The Unfinished Dance

Last updated
The Unfinished Dance
The Unfinished Dance.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Henry Koster
Screenplay by Myles Connolly
Story by Paul Morand
Produced by Joe Pasternak
Starring Margaret O'Brien
Cyd Charisse
Karin Booth
Cinematography Robert L. Surtees
Edited byDouglass Biggs
Music by Herbert Stothart
Production
company
Distributed by Loew's, Inc.
Release date
  • September 19, 1947 (1947-09-19)
Running time
101 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$2,989,000 [1]
Box office$2,303,000 [1]

The Unfinished Dance is a 1947 American musical drama film directed by Henry Koster and starring Margaret O'Brien, Cyd Charisse and Karin Booth. The story centers around the members of a ballet company, and is a remake of the 1937 French film Ballerina , based on a short story by Paul Morand. [2] [3] It won two awards at the 1948 Locarno International Film Festival. [4]

Contents

Plot

Aspiring ballerina Meg Merlin idolizes the head of her dance school, Ariane Bouchet, so much so that she often neglects her own studies just to watch Ariane dance. Only the intervention of kindly Mr. Paneros keeps her from being expelled.

When Meg learns that the "first lady of ballet," Lady Anna La Darina has been hired by the school, Meg is livid at the idea of Ariane being upstaged. She sets out to sabotage Anna's stay, beginning with mischief, like turning off the lights in the middle of a photo session.

Meg is so obsessed in her quest, she even strikes dance student Phyllis Brigham when she dares prefer Anna's talent to Ariane's, earning a formal reprimand. During a performance of "Swan Lake", intending to switch off the lights again, Meg accidentally pulls the lever instead on a trap door. Anna plummets through the stage floor opening, seriously injuring her spine, and is likely never to dance again.

Phyllis and Josie have a hunch that Meg is responsible, so they blackmail her. Worse yet, Meg discovers that Ariane is self-indulgent, focusing more on clothing and fame; whereas, Anna is generous and kind, coming back to the school to advise the students as best she can.

Meg becomes more and more frightened and riddled with guilt regarding Anna's plight. Mr. Paneros, decides to talk to Anna and inadvertently reveals Meg's involvement regarding her accident. When Anna learns the truth, she soon forgives her. Meg now has a new idol.

Cast

Reception

According to MGM records, the film earned $1,129,000 in the U.S. and Canada and $1,174,000 in other markets, but because of its high cost, it recorded a loss of $1,797,000. It was the first movie produced by Joe Pasternak at MGM to lose money. [1]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leslie Caron</span> French and American actress and dancer (born 1931)

Leslie Claire Margaret Caron is a French and American actress and dancer. She is the recipient of a Golden Globe Award, two BAFTA Awards and a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards. She is one of the last surviving stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema.

<i>The Band Wagon</i> 1953 film by Vincente Minnelli

The Band Wagon is a 1953 American musical romantic comedy film directed by Vincente Minnelli, starring Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse. It tells the story of an aging musical star who hopes a Broadway show will restart his career. However, the play's director wants to make it a pretentious retelling of the Faust legend and brings in a prima ballerina who clashes with the star. Along with Singin' in the Rain (1952), it is regarded as one of the finest Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musicals, although it was a modest box-office success on first release.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cyd Charisse</span> American dancer and actress (1922–2008)

Cyd Charisse was an American dancer and actress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Mitchell (actor)</span> American dancer and actor (1920–2010)

James Mitchell was an American actor and dancer. Although he is best known to television audiences as Palmer Cortlandt on the soap opera All My Children (1979–2010), theatre and dance historians remember him as one of Agnes de Mille's leading dancers. Mitchell's skill at combining dance and acting was considered something of a novelty; in 1959, the critic Olga Maynard singled him out as "an important example of the new dancer-actor-singer in American ballet", pointing to his interpretive abilities and "masculine" technique.

<i>Thats Entertainment!</i> 1974 film by Jack Haley Jr.

That's Entertainment! is a 1974 American compilation film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to celebrate the studio's 50th anniversary. The success of the retrospective prompted a 1976 sequel, the related 1985 film That's Dancing!, and a third installment in 1994.

<i>The Harvey Girls</i> 1946 film by Robert Alton, George Sidney

The Harvey Girls is a 1946 Technicolor American musical film produced by Arthur Freed for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It is based on the 1942 novel of the same name by Samuel Hopkins Adams, about Fred Harvey's Harvey House waitresses. Directed by George Sidney, the film stars Judy Garland and features John Hodiak, Ray Bolger, and Angela Lansbury, as well as Preston Foster, Virginia O'Brien, Kenny Baker, Marjorie Main and Chill Wills. Future star Cyd Charisse appears in her first speaking role on film.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Galina Ulanova</span> Soviet and Russian ballerina (1910–1998)

Galina Sergeyevna Ulanova was a Russian ballet dancer. She is frequently cited as being one of the greatest ballerinas of the 20th century.

