Wiktionary
a. (context idiomatic English) Casually enjoying the nightlife of a town or city.
Wikipedia
On the Town is a musical with music by Leonard Bernstein and book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green, based on Jerome Robbins' idea for his 1944 ballet Fancy Free, which he had set to Bernstein's music. The musical introduced several popular and classic songs, among them " New York, New York", "Lonely Town", "I Can Cook, Too" (for which Bernstein also wrote the lyrics), and "Some Other Time". The story concerns three American sailors on a 24-hour shore leave in New York City during wartime 1944. Each of the three sailors meets and quickly connects with a woman.
On the Town was first produced on Broadway in 1944 and was made into a film in 1949, although the film replaced all but three of the original Broadway songs with Hollywood-written substitutes. The show has enjoyed a number of major revivals. The musical integrates dance into its storytelling: Robbins made a number of ballets and extended dance sequences for the show, including the "Imaginary Coney Island" ballet.
On the Town is a 1949 musical film with music by Leonard Bernstein and Roger Edens and book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green. It is an adaptation of the Broadway stage musical of the same name produced in 1944 (which itself is an adaptation of the Jerome Robbins ballet entitled Fancy Free which was also produced in 1944), although many changes in script and score were made from the original stage version; for instance, most of Bernstein's music was dropped in favor of new songs by Edens, who disliked the majority of the Bernstein score for being too complex and too operatic. This caused Bernstein to boycott the film.
The film was directed by Gene Kelly and Stanley Donen, and stars Kelly, Frank Sinatra, Ann Miller, Betty Garrett, Jules Munshin, and Vera-Ellen. It also features Alice Pearce and in a small bit part, Bea Benaderet. It was a product of producer Arthur Freed's unit at MGM, and is notable for its combination of studio and location filming, as a result of Gene Kelly's insistence that some scenes be shot in New York City itself, including at the American Museum of Natural History, the Brooklyn Bridge, and Rockefeller Center.
The film was an instant success and won the Academy Award for Best Music—Scoring of a Musical Picture, and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Cinematography (Color). Screenwriters Comden and Green won the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Written American Musical.
Judy Holliday was uncredited as the voice of Daisy Simkins.
In 2006, this film version ranked No. 19 on the American Film Institute's list of best musicals.
On the Town may refer to:
- On the Town (musical), a 1944 musical with lyrics and book by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Leonard Bernstein
- On the Town (film), a 1949 film based on the musical and starring Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra
- On the Town with the Oscar Peterson Trio, a 1958 live album by Oscar Peterson
Usage examples of "on the town".
Chris Dowling, the newest cop on the town police force, came bounding across the boardwalk extension.
But on Saturday night, smiling graciously at each other, they took off like a pair of successful Hollywood characters and went on the town.