The early twentieth century witnessed several major cultural and technological changes which ultimately set the stage for the “social dance revolution.” Increased urbanization, caused by an increase of industrial and high-rise construction jobs, positioned many different cultural traditions and economic classes side-by-side with each other. Ragtime music, changes in women’s fashions, automobiles, women’s rights, the invention of the telephone, vaudeville, and changes in morals all helped to promote a quick and complete turn-around in what was considered appropriate dance behavior in the newly-constructed and lavishly-decorated ballrooms of America. Because of labor-saving devices inside the home, the ability to enjoy activities outside of the home became easier. As a result, afternoon "Tea Dances" became popular between 1910 and 1915.
The popularity of holding social dances, as opposed to the “by invitation only” dances in the parlors of the elite during the century before, was met with a war that was lead by religious and moral leaders of the time. As society struggled to wriggle itself out of the corsets and rigid, ballet-influenced dances of the nineteenth century, many professional dancers stood in disbelief at the numerous dance crazes that untrained dancers were performing on the dance floors. Between 1906 and 1908, an explosion of “rag-dances.” Also called "animal dances," these movements were danced to Ragtime music and were often named after animals such as the Turkey-Trot, the Pony Trot, the Grizzly Bear, the Chicken Reel, and the Shimmy (violent shaking of the shoulders) swept the nation’s untrained dancers off their feet. In an attempt to remedy the awkwardness of social dancers in clubs and dance halls, or more likely the result of the desire to cash in on popular crazes, professional dance teams assembled in high-entertainment areas such as New York City, San Fransisco, Memphis, and Chicago. Many of the unpolished rag-dances in the dance halls were used by these teams, or combinations of them, along with elaborate costuming and Ragtime music written specifically for the teams’ shows by Black musicians. Teams would insert European mannerisms and dance techniques into the raw dance material, creating more sophisticated versions of the same dances. Some of these dance teams taught their inventions to eager students, such as the famous team of Vernon and Irene Castle. The Castles had their own dance studio at their home, called the Castle House. (This is where Arthur Murray took dance lessons.) By 1910, these new and improved dances were called “dance crazes” by the press in reference to the widespread enthusiasm from the public.
Indeed, a distinctly new group of ballroom dances was becoming popular in the United States, reflecting the fusion of syncopated rags with the traditional European-based social dances. (Malnig:7)
The couples shown in the slideshow below were some of the more famous of these professional dance teams who helped to turn the rag-dances of the 1910’s into socially-accepted ballroom dances. Their influence on the appearance, styling, and footwork of dances such as the Waltz, Tango, Foxtrot, the Maxixe, the One-Step, as well as dips and lifts was immense and timeless. The late 1920’s saw a short break from this formality of ballroom dancing when the Charleston and the Lindy-Hop were born out of the Harlem Renaissance. Flappers and Swing-dancers entered the scene with their own new style of dance and dress, creating an entirely new look and lure for the youth that was spurred on by the invention of Jazz music, which branched into Swing music a decade later. Lindy-Hop was extremely popular by the early 1930’s, but not everyone was able to perform the aerobic and dangerous dance.
By the late 1930’s, a renewed sense of elegance returned to ballrooms with the introduction of the Hollywood dance team of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. Although they were not ballroom dance teachers, they did manage to bring back the sophistication and glamour of the previous decades. Swing dancing did not get pushed aside, it was incorporated into the ballroom dance curriculum with easier versions created by Arthur Murray Studios, which were starting to pop up at every city corner by then. Shortly after, during the late 1940's and 1950's, Latin music invaded America and was incorporated into the American ballroom dance curriculum. That is a whole new episode in the history of ballroom dancing.
Source used:
Malnig, Julie
1992 Dancing Till Dawn: A Century of Exhibition Ballroom Dance. New York University Press, New York and London
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