Isn't This A Lovely Day- Top Hat, 1935- Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire - Choreography by Hermes Pan and Fred Astaire.

When you do musical theatre, you hear about Fred and Ginger. I was first introduced to them as a teenager and basically, all I knew was that they were old, did movies in black and white (at the time a scary concept for me) and that they danced.
My family and I used to be a part of this film club that was run by our local paper's film critic. He decided that Top Hat was a worthwhile film to show on the big screen and somehow I ended up sitting in the audience.
When I figured out which one was Fred Astaire I was underwhelmed. That's it? That odd-looking man? He looks a bit like a stick bug... Even when he did his first dance ("Fancy Free" the sand dance) I didn't get it.

Then he danced with Ginger. That's when it clicked.

Thus began my love of dance films, old films, and of course, Fred Astaire.

About the Dance:

This is hands-down my favorite Fred and Ginger dance, maybe because it is the one that made me fall in love with Fred.

One of the things that I love most about this dance is that Ginger is wearing pants. The 1930s were a time of long flowing skirts. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers were incredibly fashionable (nothing like beautiful costumes and gorgeous dances to help people take their mind off the Great Depression) so Ginger frequently wore skirts. Fred commented on his partner's costumes in his autobiography "Steps in Time"

"If the gown happens to be very full at the hem, for instance, it automatically becomes 'our' dress instead of just my partner's, as it wraps around my feet, causing no end of trouble and hindrance to both of us. If it is too tight, the lady cannot negotiate the routined movement, necessitating an alteration of the choreography or a splitting of the skirt."



Long skirts are all well and good but you can't see her feet! And while I love me some long swooshy skirts, Ginger does some amazing footwork that we don't always get to see.

Now, those of you who are proper dancers may notice that Ginger is not the same level as Fred in some technical ways (especially in their early films, you can sometimes catch her watching his feet, this may be a character choice or it may be her making sure she is getting it right) and she certainly loosened up physically over the years.

On that note, Top Hat was their fourth movie together. When they began doing films together Ginger didn't know much about dancing, so Fred taught her (presumably with the help of whoever was the choreographer on the film). She worked until her feet bled (literally). She learned each number to the high standards of perfection that Fred held them both too.

That is nuts.

Seriously! I know it is said a lot that Ginger deserves praise for doing everything "Backwards and in high heels" but honestly, not only does she do it in heels, she literally started from scratch and worked herself into the ground. Not just anyone could match someone who had been dancing since early childhood, even if that someone wasn't Fred Astaire.

TRIVIA: For those of you, like me, who love silly trivia, I give you this tidbit; If you look at Fred's hand as he is singing, you will notice a ring on his pinky finger. The ring was a gift from his sister, Adele. He wore it almost all the time. If you look closely you can spot it in almost all of his films.

Note: When I first saw this movie, I couldn't believe how fast the spins are at the end of this dance. Fred does those in several of his films, they are still one of my favorite moves.

Enjoy.