Margie Duncan, a dancer and actress who stood in for her dear friend Debbie Reynolds in films including The Unsinkable Molly Brown, The Second Time Around and The Singing Nun, has died. She was 92.
Duncan died Jan. 3 after a brief illness at her Porter Ranch home in Los Angeles, her family announced.
Duncan worked with choreographers in the movies to learn Reynolds’ routines, “dancing in” during blocking and rehearsals until the numbers were set. She would then teach the routines to her friend.
In the musical comedy The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964), for which Reynolds received her lone Oscar nomination, Duncan rehearsed the number “Ain’t Down Yet,” which took place in the barnyard of Molly’s (Reynolds) country home, with choreographer Peter Gennaro.
Duncan jumped on the top of a shed to sing the last verse while walking backward down its thatched roof and then back up, finishing at the front of the roof.
Duncan died Jan. 3 after a brief illness at her Porter Ranch home in Los Angeles, her family announced.
Duncan worked with choreographers in the movies to learn Reynolds’ routines, “dancing in” during blocking and rehearsals until the numbers were set. She would then teach the routines to her friend.
In the musical comedy The Unsinkable Molly Brown (1964), for which Reynolds received her lone Oscar nomination, Duncan rehearsed the number “Ain’t Down Yet,” which took place in the barnyard of Molly’s (Reynolds) country home, with choreographer Peter Gennaro.
Duncan jumped on the top of a shed to sing the last verse while walking backward down its thatched roof and then back up, finishing at the front of the roof.
- 1/25/2023
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Shirley MacLaine was only 16 years old when she left Arlington, Va., and headed for Broadway. With a lifetime of dance classes behind her — her mom enrolled her in ballet when she was 3 to help strengthen her weak ankles — she landed a summer gig as a chorus girl in “Oklahoma!” She returned to her hometown to finish school, then made a beeline back to the Great White Way.
“Once I graduated from high school, there was no question what I was going to do,” MacLaine tells Variety from her ranch in Santa Fe, N.M.
Her life changed overnight when, as dancer in the original 1954 production of “The Pajama Game,” she replaced star Carol Haney after she sprained her ankle. A few months later, MacLaine was signed by Paramount Pictures.
In the more than six decades since, MacLaine has earned five Oscar nominations for acting, finally taking home the gold in...
“Once I graduated from high school, there was no question what I was going to do,” MacLaine tells Variety from her ranch in Santa Fe, N.M.
Her life changed overnight when, as dancer in the original 1954 production of “The Pajama Game,” she replaced star Carol Haney after she sprained her ankle. A few months later, MacLaine was signed by Paramount Pictures.
In the more than six decades since, MacLaine has earned five Oscar nominations for acting, finally taking home the gold in...
- 11/2/2020
- by Marc Malkin
- Variety Film + TV
For the first time in its 60-plus year history and six productions on Broadway, West Side Story - a musical whose iconic dance scenes have an instant recognizability in both the musical theater world and in culture in general - will not include the original Jerome Robbins and Peter Gennaro choreography. This Ivo van Hove-led revival of the classic has thrown away convention and brought in the talents of a choreographer iconic in her own right, to bring this musical into the modern age.
- 2/16/2020
- by Chloe Rabinowitz
- BroadwayWorld.com
Annie, the beloved tale of Little Orphan Annie, returns to Hennepin Theatre Trust's Orpheum Theatre Thursday, Feb. 12 through Saturday, Feb. 14, 2009 for a limited engagement of four performances. This timeless story is back in its 30th anniversary tour, offering a new generation the opportunity to experience this heartwarming musical about never giving up hope. Individual tickets are on sale now. Annie is presented by Hennepin Theatre Trust as a special addition to its 2008-09 M&I Bank Broadway Across America-Minneapolis season. Visit www.HennepinTheatreDistrict.org or call 1-800-982-2787 to purchase tickets or for more information. The Chicago Sun Times says, "Ageless Annie is as engaging as ever." Annie, with music by Charles Strouse and book by Thomas Meehan, is directed by its lyricist, Martin Charnin, who brought the original production of Annie to Broadway in 1977. Tony Award-winning set designer, Ming Cho Lee, also has created a fresh look for this tour.
- 1/22/2009
- BroadwayWorld.com
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