Dancing the night away : a history of Johannesburg’s social dancing worlds, 1920s to 1950s

Abstract

This doctoral study uses social dance as a lens to reflect on race relations and class divisions in the greater Johannesburg region. It offers a new perspective by exploring why and how communities chose and recreated popular social dances from the global West to suit their restrictive local social circumstances. It explores a critical half century in the South African past, 1920s to 1950s, a time when segregation predominated, and apartheid was pending which influenced every aspect of life. By 1928 Johannesburg was the major city in South Africa and on its periphery, it had three of South Africa’s largest townships allocated for people designated as black. It also had an expanding entertainment hub including palais de danse, dance halls and a number of teachers who taught the latest dance trends from abroad. This study explores how imported social dances were integrated into the new culture of white and black middle-class elite. Using alternate and underexplored sources this research reflects on why members across the spectrum of South African society could and wanted to dance and how they recreated their dancing world to be sustainable in their restrained and restricted environment.