Shall We Dance? (1951 song) Shall We Dance? (1951 song) "Shall We Dance?" is a show tune from the 1951 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, "The King and I". It is sung by Anna Leonowens and the King of Siam, played by Gertrude Lawrence (in the original Broadway production) and Yul Brynner respectively. In addition, it was sung by Valerie Hobson in the original London West End production, and Marni Nixon (who only voiced-over songs while Deborah Kerr acted) in the 1956 film of "The King and I". The song is about Anna reminiscing over the idea of finding love at an English dance. The song
Rodgers and Hammerstein issues such as racism, sexism and classism in many of their works. For example, "Carousel" concerns domestic violence, while "South Pacific" addresses racism. Based on the true story of the von Trapp family, "The Sound of Music" explores the views of Austrians to the takeover of Austria by the Third Reich. Rodgers and Hammerstein Rodgers and Hammerstein refers to composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together were an influential, innovative and successful American musical theatre writing team. They created a string of popular Broadway musicals in the 1940s and 1950s, initiating what is considered the