Review: Every Little Step

Review: Every Little Step

Rating: ***

Nonna's Rating: $$$

Rotten Tomatoes: 91%

Put this documentary on your Netflix list because it didn't enjoy wide distribution and only remains at a few theatres (The Glen in Glen Ellyn being one). The documentary tells the story of (initially 3,000) dancer-singer-actors auditioning to appear in a musical (A Chorus Line) about dancer-singer-actors auditioning to appear in a musical. I am a sucker for dance movies -- probably because I have no terpsichorean talent whatsoever. That muse passed me by.

Features that make this film a delight: 1) archival footage of Michael Bennett's original interviews with Broadway dancers -- interviews that inspired the dialogue in the musical; 2) initially ragged-around-the-edges dancing, singing, and acting that becomes glorious by the end of the film; 3) the professionalism of the auditioning director et al.-- watching them make tough decisions and watching them handle the fragile egos of the dancers with care and sensitivity; and 4) the impassioned devotion to their art that so many of dancers exhibit.

Nonna's Ratings:

$$$$ = Worth paying the Friday evening price
$$$= Worth paying the Matinee price
$$= Worth putting on your Netflix list
$ = Wait for cable
# = Skip it