elsah, Illinois, I opened a dance magazine, and lo and behold – an article about Matt Mattox by Alan Ulrich! My question was answered, “Where these days can you find Matt Mattox?”
Most of the time these days, you will find Matt in the Mediterranean city of Perpignan, which is French but Catalan by culture, and less than 10 miles from the Spanish border. He moved to the area of France known as Roussillon in 1980. He is there with his wife, Martine Limeul Mattox, whose family hails from one of the hill towns in the area. They met in the 1970s and both maintain intense teaching schedules in the area.After reading Ulrich’s article, I wrote to Matt, thanking him for his teaching. I received a reply – he told me that people thank him all the time for what he did for them as a teacher. He didn’t seem to realize what a profound effect he had on those who were privileged enough to study with him through the years.
Perhaps there are Principia dancers who had the privilege of studying the great Matt Mattox. I, for one, will never forget being a dancer in New York City and studying with Matt.
Ruthy Lawrence Doering
No comments:
Post a Comment