250 PART 2 | FROM THE CIVIL WAR THROUGH WORLD WAR I
tango. They popularized these dances fi rst as exhibition
dancers at society balls, then from 1914 at the Castle House,
their exclusive Manhattan dance school, and in numerous
magazine articles and photo spreads.
As codifi ed in their 1914 book Modern Dancing, the Castles
refi ned ragtime dance by replacing the vigorous movements
of the “animal” dances with smoother, more graceful motions
that were more palatable to cultivated tastes. Their debonair
athleticism inspired a young generation to shake off the last
vestiges of Victorianism and embrace a modernity in which
both men and women could experiment with new gender
roles: Vernon Castle combined grace and elegance with more-
traditional concepts of manliness (which he later confi rmed
as a World War I fl ying ace), while Irene Castle embodied, not
the frail domesticity of an earlier feminine ideal, but the freer,
active, and youthful image of the new century’s “New Woman.”
Together, they paved the way for such celebrated dance teams
as Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers (see chapter 15).
James Reese Europe’s energetic yet polished orchestral
ragtime was the perfect complement to the Castles’ elegant
dancing, and Europe’s Society Orchestra was a fi xture at
the Castle House. When the Castles appeared in vaudeville, they insisted that
Europe and his band accompany them, despite the objections of theater owners,
who generally barred black performers from white theaters. Appearing onstage
with the Castles at such fi rst-rate theaters as the Palace and Hammerstein’s Vic-
toria, both on Broadway, Europe was in the vanguard of a long series of fi gures
who would slowly erode the segregationist practices of the Jim Crow era.
Castle House Rag (LG 10.3) dem-
onstrates the infectiousness of
Europe’s music for the Castles. As
in the Maple Leaf Rag, constantly
shifting syncopations enliven an
unrelenting series of square-cut
four-bar phrases. A nd like Joplin’s
rags, Castle House Rag draws on
march form, with the same variant
of repeating the A section before
the trio. But Europe’s rag also bor-
rows two features of the march
form rarely found in Joplin’s rags:
a transitional section leads into the
trio, and a break strain heightens
tension as in Sousa’s Stars and Stripes
Forever.
After a major-key introduction,
the opening strain of Castle House
Rag begins in a minor key before
shifting back to the major. In other
words, the third scale degree is
alternately raised and lowered (theK Vernon and Irene
Castle brought a new
elegance to ragtime dance.LG 10.3Suggestions for Correct Dancing from Irene &
Ve r n o n C a s tl e’s Modern Dancing (1914)o not wriggle the shoulders.
Do not shake the hips.
Do not twist the body.
Do not fl ounce the elbows.
Do not pump the arms.
Do not hop—glide instead.
Avoid low, fantastic, and acrobatic dips.
Stand far enough away from each other to allow free movement of
the body in order to dance gracefully and comfortably.
The gentleman should rest his hand lightly against the lady’s back,
touching her with the fi nger-tips and wrist only....
Remember you are at a social gathering, and not at a gymnasium.
Drop the Turkey Trot, the Grizzly Bear, the Bunny Hug, etc. These
dances are ugly, ungraceful, and out of fashion.In their own words
D
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