42nd Street Response, ENGL 245

            Set in the heart of the Great Depression, the musical “42^nd Street”  represents those living the “better life” during difficult times. The star of the film is Dorothy Brock, whose “angel” Abner Dillon is the show’s financial-backer.

The film begins when Peggy Sawyer, a prospective actress, misses the audition for the performance of “Pretty Lady”.  Sawyer meets women who utilize their connections with Julian Marsh, the broke, ill, and determined producer, and consequently Marsh allows Sawyer to participate in the show. Right before opening night, the star Brock fractures her ankle and is unable to perform. Dillon wants Ann Lowell to be cast as the star, and she in turn convinces Marsh that she is not talented enough to play the role, but that the greenhorn Sawyer is. Brock arrives shortly before the performance begins and wishes Sawyer good luck, and even gives her some advice on how to play the role.

The setting is crucial to the film, as it represents a magical beacon of hope with happy dancers and actors in the turbulent times to which many of the film’s views were subject. But the film is reflexive, with the film’s audience watching a stressed audience of producers viewing the performance. This situation reminds the film’s viewers that they are not alone, that there are so many others out there like them who are suffering too.

Some iconography that can be noted in the film is the dangling cigar and the mustache, indicating wealthy, dissatisfied, and powerful men.

“42^nd Street” was a film which intended to give hope and optimism to its viewers, who were probably seeking catharsis from their plight when they saw the film in the midst of the Great Depression. Aside from merely providing distraction, the film emphasized the American Capitalism Ideology, in which hard work and perseverance can provide one with a happy, satisfying, and fulfilling life. In the film, producer Julian Marsh is just another who is stuck in the vicious cycle of the Depression, and yet through his tireless and vigorous efforts he manages to produce a hit performance in five weeks. Similarly, Peggy Sawyer arrives to audition, with no experience, and through hard work (and albeit sheer luck), she rises to stardom: a typical rags-to-riches scenario. Dorothy Brock continues to star in shows even though she was really only a one-hit wonder, and continuously performs in search of her second lucky break.

 Emphasizing the simple American message of toiling in return for a fulfilling life was encouraging to Americans, and provided them with temporary relief and optimism at seeing the simplicity of the former ethic in “42^nd Street”.