Texas State dance professor Greer Gisy works as dance supervisor for ‘Hamilton’

Greer Gisy is currently on tour with the “Angelica” tour of “Hamilton,” which opens this Wednesday and will run through Dec. 19 at Bass Concert Hall. However, though Gisy has been a dancer since she was three years old, she will not appear on stage for the duration of the show. Instead, Gisy will watch from the wings as the production’s dance supervisor, the person responsible for the overall cohesiveness of the production’s choreography.

So what are the responsibilities of a company’s dance supervisor?

“It’s an ever evolving position,” Gisy explained. “It’s something that I’m still learning about while doing it, like building a plane while you fly it.”

Gisy is part of the “Angelica” tour’s creative team, which consists of the resident choreographer — Texas State University’s Michael Balderrama — as well as two dance captains, all of whom know every single step and gesture of “Hamilton”.

“The choreography is so dense and intellectual and nuanced, and that’s a lot for the dance captains to maintain on top of running rehearsals,” Gisy said. “My position is to support them. We come at this epic amount of choreography as a unit. It’s nuts and bolts but also the whole engine that they’re maintaining, and I’m coming in with the oil.”

Gisy’s connections to Texas State University are what led her to working with Hamilton in the first place.

“I’ve done master classes and workshops there,” Gisy said. “I started teaching there as the assistant to Michael Balderrama. That was my first introduction to ‘Hamilton’ movement.”

Gisy initially joined the “Angelica” company of “Hamilton” back in 2020, less than a week before the pandemic closed theater doors all over the country. Then, once things began to open up again, Gisy returned to “Hamilton” rehearsals in July, which meant a return to the life of touring.

“I travel as if I’m one of the cast,” she said. “I haven’t toured in ten years so this is the first time I’ve been back on the road in this way. It’s fun. I like to travel.”

Gisy said that part of what she enjoyed most about touring with this company of “Hamilton” is the dedication of the cast to each other and the show, which started all the way back when she worked with the teaching staff at Texas State.

“They are cultivating humans in the industry,” she said. “They are highly talented intellectual people who are also kind people. I love the work that they’re doing, the work ethic. The hustle is still there. But the hustle doesn’t outweigh the humanity. Any chance I get to connect with them, even if it’s just a dinner or a class.”

The production’s sense of community also lends to the tightness of the choreography, which requires a great deal of trust between the performers.

“We’re all in it together,” Gisy said. “We tend to use the word community. Community takes effort and a conscious contribution to be able to work well together. It’s a very intricate community where everyone gets to be their own person as much as possible.”

As the world slowly reopens, “Hamilton” and the re-opening of Bass Concert Hall has carried with it a sense of excitement and anticipation.

“It’s just important to remember that we’re all humans up there,” Gisy said. “We’re doing the best that we can with the circumstances we have. It’s a great moment to be cognizant of that and show compassion. We’re all doing it. Come to see our show, remember that we’re humans playing real humans. Take that into account as we move into our daily lives. Everything was on screen, and we’re no longer only on stage. We can recalibrate that into our systems: Kindness, community, compassion.”

Broadway In Austin’s performances of “Hamilton” are set for Dec. 7-19 at Bass Concert Hall in Austin. Tickets for “Hamilton'' are currently on sale at BroadwayinAustin.com or texasperformingarts.org.

There will be a lottery for 40 $10 seats for all performances. The lottery will close at 12 p.m. Dec. 2 for tickets to the Dec. 7 - 12.

“The hustle is still there. But the hustle doesn’t outweigh the humanity.”

– Greer Gisy, Hamilton

Dance Supervisor