Kelli Barclay grew up in Beaumont and took dance from Bonnie Cokinos and was greatly influenced by Bonnie’s husband, Jimmy Cokinos, a long-time mayor of Beaumont. Ms. Bonnie, who was primarily a ballet dancer/teacher, would invite dancers and actors who came through town and through Orange to come to her studio and teach her dancers. Kelli loved the opportunity to talk to and learn from these performers. Her dream was to perform from as long as she could remember.

As a senior at Forest Park High School, 1979, Barclay had the opportunity to travel to Dallas with another older dancer and audition for a show. It was a Dallas summer musical that would go on tour. Dallas is a big hub for auditions for shows that then go to New York. Barclay went for the audition experience and actually got the role in the production. She considered it beginner’s luck. Barclay went on tour with the show, her first professional taste. It was a union show. She went from a Trojan in the drill team in Beaumont, Texas with a big dream in her heart to a big national tour. She considers it a fantastic first experience.

Both of Kelli’s parents are educators who love to teach, and so she did go back to Lamar University for some classes but then she got a show. Through her network of dancers and professionals in theater, she sent a video and got a job. That job took her to Canada, and she went with a promise to her parents to finish school. Kelli recalls arriving in Montreal Quebec Canada the day after Christmas and it was the coldest day of the year. She also recalls that everyone thought she was faking her accent; they had never heard a Texas accent. In a month she was named the dance captain for her ability to choreograph and manage people. That job and experience launched her journey into what she does now.

Kelli started her choreography career assisting choreographers, and then she started choreographing herself. She then moved to New York and got a big national tour of “Singing in the Rain”, which took her all around the country and was a wonderful experience for a young dancer. She got to experience people from all the different states and be in a professional environment with older people so she could learn from them. It was everything and she thought she had “died and gone to heaven.” But then she went back to New York and reality set in.

She was back to auditions and looking for work. One of the dancers from the “Singing in the Rain” tour was in “42nd Street” on Broadway. She learned through that dancer they were having a private audition; otherwise, there are thousands of dancers who show up. She did not get the Broadway show the first time, but she was selected for the revival of “42nd Street” as the assistant choreographer. That position launched an everlasting career. She has now done “42nd Street” all over the world, including in London where she worked with Kate Middleton. One of the producers of the UK production is a Lord. He loves the arts and was one of the producers and investors. Kate Middleton grew up dancing in her hometown, loves the arts, so Kelli choreographed an opening piece and Kate Middleton walked in. They gave her some tap shoes. Kelli considers it a wonderful experience, fairytale like. Afterward Kelli got to work with Kate and found her to be a lovely person who strongly believes the arts sustains all of us.

Kelli considers her work more of a calling than a job, although it is unionized. You must do it because you love it, because the world and the business is up and down. She says you can have shows one after the other and then no shows for a long time. Kelli says the work teaches resilience. She also thinks it is important to share aspects of the work with children including the requirement for resilience.

Kelli believes the Pandemic will be a time that we all remember as a time that we helped each other. "I think it will make an everlasting mark on children and teach them resilience and how to keep going and support one another." Kelli says these kinds of things were not thought about when she was busy running past people from one show to the next show to auditions, etc. But now that everyone has slowed down in New York, people are greeting one another. She says she has never talked to so many people in her life than through the pandemic.

When the pandemic hit, Kelli was at the top of her game. She had just closed a show here in Beaumont with iRule. She had an off-Broadway show running that has plans to move on to Broadway, and she was in auditions for two of her upcoming projects (shows audition a year in advance) and she was one week away from starting to rehearse a show in New York for the lyric and lyricist series a very prestigious show series in NY presented by the 92Y. This group takes a composer and does a show around them and they hire movie stars. The big star for Kelli’s show was from “This is Us.” Kelli was excited to direct and choreograph that show in New York, which has been her ultimate dream. She was at the audition when she got the call that the pandemic had hit, and it is something she will never forget. Although she did not know what to expect, one of the shows that was planned to go international closed because travel was halted.

Being in NY when the pandemic hit and not knowing what to expect while trying to navigate the city, the subways and the people, made Kelli appreciate Beaumont. The first call she got was from Charlee -Hanna Rule at iRule Dance who told Kelli she needed to get home to Beaumont, and that she had a plane ticket for her. Kelli could not believe it and told Charlee she thought the pandemic would be a week-long interference and her shows would go on. Kelli turned her down and kept working on her shows but was then shut down.

“The generosity and the kindness and the things you’re trying to do with this Rotary club; I just want you to know how much it means to people. You may not see what you give out,” said Kelli. Kelli recalls her third-grade teacher, Mr. Fred Simon, singing “Old Man River,” at Sallie Curtis and her desire to dance to the song. Kelli does not think Simon ever knew the impact he had on her and the direction of her life. "I remember that to this day." Kelli invited everyone to the shows in New York when the pandemic is over.

QUESTIONS: 1. How will venues in NY and other venues ramp back up?

Kelli predicts each venue will implement creative innovative safety solutions and thanks to social media and online capabilities, theater is continuing. Ideas come from problems. Kelli’s show, “42nd Street”, has played at the movie houses during this time and there is a documentary afterwards on PBS. She advised everyone to look for it to run again and to watch the documentary after the show that really gives a lot of behind-the-scenes details about auditions, costumes, staircase that emerge, etc.

Kelli believes the appetite for theater and live performance will be big after the pandemic, but thanks to social media and online, etc. theater is being kept alive and people can see ballets and hear symphonies. She also said Broadway has closed before, and this is the second time that she has been involved with a shutdown. Broadway closed in 1917 during the Spanish flu, in the 60s for union reasons, in 1975 for a musicians’ strike and during 911. She was in New York during 911.

2. How do you break into Broadway?

Kelli emphasized internships. Although internships pay little money, they afford hands on experience, help establish connections and give you access to more work. Kelli knows many directors who started out in internships.

Also, she said to recognize that dance is a calling, and you must love it. You must realize you are not going to be a millionaire. You must be resilient and come to understand that not getting a part is not personal. She said there is a lot that goes into auditions and selecting the right people – sometimes costumes are a consideration, for example. Those auditioning can never know all the pieces of the production puzzle and why they were not chosen. The biggest advice she gives is not to go to three auditions but to go to 100 auditions. She also says to keep going, keep yourself out there and always study, which is not work if you love it. She also says that sometimes it is important to just be seen by a casting director.

3. How are actors/dancers making it during this time?

Some of them are recreating themselves. Kelli knows one actor/dancer who has opened a florist shop. Others are traveling to where the work is. They are doing a few virtual musicals. Even though NY is open 50 percent, theater is being pushed back to 2022. She said she believes there will be more outdoor shows. The Miller Outdoor Theater in Houston is one she believes is considering more outdoor events. She also believes big theaters like the Lutcher in Orange will come back sooner by practicing social distancing safety protocols.

Kelli asked if we were willing to go to Broadway. The general feeling was when it is open and safe, people will come back. She believes Broadway will not open until it can open fully. The cost of producing a show for only a 50 percent audience is too great.

Through the pandemic Kelli said she has looked for the blessings. She says now we are talking to neighbors when we did not before. We are more connected. She has a lot of gratitude and gives thanks to God because we are forever changed and have a better future as a result. She also believes that “art saves people, helps people escape and artists have to express themselves, so art is not going away.”