Salt Lake Telegram | 1931-05-14 | Page 4 | A New Yorker at Large

j jA A New Yorker at Large i By GILBERT SWAN NEW YORK May 14 Can 14 Can you dance the banty twist twit Or the gogo the thea Maxey a ey Ford the ginger ginger gin ger roll over or crackerjack No Then youre you're I not a hoofer and you are not m likely el to be until you ou can candance dance the entire J routine and throw dJ 1 in for good measure meas mens r 1 I I f iF tire ure th tim the beans i Ii the catsup and I j I the loop 1 There L- L are at least a dozen 5 5 1 II others c I And if tr you think they are unimportant J 1 tant let me advise you that young joung women of America who dance for a a. living livIng or or seek to to are are being told that there is little use trying to crash the Broadway gates unless they are prepared to put on something like twenty Intricate and difficult steps that bear names such as those m men men- n above Its It's th the Chorus Equity a. a association a branch of tho Actors Actors' Equity that is breaking the news to chorines across the land Some letters have issued from this office in the course of the past week advising chorines that Broadway wants hoofers rather than ladles ladies of the ensemble The chorine situation in New ork is not a simple one there are thousands out of or work vork few music shows shoves running and fewer summer shows than usual likely to open The producer wants want something more than Just beauty this time He wants something more than straight heel and toe too work something more than tho the old dance routine Chorus Equity finds that ho wants dyed ded in the wool hoofers Now even e in Broadway there arc are not so many professional proCessional chorines who can qualify And taking dancing dancing dane dane- ing lessons run into mone money So Chorus Equity tins runs a dancing school on the side bide As an aid to the girlies who get but a nominal salary even when they get work the char charge e eIs is 50 cents Professor William McPherson McPherson McPherson Mc- Mc Pherson is the trainer and he tutors as M many as at a time A glimpse gUmp e of these classes In action I Is an art amazing sidelight on what goeson goes goeson on behind the scenes of at the main stem Most routines begin with what is known as the Primrose takeoff named after the famous minstrel man who invented the step Its It's a a. sort of back and forth shuffle that works Int into a soft shoe routine The straight clo clog and buck and wing are still part of a beginners beginner's training buthe but bu the clog now develops into a waltz rhythm ho however that tha Its It's the time step ever makes the bl big difference Unless this thi can be mastered there is little chance of a dancer graduating for tor dozens dozen of ot other steps depend completely on ona ona ona a thorough knowledge of at time Ume tap ping Listening in on one of or Professor McPhersons McPherson's lessons presents an entirely entirely en en- new lingo to the average ear ear- drum Alt All right snap Into the banty twist hey there fall faU oft off the log now over the top and pivot phot a little catsup and beans and now for a crackerjack What all au this means only the professionals professionals pro pro- know And after all aU this has b been n mastered mas inns the girl still must be able to pick up the A I cate new steps anc and andI I I routines Invented I by chorus chonis I I i C 0 tors t This o of till course if she is b to lucky enough z-P z get a chance with witha a 0 show And if you dont don't think a chorine earns her money money- let it be known that when rehearsals rehear rehear- sais begin she ahe sheI works from Crom 10 inthe in inthe I the until 1 morning early in the evening evening eve eve- ning that once the show gets warmed warm ed up and the thc director knows mows what Is going to happen they work twelve hours at practice which is from 10 in itt inthe inthe the morning until 10 at night And just before opening Its It's midnight when the they get through Copyright 1931 NEA Service Inc J