Mario Lopez: “…an actor who can move”
It always bugs me, as a professional dance instructor, when people walk up to me and say they can’t dance. In my opinion, dance is nothing but intentional movement; the level of intent and the focus determine the skill of the dance. This is why watching an 80 year old Merce Cunningham is more interesting than watching an 18 year old novice dancer – Merce has spent his life learning to move.
What about Mario Lopez?
Oh, that quote? It’s what he said about himself in response to a question about his singing and dancing in the role of Zach in A Chorus Line. He doesn’t have any solos, but he admits that he can carry a tune, and he’s definitely physically fit; “Mario Lopez’s Knockout Fitness” book is destined to hit the stores May 13th.
“I work really hard,” he adds, and while that’s definitely a great attitude, I don’t think even he expected the level of work his debut on the stage would take. On his first night it could be expected that there would be nervous jitters for a novice thespian. However, Mario had to deal with not one, not two, but four understudies in their roles (trust me, that would throw any show off). As if that wasn’t enough, a female audience member had a heart attack (no reports as to whether that was in response to Mario Lopez or not).
Still, he seems happy with the direction his career has taken since his debut on Dancing With the Stars. Here’s a clip from that, with dancer Karina Smirnoff. An actor who can move, indeed.
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