Get ready to be dazzled by the dynamic dance sequences that lit up Broadway during the 1980s! From spirited tap routines to elegant masquerade balls, this video highlights electrifying performances that brought musicals to life on stage. With iconic choreography from shows like “Cats,” “Phantom of the Opera,” and “Dreamgirls,” watch how these unforgettable dance numbers captured the energy and style of a vibrant decade.
00:00Welcome to Ms. Mojo and today we're counting down our picks for the dances
00:11that set Broadway alight between 1980 and 1989. For this list, only shows who
00:17premiered on a Broadway stage in the 80s and revivals that featured new or
00:21reworked choreography are eligible.
00:30This is a fish-out-of-water comedy about Bill Snibson, a cockney man who finds himself suddenly
00:45thrust into the position of Earl of Hereford. Originally produced in 1930s London, the show
00:50was heavily revamped for its first Broadway production in 1986. Bill, played by Robert
00:55Lindsay, brings his unpolished, working-class ways into the world of the stuck-up nobility
01:00in this underrated number, introducing them to the Lambeth Walk.
01:03Everything bright and breezy, do as you God well pleasey, why don't you make your way there?
01:11Soon he has the entire elaborately outfitted ensemble dancing with spoons and tripping
01:16the light fantastic in their finery. By the time Bill's through, they look more like a
01:20group of talented pub patrons than a collection of British aristocrats.
01:32Number 9. Go, go, go, Joseph. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
01:37Andrew Lloyd Webber's splashy, modern yet retro retelling of the biblical story packs a significant
01:49punch. This first Act finale sees Joseph imprisoned and depressed. However, with the help of his
01:55fellow prisoners, he comes to believe in himself again.
01:58Go Go Go Joseph is a huge dance number that's been reinterpreted several times over the years.
02:09Like the rest of the show, this high-energy number plays with the entire show's ancient setting and modern sound.
02:15But in its original form, it features dancers twirling and clapping rhythmically
02:20in eye-catching mashups of modern dress and choreography, and Egyptian-inspired garments.
02:28We are what we are, and what we are is an illusion.
02:42Farcical and empowering in equal measure, La Cage is a show about family and showbiz set in a nightclub full of fabulous drag queens.
02:50The performers gather in their shimmering, spangled gowns, and they perform the show's big anthem as a group.
02:58At first, they twirl and parade in a line like pageant contestants, showing off their flowing gowns.
03:09Then, a rack descends and takes their gowns into the rafters.
03:12They burst into an equally glittering but impeccable tap routine that would put the Ziegfeld Follies to shame.
03:18As far as openers go, it's a stunner.
03:20Number 7. Be Italian. 9.
03:29When you love, do not love like the English. Do not love like the French. And never love like the Germans.
03:37This one might be more known to casual fans as Fergie's big number in the underwhelming film adaptation.
03:42Be Italian belongs to Saragina, a sex worker from the film director Guido Contini's childhood.
03:47He remembers well her lessons in how to romance a woman.
03:51Be Italian. Take a chance and try to steal a fatty kiss.
03:58Her advice becomes a ritualistic dance for Guido and his young friends as they join her dance.
04:03But the most iconic moment is when she whips out her tambourine.
04:07Saragina begins to pat the instrument against her body before inviting the boys to follow along,
04:12picking up speed as the song comes to a rollicking finish.
04:15Number 6. Dreamgirls. Dreamgirls.
04:24The dream that you've had before. The dream that will give you more and more.
04:32The 2006 film adaptation starring Beyoncé and Jennifer Hudson brought new fans to this musical.
04:38The title song is a highlight, a faithful recreation of the kinds of dances groups like the Supremes would do on stage.
04:43Dreamgirls is a routine full of hip and shoulder action.
04:47With arms and swivels that can only be described as grand and even pageant-like,
04:51it feels like the perfect embodiment of the cohesive 1960s girl group aesthetic.
04:56It's beautifully synchronized, graceful, and true to the period.
05:06Michael Peters and the show's director and co-choreographer Michael Bennett won the trophy for best choreography at the 1982 Tony Awards.
