Dancing for everyone

I haven't posted for a while, but I've been reading some interesting articles and such about the shift in the early 20th century away from 'traditional' dance forms. One of the most obvious causes of this change was the emergence of the Cabaret and other dance halls as public spaces for people to meet and socialize. According to one book (Adversaries of Dance; Wagner.),

Changes in urban living and in class distinctions fostered the unprecedented popularity of dancing between 1910 and 1914. The need for urban recreational centers for masses of people meant that enterprising capitalists increasingly opened dance halls and dance academies.

So it would seem that the initial force behind the social dance movement was the simple need for something to do, a way to relax after work and just have fun. These venues were in part possible because of the growing popularity of 'rag dances', which were based on either the one-step or the two-step, and originated in black culture (thus prompting some of the more racist fears propagated by opponents of the movement, such as 'white slavery').

An interesting shift in the way the general public danced happened at about this time. The 'rag dances' that were beginning to become popular were transformed by exhibition ballroom teams into such dances as the Argentine Tango and the Hesitation Waltz. Exhibition teams were instrumental in creating a nation-wide dance mania, as they performed at many Cabarets across the nation, showing their dances to many more people than could have seen them in the past. A unique process emerged from this, with the general populace imitating and modifying to the best of their ability the new dances they saw performed, and the teams incorporating the new moves that emerged into their dances. This was an important change, as it allowed the new dances to change much more rapidly than dances ever had in the past. Another aspect of these dances was important in popularizing them - that they were inherently simple. Dances in the 18th and 19th century were much more difficult to learn, as anyone who has watched movies set in that time (Pride and Prejudice, anyone?) would imagine. The newer dances of the 20th century, by contrast, allowed much room for improvisation and were easy to dance even for beginners. Thus the social dance of the early 20th century became a truly social dance, no longer limited to the upper class.

Obsession much?

I watched They Shoot Horses, Don't They a couple of nights ago (thanks, Professor Goldman, for the suggestion!). For those who haven't seen it, it's set in the Depression, at a 'dance marathon.' These were contests that lasted for days on end (I believe the one in the movie was 60 days long), and contestants had to keep moving the whole time (barring a short break every two hours). The sheer determination that the contestants had, despite their complete exhaustion and lack of adequate rest, was astounding. This is perhaps the strangest thing I have heard of with regards to dance. It also does not seem possible that anything really analogous could happen nowadays - even with the prize money and some people's determination to become famous, the way the people were treated in these contests was inhumane.

I am realizing now that it is difficult to find books that adequately explain social dancing with relation to the movement itself - the brief descriptions do not really capture the essence of the dance, and are difficult to visualize. I am therefore planning on trying to find videos (possibly instructional dvds) of the various types of dance, in order to get a better sense of what the authors of the books I have been reading are talking about. I am also hoping to find more books that deal with recent styles of social dances, as the majority I have been able to find so far deal with the early 20th century.

Emotional Dancing

I know this is rather soon to be posting again, but I wanted to put this up before I forgot. I went to Helen Beedle's piano recital today, and a few of the songs had dances choreographed to them in the style of social dancing. Watching the dancers do an Argentine Tango, I actually somewhat understood the objections that I've been reading so much about lately. This is not to say that I agree with the objections (I vehemently do not), but the Argentine Tango is an extremely sensual dance, which goes against everything that the Reverend Straton and so many others believed in. It was interesting to me to see the difference between the Tango and a Waltz that was performed as well; while both were beautiful and romantic, they expressed themselves so very differently. The Waltz spoke of companionship and time spent together, where the Tango expressed a passion that is often associated with the first blush of a romance. Both seem so different from modern dancing, which seem more about the lust than the emotional attachment. I'm not sure what this says about changes in society, but it is at least an interesting contrast.

The Dance of Death

The Dance of Death was originally a medieval myth: that all the dead who had been killed in the wars or by the black plague would rise as skeletons from their graves, tempting the living to join them in dance. All those who danced with the dead would lose their lives as well. Reverend Straton used the phrase Dance of Death when speaking of social dancing to recall this myth, which had a certain significance right after WWI and the flu epidemic. Reverend Porter also called social dancing a Dance of Death, but with different reasoning behind his claim. He associated social dancing with sexual promiscuity, referencing James 1:5 ("When lust is conceived, it bringeth forth sin; and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death."). Social dancing was viewed as promiscuous largely because the dancers change partners often, but also because of the 'intimate' dance styles, which often had couples dancing cheek to cheek. These reverends, along with many others, truly believed that dancing was a path towards eternal damnation. If the social dances of their time (tango, waltz, swing...) were considered to be of the devil, how would they react to modern dancing?

Racism on the Dance Floor?

I am currently reading Satan in the Dance Hall, and was particularly struck by the racist aspect of some of the objections to social dancing. Ragtime and jazz originated with blacks, and there seems to have been a strong objection to dancing to this music simply because it was 'African,' and had driving beats, which were considered indecent by many moralists. There seems to have been a movement to set 'respectable Americans' apart from the rest of the world - both on the dance floor and off. Prohibition was another aspect of this movement, and became tied strongly to the anti-dancing movement, as many clubs during Prohibition had both dancing and alcohol. As Lewis Erenberg wrote in Impressions of Broadway Nightlife, "Prohibition thus represented an attempt by urban, rural, and small-town Protestants to establish the hegemony of their familial values over the expansive values associated with a more cosmopolitan urban life." This seems to apply to dancing as well, as one of the principal fears was that young girls would be 'corrupted.' There were many unsubstantiated claims that young girls were being lured into dance halls and eventually abducted and sold into 'white slavery' as prostitutes. The fear of sexual promiscuity among young people and racism seem to be tied closely in this case, going back many years to first impressions of natives of the Americas and Africa as sexually promiscuous - partly because of their 'wild' dancing. I may attempt to find Rev. Straton's book The Dance of Death, as I am curious about his reasoning for condemning social dancing.

Topic and Source Ideas

I will be investigating the evolution of dance as an expression of social change, such as changes in personal and social values, identifying changes in which forms of dancing are popular, such as ballroom and swing to raves, perhaps as reflections of cultural values or events. What motivates people to dance in different styles: are there cultural influences involved? Depending on the information I find, the topic may be extended to include performance dancing, such as ballet and hip-hop. I will use the depiction of dance in film as a resource, as well as various books.


Tentative Reading List:

Satan in the Dance Hall: Rev. John Roach Straton, Social Dancing, and Morality in 1920s New York City - Ralph S. Giordano

Dancing Till Dawn: A Century of Exhibition Ballroom Dance - Julie Malnig

Dance in a World of Change: Reflections on Globalization and Cultural Difference - Dr. Sherry Shapiro

Glamour Addiction: Inside the American Ballroom Dance Industry - Juliet McMains

Steps in Time: An Autobiography - Fred Astaire

Ballroom: Culture and Costumes in Competitive Dance - Jonathan S. Marion

Jookin': The Rise of Social Dance Formations in African-American Culture - Katrina Hazzard-Gordon

Ballroom, Boogie, Shimmy Sham, Shake: A Social and Popular Dance Reader - Julie Malnig


I also plan to find episodes of American Bandstand and Soultrain, as well as the movie Shall We Dance?

Suggestions are always welcomed!