Friday, July 26, 2013

Frock Fridays: I Could Have Danced All Night

When I was 11, my little sister caught me singing and dancing in my room to "Once Upon a December" from Anastasia.  She says that I was so into the character that I was crying; I say that she's going to wake up one morning to find Phoebe, her favorite stuffed clown, missing in mysterious circumstances if she doesn't change her story.  (What child has a stuffed clown?  I think we all know who really was the weird one.)  Anyway, the incident was pretty indicative of my childhood.  I loved fairytales of all sorts and was convinced that, one day, the romantic daydreams in my head would come true if I just believed them enough and I'd be reunited with my long-lost family or I'd meet my one true love or I'd find myself the heir to a dazzling fortune - all due to my gentle kindness and lively spirit and curious intellect, obviously.

Four of the classic works that fed into this fantasy were Anastasia*, My Fair Lady, Little Women, and The Nutcracker.  Here, I'll give you one of the scenes I'm taking about so you understand where I'm coming from...




I have no idea why The Nutcracker made such an impression on me because I only took a dance class for a year when I was about five and that was it, but I remember putting on my fanciest party dresses as a child and trying to gracefully sit down so that the skirt would form a perfect circle around me, just like Clara's did when she and the other girls listened to Herr Drosslemeyer's stories in the party scene at the beginning of the ballet.  But clearly something about it stuck with me because it's half of the reason I love sleeping in dresses.  The other half, obviously, is Audrey Hepburn singing** "I Could Have Danced All Night" in My Fair Lady.

I'm sure that Freud would have a field day with this if he were alive, but I attribute my love of nightgowns to my childhood fantasies about waking up in a dream.  PJs are cute and everything, but can you imagine twirling around after a ball in boxer shorts?  Or weeping over your burnt manuscript in plaid pants?  No way.  It just wouldn't happen!  So, although I've outgrown long sleeves and high collars, I'm a nightgown girl all the way:




*The historian in me has no problem with the fact that a real event has been turned into a pure fiction.  How could you get angry when Rasputin's minions are dancing bugs who sing backup on one of the most brilliant songs of animated films of the late 1990s?

**No, it's not really Audrey Hepburn singing; the music was dubbed by Marni Nixon, one of the secret heroes of musical films - not only did she do all of Eliza's songs in My Fair Lady but she was also the singing voice of Maria in West Side Story and Anna in The King and I.

30 comments:

  1. I feel like the voice dubbing in My Fair Lady was really poorly handled. Marni Nixon is a lovely singer, but her voice really doesn't match well with Audrey Hepburn's at all! at least to my ears. I remember watching the film for the first time when I was little and thinking something sounded off about Eliza Doolittle's singing...and when I found out her voice was dubbed it's like everything made sense. I don't know. I just feel like they could have found a better match for the dubbing.

    ReplyDelete
  2. apparently it was poorly handled in terms of diplomacy/politics - I remember reading an article about how Julie Andrews was in the running for the part too but she wasn't pretty enough or something so they brought in AH but then didn't even use JA's voice. I might be getting that wrong, but it sounded like a mess. Rex Harrison can't sing at all, obviously, but he's still my ideal Higgins anyway :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I LOVE Anastasia! Such an underrated movie of the 90s.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I know! I think it often gets left out because it's not Disney. It did have Hercules to compete with the same year, though, and that's pretty awesome too, so...

    ReplyDelete
  5. That Anastasia song.... what a great soundtrack! And I love Audrey. Love her love her love her.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Omg. I loooove once upon a December. I used to sing it in my bedroom too. No kidding.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I think Julie Andrews did Eliza on Broadway/the West End/wherever, right? and then she lost out to Audrey for the movie role and a lot of people were outraged - hence why Audrey wasn't nominated for an Oscar for the film [Julie Andrews ended up winning for Mary Poppins, so it all worked out for her in the end].

    also, this is probably just because I grew up watching Rex Harrison in the role, but I can't imagine Higgins being a really well-trained, "flowery" singer. it just goes against his personality.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I loved this little story behind Frock Friday today!


