MARY MURPHY
“One Hot Tamale” in Burn The Floor Mary Murphy has all of the key ingredients to set the stage on fire during her performance
by tim parks
in Burn The Floor, which will play at The San Diego Civic Theatre on October 12-17, and will assuredly be considered one of her favorite terms, “hot tamale,” by those in attendance. With her “special guest star” status firmly in place for the production, she has the moves and attitude to captivate audiences dur- ing her stint in San Diego (she will also be appearing during the San Jose stop of the national tour), with her pairing with ball- room champion Vaidas Skimelis. While it’s a reasonable bet that you might
want to check which way it is to the nearest fire exits, the on-stage sizzle and excite- ment will undoubtedly keep you on the edge of your seat. The Rage Monthly chatted with the delightful So You Think You Can Dance per- sonality, which she has to spare in spades, about all things dance, including the sur- prising revelation that this choreographer and U.S. Ballroom Champion didn’t initially think that her vocation would be geared towards the world of dance. Try this one on for size, “Coach Murphy,” as she explained about her initial career path. “I’ve always been an athlete; that was pretty much the only thing made available to me as
Rhumba! in Burn The Floor Photography by Joan Marcus
a kid with three older brothers and I was the fourth boy, and I wanted to do everything they wanted to do,” she recounted. “If my family made dancing available to me, I’m not even sure I would have done it. I had actually fully intended to be a physical education teacher and track coach. I had no dreams of being a professional dancer. If you had said that to me back then, I would have been laughing my butt off!” However, as with many college students, her major would change, as she felt a kinship with the art of dance. “But when I did find it in college, I just loved the way it made me feel,” she said. “How kooky and crazy modern dance can actually be; it kind of fit my personality. It’s crazy now, because once I did find it, I still didn’t really love it.” However, she did take a summer job at a Washington, D.C. ballroom dance studio and a trip to New York City became her turning point and sealed the deal.
OCTOBER 2010 | RAGE monthly 55
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