Write a research paper outlining the specifics of Fred Astaire’s “royal wedding” ceiling dance.Our film this week, “Royal Wedding,” 1951, is a far different confection. It is a good example of the Hollywood Musical, a genre that exploded on the scene with synchronized sound (the “Talkies”) in 1927 with “The Jazz Singer,” and lasted through the mid-1960s (“West Side Story,” “My Fair Lady,” “The Sound of Music”). Once Rock and Roll movies (“Jailhouse Rock, 1957, “Hard Day’s Night,” 1964, etc.) became wildly popular, the older singing and dancing styles faded from the screen. It was a generational change. Rock and Roll replaced Jazz and Big Band Music, and people no longer would “go dancing” to “dance clubs” where they performed practiced and complicated “steps” like the “Fox Trot” or the waltz.
Of course, there are exceptions, like Salsa Clubs, today. But the old dance and my musical styles, particularly tap dancing, have receded into the background. Once in a while, someone will try to recapture the old magic (“Strictly Ballroom,” 1992, “LaLa Land,” 2016), and both “Mary Poppins” and “West Side Story” have been remade/adapted. And “Dancing with the Stars” is a faint reminder. But the one Studio where the classic Musical is still made regularly and popularly is the “Mouse House,” the Walt Disney Company, where the Princess Movies keep the flame burning.
“Royal Wedding” stars Fred Astair, one of the greatest singing and dancing stars of the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. He is best remembered for the 10 films he made with co-star Ginger Rogers between 1933 and 1949. But he co-starred with many other leading ladies, and in this film, he costars with Jane Powell. The film was directed by Stanley Donen, whose extraordinary career not only included other great musicals (“An American in Paris,” 1951, “Singin’ in the Rain,” 1952, etc.) but also thriller/comedies and love stories.
INSTRUCTIONS: The following instructions MUST BE FOLLOWED along with answering your 2 questions of choice to receive the full credit/10 points. Please be sure to choose and respond to ONLY 2 out of 3 questions, in complete sentences, and ensure that your responses include correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation! My suggestion is to utilize Grammarly.com as a final check for errors before posting your responses. Your discussion post responses should be at least 4-5 sentences long at the very least for each response and include clear examples from the film to support your responses. In total, you should have 8-10 sentences when responding to 2 questions.
Your responses should also include the questions you are responding to above each response meaning you should copy and paste the full question and then respond and do the same for your second response. Lastly, refrain from responding to your classmate’s postings before posting your initial response. Responding to a classmate’s response is not required. Please reach out to me directly at **************** with any questions or concerns and not on Blackboard messenger.
Which couple’s love story or emotional connection did you enjoy the most and what about their connection stood out to you?
What did you think about Tommy’s scene when he was dancing on the ceiling? Do you believe it was difficult for production to accomplish during this time period in film production?
How did you feel about the ending of the film? Did it end in a way you expected, why or why not?