<i>Ziegfeld Follies</i> (film) 1945 film

Ziegfeld Follies is a 1945 American musical comedy film released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, primarily directed by Vincente Minnelli, with segments directed by Lemuel Ayers, Roy Del Ruth, Robert Lewis, and George Sidney, the film's original director before Minnelli took over. Other directors that are claimed to have made uncredited contributions to the film are Merrill Pye, Norman Taurog, and Charles Walters. It stars many MGM leading talents, including Fred Astaire, Lucille Ball, Lucille Bremer, Fanny Brice, Judy Garland, Kathryn Grayson, Lena Horne, Gene Kelly, James Melton, Victor Moore, William Powell, Red Skelton, and Esther Williams.

<i>Party Girl</i> (1958 film) 1958 film directed by Nicholas Ray

Party Girl is a 1958 American film noir directed by Nicholas Ray and starring Robert Taylor, Cyd Charisse and Lee J. Cobb. Filmed in CinemaScope, it was the last film Charisse did for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and the next-to-last film Taylor did for the studio; they were MGM's last two remaining major contract stars.

Joan Tewkesbury is an American film and television director, writer, producer, choreographer and actress. She had a long association with the celebrated director Robert Altman, writing the screenplays for Thieves Like Us (1974), and Nashville (1975), widely regarded as "Altman's masterpiece", and which earned her a nomination for the BAFTA Award for Best Screenplay.

<i>Deep in My Heart</i> (1954 film) 1954 American film directed by Stanley Donen

Deep in My Heart is a 1954 American MGM biographical musical film about the life of operetta composer Sigmund Romberg, who wrote the music for The Student Prince, The Desert Song, and The New Moon, among others. Leonard Spigelgass adapted the film from Elliott Arnold's 1949 biography of the same name. Roger Edens produced, Stanley Donen directed and Eugene Loring choreographed. José Ferrer played Romberg, with support from soprano Helen Traubel as a fictional character and Merle Oberon as actress, playwright, librettist, producer, and director Dorothy Donnelly.

<i>Its Always Fair Weather</i> 1955 film by Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly

It's Always Fair Weather is a 1955 MGM musical satire scripted by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, who also wrote the show's lyrics, with music by André Previn and starring Gene Kelly, Dan Dailey, Cyd Charisse, Dolores Gray, and dancer/choreographer Michael Kidd in his first film acting role.

<i>Silk Stockings</i> (1957 film) 1957 film by Rouben Mamoulian

Silk Stockings is a 1957 American musical romantic comedy film directed by Rouben Mamoulian and starring Fred Astaire and Cyd Charisse. It is based on the 1955 stage musical of the same name, which had been adapted from the film Ninotchka (1939). The film was choreographed by Eugene Loring and Hermes Pan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albertina Rasch</span> Austrian-born American dancer and choreographer (1891–1967)

Albertina Rasch was an Austrian-American dancer, company director, and choreographer.

<i>Brigadoon</i> (film) 1954 film by Vincente Minnelli

Brigadoon is a 1954 American Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musical film made in CinemaScope and color by Ansco based on the 1947 Broadway musical of the same name by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe. The film was directed by Vincente Minnelli and stars Gene Kelly, Van Johnson, and Cyd Charisse. Brigadoon has been broadcast on American television and is available in VHS, DVD and Blu-ray formats.

<i>Meet Me in Las Vegas</i> 1956 US musical comedy film by Roy Rowland

Meet Me in Las Vegas is a 1956 American musical comedy film directed by Roy Rowland, filmed in Eastman Color and CinemaScope, and starring Dan Dailey and Cyd Charisse. It was produced by Joe Pasternak for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

<i>On an Island with You</i> 1948 film by Richard Thorpe

On an Island with You is a 1948 American musical Technicolor romantic comedy film directed by Richard Thorpe. It stars Esther Williams, Peter Lawford, Ricardo Montalbán, Cyd Charisse, Kathryn Beaumont and Jimmy Durante.

Black Tights is a 1961 French anthology film featuring four ballet segments shot in Technirama and directed by Terence Young.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michaela DePrince</span> Sierra Leonean-American ballet dancer (born 1995)

Michaela Mabinty DePrince is a Sierra Leonean-American ballet dancer, currently dancing with the Boston Ballet. She rose to fame after starring in the documentary First Position in 2011, following her and other young ballet dancers as they prepared to compete at the Youth America Grand Prix. With her adoptive mother, Elaine DePrince, she authored the book Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina. DePrince formerly danced with the Dance Theatre of Harlem as the youngest dancer in the history of the company and was a former soloist with the Dutch National Ballet. Since 2016, Michaela is a goodwill ambassador with the Dutch organisation War Child, based in Amsterdam.

References

  1. 1 2 3 The Eddie Mannix Ledger, Los Angeles: Margaret Herrick Library, Center for Motion Picture Study.
  2. "THE UNFINISHED DANCE(1947), ALSO KNOWN AS: BALLERINA". Turner Classic Movies . tcm.com. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  3. "The Unfinished Dance". FilmAffinity . filmaffinity.com. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  4. "The Unfinished Dance - IMDb". IMDb .