Mary-Jean Cowell is professor emeritus in the Department of Performing Arts, Arts & Sciences, at Washington University in St. Louis. She is a performer, producer, choreographer, and teacher of dance. One of her research interests is Michio Ito, a Japanese-born dancer who contributed to the development of modern dance in the United States.
Kevin Winkler titled his book Big Deal: Bob Fosse and Dance in the American Musical to assert Fosse’s major role in four decades of development in American musical theater and in contemporary pop culture. Big Deal is also the title of Fosse’s last Broadway show and his first Broadway flop.