Julia Beck is about to move to New York City to launch her writing career. Neil Beaumont is about to leave his hometown to open a restaurant in Manhattan. Then they meet. Whether or not they will follow through with their plans hinges on a seemingly inconsequential moment in which Neil asks Julia to dance with him in the rain.
THEY DID(N’T) DANCE is the story of what happens when Julia, afraid of turning Neil off with her “hair issue,” instead turns him off with her lack of spontaneity by staying under her umbrella. They independently move to New York, where they begin to achieve their goals. But Julia, married to an emotionally absent surgeon, wonders if she will ever become a mother. And Neil, grief-stricken and guilt-ridden in the aftermath of a tragedy, struggles with addictions. Thrown together a year later, a friendship between the two starts to cross a line.
Alternating with this is the story of what happens when Julia releases her inhibitions, collapses her umbrella and dances. With love and laughter, two children, a circle of friends and a house in the suburbs, Neil and Julia Beaumont appear to be the perfect working-class couple. Julia is recognized throughout town because she checks out groceries at the local supermarket, and the music store that Neil runs has been a town fixture for years. But as their children come of age and begin to realize their dreams, Neil and Julia must come to terms with the abandonment of theirs.