05:14All you've got to do is dance, baby, we'll be there.
05:21Number 5. We'll Take a Glass Together. Grand Hotel.
05:25Most notable for the impossibly nimble moves of one of its original stars,
05:29this spirited number sees a luckless baron and a terminally ill bookkeeper toasting to the good life.
05:34I'll drink to you. No, I to you.
05:36You'll drink to me. Then you to me.
05:38I'm sure we do. Oh, I know we do.
05:40But find no finer company.
05:42They perform behind a bar, with dancers doing the Charleston behind them.
05:46But as the song picks up speed, the two leads join in on the fun.
05:49I'm sure it's true. Oh, I know it's true.
05:51Things may be bad, but could be worse. Absolutely.
05:54Eventually, the actor playing Otto Kringlein gets a chance to shine at the front of the pack.
05:59Multi-talented actor Michael Jeter forever put his stamp on the routine,
06:03thankfully immortalized by that year's Tony Awards broadcast.
06:06That night, stage legend Tommy Toon picked up two Tonys for Grand Hotel's direction and choreography.
06:12Number 4. Masquerade, The Phantom of the Opera.
06:25Yeah, Andre, what a splendid party.
06:29The prologue for bright new year.
06:32Quite a night, I'm pleased.
06:33But one does one's best.
06:35Here's to us.
06:36Sure, you can argue the logic of throwing a masked ball when there's a masked killer on the loose.
06:41But let's not bring reality into this.
06:43Act 2 of this opulent, blockbusting musical opens with an elaborate dance at the Paris Opera's masquerade ball.
06:54Featuring its cast in beautiful outfits and descending the opera house's grand staircase,
07:00it's a dance of graceful and eerie movement rather than bracing choreography.
07:05The sequence is one of the show's most indelible images.
07:08Striking poses, prancing in their elaborate costumes, and moving in perfect harmony,
07:14the company of Phantom is poetry in motion.
07:16No. 3. Anything Goes, Anything Goes.
07:35Coal Porter's highly entertaining musical hadn't seen a Broadway stage since its 1934 premiere some 53 years before.
07:48In 1987, it was rewritten and restaged for the modern theater audience.
07:53Can you propose anything goes?
07:57The show's title song is a tap-dancing, twirling barn burner of a performance piece that takes place on the deck of an ocean liner.
08:06Reno Sweeney leads her ensemble of sailors into a breathless routine.
08:10They stomp and twirl across that stage with such ferocity that if it were a real ship, it'd probably capsize.
08:16Choreographer Michael Smuen won a Tony and a Drama Desk award for his work.
08:20Anything Goes.
08:23Number 2. Audition, 42nd Street.
08:32You could pick almost any number out of the show and put it here.
08:35Its title song has been a crowd-pleaser since the original film came out in the early 30s,
08:40and Lullaby of Broadway is an undeniable celebration of showbiz.
08:43The band begins to throw a drum, and everyone goes crazy.
08:50Aptly named, The Audition is the show's first song.
08:54We first see our characters among a veritable sea of other Broadway hopefuls strutting their stuff,
08:58hoping to get cast in the big production.
09:00This one is just dazzling to look at.
09:13Arms and legs swivel and fly impossibly fast, but always in control, from the killer kicks to the desperate smiles on the performers' faces.
09:22Downright Hypnotic.
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09:48Number 1. The Jellicle Ball, Cats.
09:51Let's face it, it's not the story that keeps people coming back to Cats.
09:54It's the fleet feet and pawing acrobatics of its cast of dancing felines.
09:58Jellicle Cats meet once a year at the Jellicle Ball, where we all rejoice.
10:08The Jellicle Ball sequence requires such agility and flexibility that the physical therapy bills on this production had to have been half the budget.
10:16You could get a pulled muscle just watching them.
10:28Leaping across the stage with impeccable grace and twirling without getting caught in your own tail is no small feat.
10:36Even a hater has to admit it's pretty captivating, and the fans know it's just one of those moments you'll never forget once you see it.
10:58Did your favorite musical make the list? Tell us in the comments.
