It all started when Rudolf Nureyev appeared on The Dick Cavett Showand told then–talent coordinator Joan Kramer he hoped to meet Fred Astaire one day—perhaps she could make it happen. What about a television special featuring both dancers? “Nureyev leapt at the idea. Astaire turned it down flat,” Kramer recalls. Out of these inauspicious beginnings, she and producing partner David Heeley went on to make three documentaries about Astaire and a host of film portraits of other Hollywood legends—among them, the notoriously difficult Katharine Hepburn—establishing a reputation for cajoling the reluctant and maintaining relationships long after the credits rolled. The program features dance highlights from Astaire’s RKO and MGM musicals and Kramer and Heeley’s entertaining behind-the-scenes stories about the creation of their Astaire programs, including their encounters with Fred Astaire himself, as well as some of his dance partners, colleagues, and admirers, including Ginger Rogers, Barrie Chase, Hermes Pan, Jerome Robbins, and Bob Fosse.

Free for JBFC members! Free tickets available at the box office ONLY (in advance or on the day of the screening) while they last. Advance tickets may also be purchased online.