Stage Struck 1958

In Times Square, Eva Lovelace arrives at Lewis Easton’s office with the aim of becoming a Broadway actress. As she waits outside, she recognizes Robert Harley Hedges seated beside her. Eva explains her real name is Gertrude Langerfelder, but she has changed it to gain more confidence. When [Lewis Easton] walks out, Robert Harley Hedges introduces Eva to him and Joe Sheridan, a young playwright.

Inside Joe Sheridan’s office, Rita Vernon has been offered a smaller role in a new play, though she would prefer to star in Joe’s latest work. After [Robert Harley Hedges] signs a new contract, he encourages Eva to audition at the Actors Studio. Soon after, Eva bursts into Lewis’s office to thank him in person. As she leaves, Joe invites Eva to audition for a small role as a peasant waitress. However, the audition is unsuccessful.

On the opening night of the play, Eva is outside the theatre with Joe, and the two watch the production together. Joe then waits at the newspaper office, reading a glowing theatre review and invites Eva to an afterparty at Lewis Easton’s house. Before long, Eva drinks too much champagne and recites lines from Shakespeare, including Romeo and Juliet. Her readings impress [Lewis Easton], and he invites her to his office the next day.

However, Eva sleeps in a guest room and wakes up late as [Lewis Easton] prepares for bed. She confesses she has fallen in love with him, and Lewis kisses her.

In Central Park, Lewis meets with Joe, where he decides not to become romantically involved with Eva. He hands Joe money hoping to make her leave town, and avoids her phone calls claiming he is in Jamaica. Disgusted by Lewis’s disregard for Eva, Joe leaves for Virginia to finish writing his next play. After some time, he returns to New York and reconnects with Hedges backstage. There, he learns that Eva is working at a night club where she recites poetry. Joe and Eva enjoy the night together, and as he walks her home, Joe believes Rita is too old for the lead role for the play he is directing, but needs her star quality.

After months of rehearsals, Joe becomes frustrated with Rita’s insistence that the part be rewritten, but he refuses to recast her. Meanwhile, Joe has been secretly rehearsing Rita’s role with Eva. She confronts Joe about his misdirection, believing he will never cast her in the play. Lewis overhears their conversation and tries to search for Eva.

The night before the play is to open, Rita realizes she has been miscast and decides to drop out. Eventually, [Lewis Easton] finds Eva, who is suffering from stage fright, and encourages her to perform like a star.

The play opens, and Eva’s performance is applauded by the audience. As Joe leaves the theater, Lewis returns to find Eva alone on the stage. He kisses her, and after regretting his prior behavior towards her, Lewis applauds her as she leaves.