STEP
Description
Stepping—a dance style that combines gymnastics, tap, and hip-hop—is high-energy and precise, but the Lethal Ladies step team from The Baltimore Leadership School for Young Women has more to focus on than a cherished trophy. The school has an ambitious mandate to send every student to college, even while the statewide step contest is approaching. This electric documentary follows three young women through a year of challenges while celebrating their tenacity and drive. While the film features the team as a whole, three steppers stand out—Blessin, who is forthright and passionate but struggles with schoolwork; Cory, a straight-A student who needs a scholarship to achieve her dream of attending Johns Hopkins; and Tayla, one of the fiercest dancers in the squad. As the team progresses to the big competition, and with the tragic local story of the death of Freddie Gray on many minds, the group comes up with a routine that addresses the times and their experience. As these young women prepare for the state finals and their future amid obstacles and triumphs, STEP becomes a rousing and triumphant story of female empowerment.
Amanda Lipitz is a longtime Broadway producer whose credits include Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Legally Blonde: The Musical, and productions of The Humans and A View from the Bridge, for which she won 2016 Tony awards for, respectively, Best Play and Best Revival of a Play. As a documentary filmmaker, she has made over 30 films promoting the work of philanthropic organizations. She also creative and executive produced the MTV series Legally Blonde the Musical: The Search for Elle Woods. STEP is her documentary feature debut.
Film Details
Language English
Year 2016
Runtime 83
Country USA
Director Amanda Lipitz
Producer Steven Cantor, Amanda Lipitz
Editor Penelope Falk
Cinematographer Casey Regan
Music Laura Karpman, Raphael Saadiq