While musicals and murder mysteries were two of the most popular genres of the '30s there still aren't too many films that mix the two. While there might be more, besides Murder at the Vanities I only came across two so far: Forty Naughty Girls the sixth and last Hildegarde Withers movie, a nice, but mostly forgettable quickie released in 1937. And also from 1937, the excellent Premiere a film made in Austria, which actually is an (as far as I know) uncredited remake of this movie. But while Premiere has a more serious tone, including some actually rather convincing detective work, Murder at the Vanities focuses more on the musical and comedy elements and of course being as risque with the dance numbers and the show girls' outfits as possible, so it can go out with a bang just before the Hays Code made anything like that impossible.
The plot revolves around the murder happening backstage during the premiere of a stage musical and the efforts of the director and the rather incompetent police officer to solve the case without interrupting the show. Several people come under suspicion, but all of them are dismissed eventually until they finally manage to find the actual culprit just as the show ends. It is neither the best mystery, nor the best musical comedy of its time, but as a combination of two it is very entertaining and works extremely well.
The plot revolves around the murder happening backstage during the premiere of a stage musical and the efforts of the director and the rather incompetent police officer to solve the case without interrupting the show. Several people come under suspicion, but all of them are dismissed eventually until they finally manage to find the actual culprit just as the show ends. It is neither the best mystery, nor the best musical comedy of its time, but as a combination of two it is very entertaining and works extremely well.