Comedy Cake Walk – 1903

Article publié le 19 février 2012
Pour citer cet article : , « Comedy Cake Walk – 1903  », Rhuthmos, 19 février 2012 [en ligne]. https://www.rhuthmos.eu/spip.php?article517


Five African Americans–three men and two women–perform an exaggerated cakewalk in fancy evening clothes. Two of the men wear formal black tie in tuxedos with tails, while the third wears a gray tux of shiny material with an extremely long overcoat and exaggerated cuffs. All have matching top hats and canes. The women wear highly decorated hats and tight-fitting, frilly dresses of only mid-calf length, with one hand on their hip pulling up that side of the skirt. Two couples step in time against a white background as the third, center man prances forward and executes a comedic, wobbly-kneed step. He then moves back to lead the others in the strutting around the stage, all the time spinning and prancing among them. As the couple to stage left jaunt past the camera, the woman pauses to hitch up her stocking. The man in the gray suit on the right twirls his cane and struts toward the camera with his partner ; they then pause on opposite sides of the frame. The woman kisses a handkerchief she is holding in one hand and flirtatiously throws it on the ground. As the man smiles knowingly and reaches for it, however, the woman yanks the fabric back to her on a string. Both laugh and continue strutting. All five dancers then return to a line and start a fancy step towards the camera.


CREATED/PUBLISHED : United States : American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, 1903.

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