Best Foot Forward (musical): History and Key Facts

Best Foot Forward is a 1941 musical with songs by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane, and a book by John Cecil Holm. Produced by George Abbott, the production opened on Broadway on October 1, 1941, at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre after an out-of-town tryout, where it ran for 326 performances. It was directed by Abbott, with choreography by Gene Kelly and starred Rosemary Lane. The show was Nancy Walker's Broadway debut and also launched June Allyson into stardom. Sets and lighting were by Jo Mielziner, and costumes were by Miles White.

The musical's success led to a 1943 film adaptation starring Lucille Ball, June Allyson and Nancy Walker, and a 1954 television adaptation. A 1953 tour featured Debbie Reynolds and Joan Bennett.

The 1963 Off-Broadway revival at Stage 73 ran for 224 performances. It was directed and choreographed by Danny Daniels and featured newcomer Liza Minnelli, who won a Theatre World Award, and Christopher Walken. Veronica Lake was a replacement for Paula Wayne as Gale. A recording of this revival is available on CD.

Source and attribution

Text excerpted from Best Foot Forward (musical) by Wikipedia contributors, available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0. The extract is abridged and formatting has been adjusted; the adapted text on this page is shared under the same licence. Revision history.