Last Tap Dance in Springfield
Encyclopedia
"Last Tap Dance in Springfield" is the twentieth episode of the eleventh season
of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons
. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 7, 2000. In the episode, Lisa
decides to sign up for tap dancing lessons after being inspired by a film about a girl who enters a tango contest and wins. Meanwhile, Bart
and Milhouse
hide out at the mall to escape going to summer camp. "Last Tap Dance in Springfield" was written by Julie Thacker
, who based it on her own experiences with dance classes. The episode has received mixed reception from critics.
sees an optometrist to get his eyes examined and gets laser surgery. At the same time, Marge
and Lisa
find items for a camping trip that Bart
is going on. Marge sees a marquee for the film Tango de La Muerte at the mall and she and Lisa decide to see it. Lisa identifies with the main female character, a bookworm
named "Lisabella" whom the Tango champion asks to be his partner. This inspires Lisa to take up dance lessons.
Lisa enrolls at a dance school, where she takes tap lessons from a former child star named Vicki Valentine. However, her hopes of being a dancer are crushed when she finds that she is by far the worst in the class, even worse than the socially inept Ralph Wiggum
. She continues to attend the tap classes after being pressured by Homer and Marge, but when the class plans a dance recital, Lisa finds that she will not be dancing and has been relegated to pulling the curtain to open the show. Lisa states that Homer and Marge will be devastated if they do not see her dancing at the recital. Professor Frink
, overhearing, devises a plan to attach a device to her shoes that will make them automatically tap at any percussive sound. This allows her to mimic the other dancers and take part in the recital. She becomes a star at the show, even upstaging Vicki Valentine, but when the audience applauds her, her shoes go out of control. Homer stops the shoes from going haywire by tripping Lisa, and she then confesses that she is not cut out for dancing.
Meanwhile, Bart and Milhouse
sneak out of their camping trip after discovering that bully Nelson Muntz
will be there with them. They decide to hide in the mall and spend the night there, having shoe fights and causing havoc once the mall has closed. The next morning, Chief Wiggum sees the mess that Bart and Milhouse have created and comes to the conclusion that it was caused by a giant rat, closing the mall as a result. He releases a puma inside the mall to catch the rat, but Bart and Milhouse use a ball of yarn
to distract the puma and escape. Chief Wiggum later sees a piece of red yarn hanging from the puma's mouth and thinks it is the rat's tail, which prompts him to declare that the case is closed.
and directed by Nancy Kruse
as part of the eleventh season of The Simpsons (1999–2000). Thacker came up with the story when she started enrolling her five daughters into dance classes during the summer. In a DVD audio commentary
for the episode, she noted that she did not particularly like the teachers' methods and the other children's rude parents. Vicki Valentine, Lisa's tap dance teacher in the episode, is based on the former American child actress Shirley Temple
. According to Pamela Klaffke, author of the 2003 book Spree: A Cultural History of Shopping, the idea of "being trapped inside the walls of a store or mall" had become a "cinematic cliché" by the time this episode aired. She believes this cliché is what prompted the writers to do the story featuring Bart and Milhouse.
for the episode. Deleted scenes from the episode were also included on the box set. "Last Tap Dance in Springfield" has received mixed reception from critics. While reviewing the eleventh season of The Simpsons, DVD Movie Guide's Colin Jacobson commented that neither the plot involving Lisa nor the subplot featuring Bart and Milhouse "excels", but that the latter is "the superior of the two plots". He added that "We get some decent laughs from both of them and that’s about it." Nancy Basile of About.com
, on the other hand, listed the episode as one of the episodes she felt "shined in season eleven".
The Simpsons (season 11)
The Simpsons 11th season originally aired between September 1999 and May 2000, beginning on Sunday, September 26, 1999, with "Beyond Blunderdome". The show runner for the 11th production season was Mike Scully...
of the American animated sitcom The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 7, 2000. In the episode, Lisa
Lisa Simpson
Lisa Marie Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She is the middle child of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening...
decides to sign up for tap dancing lessons after being inspired by a film about a girl who enters a tango contest and wins. Meanwhile, Bart
Bart Simpson
Bartholomew JoJo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by actress Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
and Milhouse
Milhouse Van Houten
Milhouse Mussolini Van Houten is a fictional character featured in the animated television series The Simpsons, voiced by Pamela Hayden. He is Bart Simpson's best friend in Mrs. Krabappel's fourth grade class at Springfield Elementary School....
hide out at the mall to escape going to summer camp. "Last Tap Dance in Springfield" was written by Julie Thacker
Julie Thacker
Julie Thacker is an American television writer. She has written for The Simpsons, and along with her husband The Simpsons writer and producer Mike Scully she has co-created The Pitts and Complete Savages.-The Simpsons episodes:...
, who based it on her own experiences with dance classes. The episode has received mixed reception from critics.
Plot
On a trip to the mall, HomerHomer Simpson
Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons and the patriarch of the eponymous family. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared on television, along with the rest of his family, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
sees an optometrist to get his eyes examined and gets laser surgery. At the same time, Marge
Marge Simpson
Marjorie "Marge" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the eponymous family. She is voiced by actress Julie Kavner and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
and Lisa
Lisa Simpson
Lisa Marie Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons. She is the middle child of the Simpson family. Voiced by Yeardley Smith, Lisa first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987. Cartoonist Matt Groening...
find items for a camping trip that Bart
Bart Simpson
Bartholomew JoJo "Bart" Simpson is a fictional main character in the animated television series The Simpsons and part of the Simpson family. He is voiced by actress Nancy Cartwright and first appeared on television in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
is going on. Marge sees a marquee for the film Tango de La Muerte at the mall and she and Lisa decide to see it. Lisa identifies with the main female character, a bookworm
Bookworm
Bookworm may refer to:* Bibliophile or bookworm, an avid reader and lover of books* Bookworm , a popular generalization for any insect which supposedly bores through books...
named "Lisabella" whom the Tango champion asks to be his partner. This inspires Lisa to take up dance lessons.
