My best friend was a huge fan of Eleanor Powell when she was a kid and she introduced me to her...and I am glad she did. In the musical Born to Dance, she plays Nora Paige, a want-to-be dancer who arrives to the lonely hearts club in New York where she befriends Jenny Saks (Una Merkel). Nora's arrival coincides with a U. S. Navy submarine's arrival. The submarine is carrying Jenny's husband and father to her daughter who she hasn't seen since that fateful night which came at the end of a dance marathon. Sid Silvers plays the comedic 'Gunny' Saks whose best friend, Ted Barker (James Stewart) meets and falls head over heels for Nora.
There are some great song and dance numbers in this musical...whose music and lyrics were written by Cole Porter. I particularly found "Love Me, Love My Pekinese" amusing...and really enjoyed "Easy to Love". I know Eleanor is know for her dancing and her tap dancing in particular, but I found it interesting that while Jimmy Stewart does his own singing, they dubbed Eleanor with singer Marjorie Lane.
I loved the costumes and the sets (like the lonely hearts club) and I enjoyed seeing all of the submarine bits. There is a great supporting cast including Buddy Ebsen as 'Mush' Tracy. The numbers are toe tapping, James Stewart is always fun to watch and Eleanor Powell can really hoof it, this is a recommendation from me to fans of romantic musicals and anyone who might get a kick out of seeing a navy oriented musical.
There are some great song and dance numbers in this musical...whose music and lyrics were written by Cole Porter. I particularly found "Love Me, Love My Pekinese" amusing...and really enjoyed "Easy to Love". I know Eleanor is know for her dancing and her tap dancing in particular, but I found it interesting that while Jimmy Stewart does his own singing, they dubbed Eleanor with singer Marjorie Lane.
I loved the costumes and the sets (like the lonely hearts club) and I enjoyed seeing all of the submarine bits. There is a great supporting cast including Buddy Ebsen as 'Mush' Tracy. The numbers are toe tapping, James Stewart is always fun to watch and Eleanor Powell can really hoof it, this is a recommendation from me to fans of romantic musicals and anyone who might get a kick out of seeing a navy oriented musical.