The night before cat burglar Max Washington is released from prison, he puts on his tap shoes and dances until he falls asleep. Once out on parole, he gets a job washing dishes at a restaurant. Howard, a petty criminal, finds him and invites Max to a party. Max goes to a dance studio and sees his old girl friend, Amy Simms, helping director Bob Whythe, audition tap dancers. Her son, Louis, warns Max not to stare at his mother or he will kick his butt. Max laughs and hugs Louis before going upstairs to a private rehearsal hall to dance. Sandman, an old tap dancer, sees Max and runs up to the roof where dance school owner, Little Mo, is tending his tomato plants. Max is not looking for work, but Mo claims he was just thinking. Max tells Mo he is too old to dance, but the dance school owner yells, “Challenge.” Old dance buddies who were playing poker in another room rush in, and dance a number that would kill a normal twenty-year-old. Amy arrives in time to see Mo and Max square off, and yells for them to stop. After warning the men that Mo is too sick to be dancing, she kicks Max out. After Max leaves, Amy reminds Mo that with his bad heart, dancing could kill him. Mo complains that his only joy in life is dancing. After finding where Max is staying, Mo sends Amy to invite him “Charlie’s” bar for “hoofer’s night.” Instead, Amy tells Max not to come. Max accuses her of having feelings for him, but she reminds him that he stood her up during a performance in order to rob a liquor store. Across the street, the dancers have supper and discuss Max. Sandman calls him a quitter, but Bunny, the only female of the group, reminds them how Max took Amy in when she was pregnant and helped raise Louis. Sandman points out that Max left them. Sonny tells Louis that Max was about to be a star when tap dancing became unfashionable. Later, Bob takes Max to a party at an upscale townhouse owed by Francis, a crime kingpin. The first person Max meets is his nemesis, Nicky, who asks how he likes washing dishes. Before a fight breaks out, Francis takes Max aside and tells him he has a job for him. Max turns down the job when he learns Nicky will be involved. He was arrested because Nicky panicked during their last heist, and ran off leaving him for the police. Francis tells the two men that if they want to work for him, they have to bury the hatchet. Max goes to Charlie’s where Mo introduces him to Harry, a musician who wants to have Max tap dance to rock music. Harry explains he has rigged a pair of tap shoes to his amplifier to make them part of the music. Before Max can respond, Amy Simms takes the stage with three other female dancers and does a routine that brings the house down. As Amy talks to Bob Wythe about using one of the girls in his show, Max interrupts, telling Bob he has business with Amy. Little Mo gets on stage and talks about Max’s father, Sonny, as the most original tap dancer he ever saw, and asks Max to demonstrate some of his father’s routines. Max declines, until Amy agrees to go out with him. He takes the audience outside and tells them his father got his steps listening to the sounds of the city. He demonstrates by dancing to the sound of taxicabs driving over a steel cover. At a construction site, he taps to machine rhythms. Soon all the customers are tapping. The next day, Max, Howard and Nicky case out a jewelry store. Max asks what the take will be and Nicky explains they are splitting $750,000 with the owner, who is leaving a window open and giving them the combination to the vault. Howard tells Max the job is his if he wants it, but Nicky accuses Max of being washed up. That night, Max takes Amy on a date and tells her he was in prison. While there, he beat up a guard who was tormenting him, and was tossed into solitary confinement for three months. The only thing that kept him sane was dancing. Amy tells him he was born to be a dancer and begs him to work with Little Mo. Max is only interested in making money, but Amy tells him she does not need a wealthy man, just someone who loves her and Louis, and lets her dance. The next day, Amy is shocked when Max auditions for Bob Wythe’s show. When Little Mo learns Max got the job, he warns Amy that the man is not a line dancer and needs his freedom. Amy takes Max on the roof to practice steps, but he puts on the music for their old number. The music ends, and they make love. The next morning, Nicky and Howard come to the school to see if Max plans on doing the heist. When Max declines, Nicky pulls a gun on him, but Howard tells Nicky to back off. Later, Max auditions for a solo with Bob Wythe, and he changes the choreography. Wythe tells him to stick to the steps or leave, and Max sullenly performs Wythe’s routine. When Wythe tells Max to get off the stage, the ex-con hurls him to the floor and storms off. Amy tries to follow, but Max tells her to go back to her show. She pushes back, telling Max she does not deserve his attitude. He agrees, walks to the river and tosses his tap shoes into the water. That night, Little Mo offers Max a dance job. As Max leaves, Mo tells him that rehearsal starts at ten in the morning. Howard and Nick drive Max to the jewelry store. As Max puts on his gloves, a taxi drives over a steel cover and the rhythm reminds him of the dance. As Max scales the building he hears city sounds become music. He gets into the office, opens the safe and finds a stash of uncut diamonds. However, as he leaves, he bumps into a water cooler causing it to drip. The sound reminds him of water dripping in his prison cell. Max returns to Howard and Nick and confesses he put the stones back in the safe. Nicky pulls his gun and demands Max go back up. Max does not believe Nicky will shoot him. Max ducks when Nicky takes a swing at him, then knocks Nicky unconscious. The next morning, Max returns to the dance school and tells Louis he is there for good. After kissing Amy, Max hears music coming from the practice room and finds Little Mo waiting to rehearse.