Lisa enrolls at a dance school, where she takes tap lessons from a former child star named Vicki Valentine. However, her hopes of being a dancer are crushed when she finds that she is by far the worst in the class, even worse than the socially inept Ralph Wiggum
Ralph Wiggum
Ralph Wiggum is a recurring fictional character on the animated series The Simpsons, voiced by Nancy Cartwright. The son of Police Chief Wiggum and a classmate of Lisa Simpson, Ralph is best known as the show's resident oddball, and is noted for his non sequiturs and erratic behavior...
. She continues to attend the tap classes after being pressured by Homer and Marge, but when the class plans a dance recital, Lisa finds that she will not be dancing and has been relegated to pulling the curtain to open the show. Lisa states that Homer and Marge will be devastated if they do not see her dancing at the recital. Professor Frink
Professor Frink
Professor John Nerdelbaum Frink, Jr., or simply Professor Frink, is a recurring character in the animated television series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Hank Azaria, and first appeared in the 1991 episode "Old Money". Frink is Springfield's nerdy scientist and professor and is extremely...
, overhearing, devises a plan to attach a device to her shoes that will make them automatically tap at any percussive sound. This allows her to mimic the other dancers and take part in the recital. She becomes a star at the show, even upstaging Vicki Valentine, but when the audience applauds her, her shoes go out of control. Homer stops the shoes from going haywire by tripping Lisa, and she then confesses that she is not cut out for dancing.
Meanwhile, Bart and Milhouse
Milhouse Van Houten
Milhouse Mussolini Van Houten is a fictional character featured in the animated television series The Simpsons, voiced by Pamela Hayden. He is Bart Simpson's best friend in Mrs. Krabappel's fourth grade class at Springfield Elementary School....
sneak out of their camping trip after discovering that bully Nelson Muntz
Nelson Muntz
Nelson Mandela Muntz is a fictional character and bully from the animated TV series The Simpsons. He is voiced by Nancy Cartwright. Nelson was introduced in Season 1's "Bart the General" as a bully but later turned into a friend of Bart Simpson, who is best identified by his signature laugh .-Role...
will be there with them. They decide to hide in the mall and spend the night there, having shoe fights and causing havoc once the mall has closed. The next morning, Chief Wiggum sees the mess that Bart and Milhouse have created and comes to the conclusion that it was caused by a giant rat, closing the mall as a result. He releases a puma inside the mall to catch the rat, but Bart and Milhouse use a ball of yarn
Yarn
Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibres, suitable for use in the production of textiles, sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving, embroidery and ropemaking. Thread is a type of yarn intended for sewing by hand or machine. Modern manufactured sewing threads may be finished with wax or...
to distract the puma and escape. Chief Wiggum later sees a piece of red yarn hanging from the puma's mouth and thinks it is the rat's tail, which prompts him to declare that the case is closed.
Production and analysis
"Last Tap Dance in Springfield" was written by Julie ThackerJulie Thacker
Julie Thacker is an American television writer. She has written for The Simpsons, and along with her husband The Simpsons writer and producer Mike Scully she has co-created The Pitts and Complete Savages.-The Simpsons episodes:...
and directed by Nancy Kruse
Nancy Kruse
Nancy Kruse is a former animation director on The Simpsons. She started working on the show during the first season as a background clean-up artist. After that she did background layout and character layout for several years on the show before becoming an assistant director...
as part of the eleventh season of The Simpsons (1999–2000). Thacker came up with the story when she started enrolling her five daughters into dance classes during the summer. In a DVD audio commentary
Audio commentary
On disc-based video formats, an audio commentary is an additional audio track consisting of a lecture or comments by one or more speakers, that plays in real time with video...
for the episode, she noted that she did not particularly like the teachers' methods and the other children's rude parents. Vicki Valentine, Lisa's tap dance teacher in the episode, is based on the former American child actress Shirley Temple
Shirley Temple
Shirley Temple Black , born Shirley Jane Temple, is an American film and television actress, singer, dancer, autobiographer, and former U.S. Ambassador to Ghana and Czechoslovakia...
. According to Pamela Klaffke, author of the 2003 book Spree: A Cultural History of Shopping, the idea of "being trapped inside the walls of a store or mall" had become a "cinematic cliché" by the time this episode aired. She believes this cliché is what prompted the writers to do the story featuring Bart and Milhouse.
Release
The episode originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on May 7, 2000. On October 7, 2008, it was released on DVD as part of the box set The Simpsons – The Complete Eleventh Season. Staff members Mike Scully, George Meyer, Ian Maxtone-Graham, Julie Thacker, Yeardley Smith, and Nancy Kruse participated in the DVD audio commentaryAudio commentary
On disc-based video formats, an audio commentary is an additional audio track consisting of a lecture or comments by one or more speakers, that plays in real time with video...
for the episode. Deleted scenes from the episode were also included on the box set. "Last Tap Dance in Springfield" has received mixed reception from critics. While reviewing the eleventh season of The Simpsons, DVD Movie Guide's Colin Jacobson commented that neither the plot involving Lisa nor the subplot featuring Bart and Milhouse "excels", but that the latter is "the superior of the two plots". He added that "We get some decent laughs from both of them and that’s about it." Nancy Basile of About.com
About.com
About.com is an online source for original information and advice. It is written in English, and is aimed primarily at North Americans. It is owned by The New York Times Company....
, on the other hand, listed the episode as one of the episodes she felt "shined in season eleven".
External links
- "Last Tap Dance in Springfield" at The Simpsons.com