# One (A Chorus Line song) > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/One_(A_Chorus_Line_song) > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/One_(A_Chorus_Line_song).md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_(A_Chorus_Line_song) > Source revision: 1355638497 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Song by Marvin Hamlisch and Ed Kleban}} {{Italic title|all=yes|string=A Chorus Line}} "'''One'''" is a song from the musical ''[A Chorus Line](/source/A_Chorus_Line)'', with music by [Marvin Hamlisch](/source/Marvin_Hamlisch) and lyrics by [Ed Kleban](/source/Ed_Kleban). ''A Chorus Line'' is framed around a group of dancers [audition](/source/audition_(performing_arts))ing for roles in the [chorus line](/source/chorus_line) of a [musical](/source/musical_theatre); within the narrative, "One" is a song in the musical that the dancers are auditioning for, its lyrics a celebration of the musical's (unseen) star. "One" appears twice in ''A Chorus Line'', first during the audition as the dancers struggle to memorize the choreography, and then at the close of the show as the eventual Broadway performance of the successful auditioners. In the final performance of "One", the dancers, whom the audience has come to know as individuals over the course of the show, wear identical costumes and become indistinguishable from each other as anonymous backup performers. ==Production== Director [Michael Bennett](/source/Michael_Bennett_(theater)) explained his view regarding the song's inception and placement within the show:{{cite web | url = http://www.musicals101.com/chorus2.htm | title = Michael Bennett's "A Chorus Line" – Part II: The Story & Songs | first = William J. | last = McKay | date = 1998 | work = Musicals101.com}} {{quote|I want the audience to walk out of the theatre saying, 'Those kids shouldn't be in a chorus!' And I want people in the audience to go to other shows and think about what's really gone into making that chorus . . . It fades with them kicking. That's it. That's the end of the show. There are no bows. I don't believe in bows, just the fade out. That's what a dancer's life is.}} Lyricist [Edward Kleban](/source/Edward_Kleban) described the song as difficult to write, because the lyrics had to "say nothing and everything at the same time."{{cite web|website=NPR|url=https://www.npr.org/2000/05/22/1074450/npr-100-i-a-chorus-line-i|title=Backstage Of 'A Chorus Line' With Its Least Known Creator|last=Stamberg|first=Susan|date=May 22, 2000|accessdate=September 10, 2025}} ==Critical reception== ''CityBeat'' described the song as "the show’s greatest emotional wallop".{{cite web | url = http://citybeat.com/cincinnati/article-29032-a_chorus_line_%28review%29.html | title = A Chorus Line (Review): Sweetness and sorrow | first = Rick | last = Pender | date = November 12, 2013 | work = CityBeat}} The ''Davis Enterprise'' dubbed it the show's "signature tune".{{cite news | url = http://www.davisenterprise.com/arts/one-singular-sensation-to-open-at-dmtc/ | title = 'One' singular sensation to open at DMTC |author= | date = April 17, 2014 | page = A7 | work = Davis Enterprise | location = Davis, California }} ==Other media== In 1976, the Brady family performed the song in the pilot episode of ''[The Brady Bunch Variety Hour](/source/The_Brady_Bunch_Hour)''. On ''[Sesame Street](/source/Sesame_Street)'', it was covered by 10 Muppet numbers in a chorus line. ''[The Simpsons](/source/The_Simpsons)'' parodied the song in the episode "[Treehouse of Horror V](/source/Treehouse_of_Horror_V)". [Catherine Zeta-Jones](/source/Catherine_Zeta-Jones) performed the song, with modified lyrics, in dedication to her husband [Michael Douglas](/source/Michael_Douglas) during the 2009 [AFI Lifetime Achievement](/source/AFI_Lifetime_Achievement) Award Ceremony. ==References== {{reflist}} {{A Chorus Line}} Category:Songs from A Chorus Line Category:1975 songs --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [One (A Chorus Line song)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_(A_Chorus_Line_song)) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_(A_Chorus_Line_song)?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.