Review: The Dance: The History of American Minstrelsy

In The Dance playwright-actor Jason Christophe White and his actor brother, Aaron White, dig into a difficult, seldom-discussed, hot potato topic — blackface performers and the minstrel shows in which they entertained American audiences for nearly two centuries. Their purpose is twofold and nicely balanced between informing people and entertaining them with a bright, funny show about a form of show business that had its dark corners.

(Photo: John Hutten)

The brothers appear as minstrel clowns in blackface, white gloves, improbable wigs and clothes — all in the manner of traditional “end men” comics, Mr. Bones and Mr. Tambo. The show is intricately conceived and staged. They sing, they dance, they tell jokes and strike comic poses — all in the overstated manner of Bones and Tambo — as they move the audience along swiftly through the history lessons:

• Minstrels shows were the first indigenous American form of entertainment.

• From the mid-18th century until the Civil War, minstrel shows featured white men in exaggerated black makeup entertaining white audiences with disparaging stereotypes of blacks as lazy, superstitious buffoons who were musical and always joyously happy.

• Minstrel shows were the conduit through which songwriters could reach American audiences with new songs.

• After 1865 it was illegal in many areas for black artists to entertain white audiences. Black performers often wore blackface to work in vaudeville and revues.

• Professional minstrel shows died out around 1910, but blackface lingered in amateur entertainment and in Hollywood until the middle of the 20th century. The first sound movie, The Jazz Singer (1928), had Al Jolson singing “Mammy” in blackface. Bing Crosby appeared in blackface in Holiday Inn (1942), as did Joan Crawford in a lame 1953 musical called Torch Song.

• Minstrel-like racial stereotyping still goes on in some forms of entertainment to this day.

The Dance is conceived in a stylized manner and, for the most part is executed stylishly. The brothers White believe strongly in their material and work hard at delivering it with punch and passion. Where the show occasionally stumbles it’s because the mechanics of the satire — the exaggerated movement, the loud, aggressive vocal delivery and the stylized posing — get in the way of the meat of the satire.

Technical malfunctions screwed up the last few minutes of the June 1 performance, stealing pace and damping some of the haunting effect of the show’s final, serious moments.

– Tom McElfresh