When you look at tonight’s re-broadcast of The Wiz Live, duly note the dance number’s rhythm and sass and know, in advance, there’s one woman behind it all: Fatima Robinson.
Some do (and other’s don’t) know Fatima Robinson but may very well have heard the name as, many of your favorite artists and video’s dance numbers were choreographed by Robinson, namely: Aaliyah’s Rock The Boat—the last video Robinson (a long time close personal friend of the late singer) choreographed for Aaliyah just hours before she perished in a Cessna plane crash.
With a footprint behind many-a-main stage and hit show and video cameras for far too long, NBC’s The Wiz Live’s producers: Neil Meron and Craig Zadan are making sure Fatima’s dancing
footprints get prancing legs.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, NBC will be flipping the script of a new television drama brought to them by Meron and Zadan-based of the life of The Wiz Live’s choreographer Fatimah Robinson, and one that pretty much all of popular culture and hip hop are sure to enjoy.
The not yet titled drama will be set in early 90s Los Angeles around the time when dance began to dominate pop culture everywhere from the streets to the clubs that, in turn gave rise and way to dance in hip hop videos, and beyond. And the rest is history (still) in the making.
No writer aboard as yet, the project is currently in early stage planning. We do know however that alongside Storyline Entertainment’s Mark Nicholson and Tasha Brown, both Zadan and Meron are signed on to produce the drama. Fatima will both executive produce and serve as choreographer.
Robinson and Meron/Zadan’s relationship began with her work on the Academy Awards and has since moved on to NBC’s The Wiz Live.
Zadan told The Hollywood Reporter “We worked with her on the Oscars and knew she was special. We hired Fatima Robinson, who is not a Broadway choreographer, to do authentic black dancing. She comes from hip-hop and a lot of her point of view on dance is very gritty and authentic and raw.”
Reportedly, during the original live broadcast, Fatima had the most tweeted moment during the Tin Man (played by R&B singer Ne-Yo)’s Slide Some Oil To Me performance. The moment reportedly drew 15,218 tweets per minute.
Learn more about Fatima here!
