On the Town Cast Members Salute Gene Kelly's Birthday Today With a Recreated, Intricate Dance Number (Video) | Playbill

News On the Town Cast Members Salute Gene Kelly's Birthday Today With a Recreated, Intricate Dance Number (Video) In honor of what would have been Broadway and Hollywood dancer Gene Kelly's 103rd birthday Aug. 23, two cast members from the Broadway revival of On the Town recreated, step for step, one of Kelly's dances from the movie version of the musical.

Cory Lingner, who appears in the ensemble of the show, and Eloise Kropp, who plays Doll Girl, dance the steps originated on film by Kelly and co-star Vera-Ellen.

The Broadway version uses the original 1944 score by Leonard Bernstein, Betty Comden and Adolph Green, but the 1949 movie substituted several songs by others. In this clip, the song "Main Street" was written by Roger Edens, Comden and Green. The choreography in the film is credited to Gene Kelly.

The clip (below) is introduced by the show's star, Tony Yazbeck, who speaks of his admiration for Kelly, whose role he is playing.

At the 2:22 mark the screen splits so you can see the 1949 film dancers on the left and the 2015 Broadway dancers on the right, performing the same steps.

 

 
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