The Black Dancing Body: A Geography From Coon to Cool

349 Pages·2003·4.314 MB·English

by  Brenda Dixon Gottschild (auth.)

THE BLACK DANCING BODY
Other books by Brenda Dixon Gottschild
Waltzing in the Dark
Digging the Africanist Presence in American Performance
The History of Dance in Art and Education(co-author, third edition)
THE BLACK DANCING BODY
A GEOGRAPHY FROM COON TO COOL
BRENDA DIXON GOTTSCHILD
BLACKDANCINGBODY
Copyright © Brenda Dixon Gottschild, 2003.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any
manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief
quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
First published in hardcover in 2003 by Palgrave Macmillan
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ISBN 978-1-4039-7121-0 ISBN 978-1-137-03900-2 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-137-03900-2
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Gottschild, Brenda Dixon.
The black dancing body : a geography from coon to cool / Brenda Dixon
Gottschild.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. African American dance—History. 2. African American dancers.
3. Body image. I. Title.
GB1624.7.A34G68 2003
793’089’96073—dc21
2003041434
A catalogue record of the book is available from the British Library.
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First PALGRAVE MACMILLAN paperback edition: September 2005
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Transferred to Digital Printing 2008
In Celebration of
Sky and Sanji-Rei Larrieux
3
3
In Memory of Eliza and George Dixon
3
In Memory of September 11, 2001:
Shanksville, PA
Washington, D.C.
New York, N.Y.

CONTENTS
List of Illustrations ix
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction xiii
PART I
TOPOGRAPHY OF THINGS TO COME:
RUMINATIONS ON DANCING IN A BLACK DANCING BODY
Latitude I 2
1. Black White Dance Dancers 12
2. The Physical Terrain 41
Position: Bujones/Zollar Interviews 82
Location: Who’s There? 97
PART II
MAPPING THE TERRITORIES
Latitude II 102
3. Feet 108
4. Butt 144
5. Skin/Hair 188
Location: To Be or Not... 219
PART III
THE CONTINENT
Latitude III 222
6. Soul/Spirit 226
7. Blood Memories, Spirit Dances 259
Position: From Coon to Cool 281
Location: Horizon 300
Appendix:
Dance Practitioners Mentioned in Order of Appearance in Text 302
Notes 305
Bibliography 312
Index 317
ILLUSTRATIONS
PART I
Monica Moseley 17
Francesca Harper 30
Chuck Davis 34
Gus Solomons jr 57
Joan Myers Brown 77
Brenda Bufalino 80
Fernando Bujones 83
Jawole Willa Jo Zollar 89
PART II
Meredith Monk 132
Zane Booker 135
Foot Improvement Device 137
Unidentified Bangala Men 149
Urban Bush Women in Batty Moves 179
Merián Soto 183
Marlies Yearby 204
Wendy Perron 212
Urban Bush Women in Hairstories 217
PART III
Rennie Harris 230
Bebe Miller 240
Seán Curran 242
Ralph Lemon 247
Bill T. Jones 250
Ronald Brown 269
Trisha Brown 282
Shelley Washington 290
Susanne Linke 294