Discover the roots of Hollywood dance in Broadway and on the ballet stage, nationalism in morale-boosting movie musicals during World War II, and Cold War tensions in 1950s musicals--especially those featuring dance legends Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, and Cyd Charisse. We'll watch, analyze, and discuss dance scenes from many films. While dance in films is often thought of as pure entertainment and escapism, this course uncovers the deeper meanings of what dance films reveal about the time period and place in which they were made.