Cake Walk

The Chalk Line Walk as it was originally known in 1850 in the southern plantations and later became very popular 1895-1905 by Cakewalk with a flourish around the 1915th It was formed in Florida of African-American slaves who got the basic idea from the Seminole Indians (couple walking solemnly). Many of the specific movements of the cake-walk, bending back of the body, and the dropping of the hands of the wrist, including had a separate function in certain tribes in Africa Kaffir dances. The African Ring Shout has no connection to this dance also.

These "Walker", as they were called, would go a straight line and balancing buckets of water on their heads. Over time, the dance evolved into an exaggerated parody of the white upper class ballroom dancers who want to imitate the manners (ie, promenades and processionals) in the "Big House" (or master's house) that they observed the white does. These slaves would have a little fun with such a worthy walk, flirting, prancing, stalk, bowing low, waving canes, doffing hats, made from a high kicks grand promenade. The Master's and their guest found it amusing, while a few plantation owners frowned upon these shenanigans. For their 'Sunday' entertainment, plantation owners began having competitions to prove that others who had the best slave walker.

The idea of the Cakewalk was that a couple walking in a dignified manner, high strength and kicking, mimicking whitey high society. Some of the better plantation owners would bake a special cake called a hoecake wrapped in cabbage leaf on Sundays and invite neighbors over and have a competition of slaves, various prices were given, but originally it was a Hoecake for men and pulled molasses candy to my Ladies and if the slave (s) won, would have a cake / Candy ... so that the expression "to take cake!" (Plus others such as "It's a Cakewalk '= very easy), and the name" Cakewalk "is set. The dance grew in popularity, even after the Civil War (1861-1865), but it would change and become Grand in style and clothes, as time marched on.

The distribution and Chalk Line Walk would be mixed when the Minstrel Show began using the Chalk Line Walk in their actions, a Minstrel parody mixed with that later will be mentioned by name in Cakewalk. The Minstrel shows of the time would paint their faces black and at the end of the show would do a "Grand Finale", which often times was the Cakewalk. The dance used little breaks prancing and stalk and only allow men to show some dance steps and acrobatic somersaults like (Stearns: Jazz dance), while women want to praise and admire his antics.

By the 1890s, the Cakewalk was the hottest thing around, and Charles Johnson & Dora Dean said to have introduced Cakewalk in 1893 in The Creole Show, but had already played a dance at the same show back in 1889. But in 1877, it was actually introduced in the Minstrel Show "Walking for dat Cake" and in 1892 the first Cakewalk competition was held in New York ballroom host Richard K. Fox (Stearn say Madison Square Garden, but it would not be built with additional 20 years or thereabouts, so most likely it was a building in this place [perhaps Madison Sq. Roof Garden].) Coney Island also had the Cakewalk dance contests. Williams and Walker inspired a Cakewalk in the play "Clorindy" Origin of the Cakewalk. The Cakewalk nodes will also list in March and two step dance as options for the song, so white audience would be interested in buying it even if they did not know the Cakewalk. It was first introduced on Broadway by Dave Genaro.

The competition dancers were called "Walker", and these dance competitions grew very large, as National Cakewalk Jubilee in New York City, and others where champions will receive gold belts and diamond rings.

There were two categories of competitions:

1) "Grand Straight Cakewalk" (regular type) and 

2) "Fancy Cakewalk" (dressed up type)

The doors would open at 7:00, would Contest 11:00 pm and dancing continues until 5:00. These Cakewalk dance contests would ultimately be held in large cities such as Tin Pan Alley and would make a fortune out of dance and Rag-time music, they would produce. There would be literally 100's of the earliest contests.

 The Cakewalk was the first American dance to cross over from black to white society as well as from the stage (Minstrel shows) to Ballroom. The Cakewalk would be a window for other African-American dance to enter white society in the future. Many of the senior class this summer and beach hotels will feature a Cakewalk at the end of the season. A man named Dobbins (b. 1912) is said to have introduced Cakewalk dancers for high society at Turner Hall in Brooklyn in 1866. The Cakewalk pave the way for dance and dancers to develop and competitions proved invaluable for dancer personal inventions that eventually the dancers could do what dance inventions they wanted, and would ultimately Strut out with their partners.

The Cakewalk eventually died in the 1920s, but there were still traces of Cakewalk in the newer, more modern forms of dance, even Lindy Hop had Apache and Cakewalk thrown in as can be seen in "Shorty George" video "At The Jazz Band Ball "video. The Cakewalk music eventually evolved into the birth of Ragtime (around 1899).

The Cakewalk "high strength strut '(see strut) will also be adopted by marching bands (originally New Orleans), and later Drum Majors Cakewalk would integrate into their routines, thanks to John Phillips Sousa, who took his marches and Cakewalk to London, Russia , France and elsewhere that looks like a "proud" drummer who would "Syncopaterne" his steps "(Debussy's" Golliwogs "Cakewalk and Georgia Camp Meeting testify to his success abroad.) A newer branch of Cakewalk was Strut (dance) it was used allot of Cakewalk's description of recent days. Champion Strut (1954) was a mixture of Lambeth Walk, Cakewalk and Swing.

In Old Ireland, there was a practice of offering a cake to the best Jig dancer at Sunday meeting. These dancers would do a Penny Jig, would dance to pay a musician ear after dancing, trying to win the cake. Quote from Mrs. Lully's book: "Although the fare on Sunday rarely rises above the usual potatoes and milk for the rest of the week, a couple of half pence always spared to purchase the joys as Sunday cake inclined. This cake on a spindle is the sign of joy and will reward the talent, and it is sometimes taken away from the best dancer, sometimes achiest wag of the company. "