    I couldn't tell you the last time I wore a nightgown. When I was a little girl, my Mom used to buy them for me but I hated how they rode up in the night and I always felt tangled. I suppose that feeling still follows me to this day.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Love this! I think I will spend my friday night in my cutest night gown watching old classic movies and while singing along.

    A Golden State of Mind

    ReplyDelete
  10. Loving this post! I think I need to start dressing up for my dreams!

    Have a great weekend!!
    Shia
    World According to Shia

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hubby and I sing "In the Dark of the Night" wayyy too often. In fact, more than I'd like to admit. And of course, a little daily My Fair Lady is definitely called for in our family. :) I love nightgowns as well!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I'm totally a nightgown girl, too. I buy mine from Anthropologie when they're having their elusive sale on sale... my dream is for my collection of nightgowns to look like the "bedroom" corner of the store.

    I used to think nightgowns were old fashioned until recently, so I think my new love of them is either me becoming an adult or regressing back to childhood.


    And the sister with the stuffed clown is CLEARLY the weird one.

    ReplyDelete
  13. This was such a sweet post! I love nightgowns too and have 4 or 5 of them but don't wear them super often. I wish I could find more nightgowns that don't have such a "shape" in the bodice area, with the deep V and the elastic and cups...I like to be free at night! (too much detail?? :))

    ReplyDelete
  14. That wasn't Audrey Hepburn singing?! That makes me a little sad. I know it shouldn't, but it does. I'm such a sap.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Thanks for the Nutcracker bit - I am always happy to see bits and pieces of classical ballets (or the whole thing, of course!).
    I love nightgowns. They are more feminin, but more than everything else, they are much fresher in the summer!

    ReplyDelete
  16. You lost me at "favorite stuffed clown". I used to think your sister seemed delightful and fun, but now I'm terrified of her inner child.

    ReplyDelete
  17. it's really creepy.


    true confession: the nightgowns I wear the most are the least sexy ones because they're the ones I can do early morning pees (not mine, Charlie's) in.

    ReplyDelete
  18. I knew you'd like the My Fair Lady :)


    IN THE DARK OF THE NIGHT EVIL WILL FIND HER (find her oo!)

    ReplyDelete
  19. you know, I think a lot of "becoming an adult" really is actually "regressing back to childhood" but no one talks about it because they want to think they're making progress :P

    ReplyDelete
  20. haha not TMI, don't worry! check out the Gillian & O'Malley brand at Target - they have a bunch of comfy ones that aren't shaped, including some that are more sleepshirts (but still cute!) than nightgowns. I have this one and love it http://www.target.com/p/gilligan-o-malley-women-s-fluid-knit-chemise-with-lace-assorted-colors/-/A-14347550#prodSlot=large_1_11 :)

    ReplyDelete
  21. I think you have to do that once a month to stay healthy :)

    ReplyDelete
  22. haha yay thank you! I always feel tangled in PJ bottoms, strangely enough. I guess that, like Kate above, I like to be free!

    ReplyDelete
  23. SOMEONE HOLDS ME SAFE AND WARM / HORSES PRANCE THROUGH A SILVER STORM

    ReplyDelete
  24. such a great soundtrack! I love John Cusack in that (even if he's not singing...)

    ReplyDelete
  25. I agree! a couple of years ago I saw the Shaw play in London with Rupert Everett as Higgins and he was ENTIRELY too suave for me.

    ReplyDelete
  26. I spent an hour watching different clips from The Nutcracker before I picked this one to include! it was so fun :)

    ReplyDelete
  27. This cracks me up. My freshman year of college, whenever I was sad I used to watch Anastasia. Previously I was a little obsessed with the story of the real Anastasia and did multiple reports on her in high school for various things. I still have the Richard Marx song "At the Beginning" on my ipod, and my husband makes so much fun of me for how happy it makes me when it comes on. Yes, I'm a nerd.


    I actually like both nightgowns and boxer shorts/pajama pants. As long as it's comfy, I'm in.

    ReplyDelete

I love reading your thoughts and suggestions! Please do leave a comment so we can get to know each other better.