Gene Kelly's 1956 film "Invitation to the Dance" was an ambitious and innovative attempt at an all-dancing feature film. The movie, which Kelly also directed, was composed of three distinct stories and uniquely featured no dialogue. Critical reception at the time acknowledged Kelly's effort, with Variety and The New York Times noting the freshness and striking nature of his endeavor.
Despite the critical recognition for its artistic ambition, "Invitation to the Dance" was a significant financial failure for MGM. It earned only $200,000 in the U.S. and Canada, with an additional $415,000 in other markets. This resulted in a substantial loss of $2,523,000, making it MGM's biggest flop of the year.
Kelly later attributed the film's poor box office performance to the public not being ready for a serious dance film and the general decline in the popularity of film musicals by the time of its release. The film's production was completed in 1954, but its release was delayed, and it was reportedly "thrown away by MGM" due to the studio's inability to market it effectively. It was even distributed "desultorily" and, in Great Britain, released as a shorter, 62-minute version combining only two of the segments.
