This article surveys the role of dance in black entertainment and its relation to the development of jazz in the first half of the 20th century. Malone finds that leading jazz instrumentalists gained formative experiences accompanying dancers, especially tap dancers. Musicians accordingly viewed dancers as practicing a sophisticated and influential form of jazz, and interaction between dance and music performance was seen as a vital sphere of improvisation.
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big band, Broadway, chorus line, Jacqui Malone, jazz dance, lindy hop, rhythm tap, Savoy ballroom, tap dance, vaudeville