Tap Time

Tapping is exciting and engaging. The dancers double as the musical instruments! Shoes have aluminum metal taps on the ball and heel of the shoes to give them a sound quality every time the dancer steps or does a step. It’s a unique style of dance that developed separately from ballet, which can be seen as the foundation for most other types of dance. American’s have loved and developed tap styles since the early 20th century.

Tap became most popular around the jazz age in America (1920s). The style seems to have developed as a fusion of different cultures- Irish immigrants brought Irish step dancing and African Americans shared movements and dances from pre-slavery era. It’s interesting that the exciting and upbeat dance style we witness today got its roots from oppressed immigrants and slaves, but it has evolved since then as an entertaining fusion of percussion and dancing. As slaves, African Americans could not engage in traditional dances and songs from their homes, so they were forced to repress their movements into shuffles and stomps. With the development of blues music and jazz, percussion became more widely performed with body parts (claps, stomps, snaps, etc.) instead of drums and other instruments. Likewise, Irish immigrants brought the idea of riverdance and with the dawn of the jazz age, tap because one of the most popular styles of dance in America. During the prohibition era, speakeasies filled with tap dancers and jazz music, and tap became dance for the modern ages.
Tap dance was especially unique in that it was picked up by the silver screen and made wildly popular in Hollywood. Most notably, Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire took tap to the big screen and made dance in general more popular and universal. Gene Kelly, best remembered for movies like Singing in the Rain  and American in Paris, continued to be a symbol of dance and film even after the decline of Hollywood musical movies in the late 50s.

Gene Kelly

Fred Astaire is arguably one of the best tap dancers of all time. He was a perfectionist- every step and every rhythm was in perfect time. He appeared on screen multiple times, in some occasions teaming up with famous dancer Ginger Rogers!

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Especially relevant because of her passing earlier this week, Shirley Temple was another star who helped make tap a staple of American dance history and present. America’s favorite child star, the talented Shirley Temple’s tap dancing talent captured the hearts of viewers and earned tapping fame and recognition from dancers and nondancers alike. Shirley started tap lessons at the age of 3, and was picked up by a short-film producer to play a role in his spoof movies of other films using kids as the actors. Once Fox saw the dimpled, curly-haired actress, she began to be cast in more prominent films to show the world her tapping and singing. She passed away on Monday night at the age of 85, but her legacy and the popularity of tap dance continues to influence the dance and entertainment world.

Shirley Temple (1938)

shirley temple tap

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4 Responses to Tap Time

  1. Jared Ogden says:

    The short history lesson you gave was excellent! I enjoyed learning about how tap came about, and knowing this helps me see how it is certainly a fusion of dance and music! It is awesome how a mixture of cultures and styles led to Tap!

  2. Sounder says:

    This is really, really random, but you reminded me of this scene from iCarly: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R17vI_4k4PA. I actually did not know that Shirley Temple was an actual person until I read your blog; ha ha. I first saw her name in the late sci-fi novelist Michael Crichton’s (author of Jurassic Park) novel Andromeda Strain, but her name was mentioned by a heavily mentally afflicted man, and so I thought the name had no significance. Wow, I’m really random today & draw such weird, seemingly irrelevant connections to your blog; sorry ’bout that.

  3. abm5278 says:

    The only tap dancer that I knew of on your blog was Shirley Temple. I guess I am not to up on tap dance history. Anyway I agree that it is very interesting that the dancer functions as the instrument as well. Do you do tap dance?

  4. Kyle King says:

    Your post inspired me to check out a bit of tap history. Had you heard of Bill “Bojangles” Robinson before? He seemed to be a pretty interesting dude.

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