Episode Notes

Following the U.S. Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and '60s, the language about how we talk about race (and tap dance) changed. In the new era of color-blind speech, one must navigate a slippery slope of semantics to uncover the racial subtext underneath. Host Tristan Bruns takes a look at the book "Tapworks" by Beverly Fletcher—the official tap dance reference manual of the Dance Masters of America—regarded by Bruns as a tap dance history written under the lens of a color-blind racial ideology. Bruns references the work of sociologist Eduardo Bonilla-Silva, historian Tyler Anbinder, linguistic anthropologist Jane H. Hill and others in an attempt to prove why color-blind tap dance history is bad tap dance history.

Hoo-boy! This is a long one, so here are some time stamps to help you navigate this episode:

0:00-5:40 Theme Song/Series Summary/Beverylt Fletcher and "Tapworks" Introductions

5:41-25:55 What is a racially color-blind ideology?

25:56-37:38 "Introduction" of "Tapworks"

37:39-44:20 European Influence and "African Heritage"

44:21-54:34 Notes on the slave trade/_Happy Slave Ship Dancers Theory/_Stono Rebellion

54:35-1:04:00 Five Points/William Henry Lane a.k.a. "Master Juba"

1:04:01-1:10:15 The Appeal of Blackface Minstrelsy

1:10:16-1:13:20 Some good history/Comparison to "The Book of Tap"

1:13:21-1:17:12 Theories about the "Death of Tap Dance"

1:17:13-1:18:53 The final page/Tap Dogs and _Riverdance/_African "steps" and Irish "feel"

1:18:54-1:21:23 Clip from the Either/And Podcast by Bril Barrett about Riverdance

1:21:24-1:24:56 Living in a white habitus/Lee Atwater interview on the "Southern Strategy"

1:24:57-1:28:20 Two anecdotal accounts: Story of "Nick"/Listening to "UTC"

1:28:21-1:31:45 Learning lessons from history/Anonymous testimony about Fletcher

1:31:46-1:35:00 What is "personalism"?

1:35:01-1:35:55 Anecdote #3: Forced happiness in dance competitions

1:35:56-1:42:22 "Tapworks" and the Dance Masters of America

1:42:23-1:47:25 The U.S. dance industry as one large white habitus/Call to Action

1:47:26-1:48:32 Disclaimers and acknowledgements

1:48:33-1:53:25 Tap Dance Podcast Roundup

Support this program by joining us on Patreon. 50% of all support goes to the M.A.D.D. Rhythms Tap Academy at the Harold Washington Cultural Center on Chicago's historic South Side.

Link to our Patreon here: https://www.patreon.com/GFADAF

Or support this program through a one time donation in our tip jar!

Thank you to Patreon supporters Liz Rancourt-Smith, Junior Laniyan and Pamela Heatherington.

The Gasps From A Dying Art Form Podcast is a member of the M.A.D.D. Rhythms Podcast Network. #RespectTheDance

Support Gasps From A Dying Art Form by contributing to their Tip Jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/gasps-from-a-dying-art-form

This podcast is powered by Pinecast.

Biochar, the Best Climate Solution You've Never Heard of.