The movie begins with Janey Glenn's first day at her new Catholic school after a recent move to Chicago. She is fidgeting in front of the class, struggling to talk about herself at the insistence of Sister Katherine, one of the nuns. Her comments about Dance TV--a local dance show--and her sweet revelation, "I love to dance!" makes another classmate, Lynne Stone, take an instant liking to Janey, for she, too, is a devoted DTV fan.

Lynne befriends Janey and the two girls watch DTV that afternoon together and hear the latest DTV news: there is to be an audition for a new DTV regular couple! Janey's strict Army father forbids her to audition, but she goes to the tryouts, anyway, rebelling for the first time in her life.

Natalie Sands, a spoiled rich girl, is also auditioning, and she has ordered her father to make sure she wins the contest. Natalie pays off Lynne's audition partner, guaranteeing that Lynne will not get chosen. Janey and Natalie make the final cuts, and Janey in her Catholic school uniform is paired with Jeff Malene in his Levi's and sleeveless shirt. The DTV producer, Ira, describes the couple as "kind of 'Rebel Without a Cause' meets 'The Sound of Music.' "

Natalie tries to further eliminate competition by inviting Jeff to her formal debutante ball at her father's ritzy country club and promising him a slow dance. Jeff and his tag-along, Drew, attend the ball. Janey, Lynne, and Jeff's sister Maggie are there, too--peering in the window from the outside. Earlier that day, (for it's better to get even than to get mad!) the girls made copies of an Jeff's invitation and distrubuted the bogus invitations in the city to punk rockers, transvestites and female body builders who crash and ruin Natalie's party. From the window, they laugh and watch. "This means war!" declares Natalie.

After the ruination of his daugher's debutante ball and the embarrassment he suffered in front of his friends, J.P. Sands agrees to help make sure Natalie wins the DTV finals. He makes it clear to Jeff that if he doesn't drop out of the contest, Mr. Malene, his father, (who works in a factory Sands owns) will be fired. Mr. Malene calls Sands's bluff and tells Jeff to enter the contest, anyway. Although Janey is grounded (for getting caught sneaking out of the house to rehearse for the contest), she sneaks out one last time, with the help of Lynne.

At the DTV finals, Natalie and Ben (her partner) and Jeff and Janey have to enter a danceoff due to a tie. Jeff and Janey win the danceoff and are named the new DTV regulars and Lynne, filling in for Ricki, (Miss DTV who quit earlier that night), surprises everyone by riding onstage in a horse-drawn chariot. She is announced as the new Miss DTV.

Main Page | Plot Synopsis | Pictures | Sounds | Characters | Quotes | Soundtrack | Behind the Scenes Sign My Guestbook | View My Guestbook | Email Dollchild