Dancers planning to defy ‘Gravity’ at Bojangles tribute during day of tap

Follow a frenzy of furious footwork producing a syncopated symphony of staccato rhythms.

Nickname: tap dancing.

"I eat, sleep, breathe tap, man," says Lindell Blake -- call him the simple, single-monikered "Blake," as he prefers -- star of "Gravity," a flying-feet fest celebrating National Tap Dance Day on Saturday at the West Las Vegas Library. "I just love the rhythm, how it makes me feel. I can be as controversial, as political, as happy, as sad as I want through the dance. This is the ultimate freedom."

Shim-sham-shimmy, flap heel, shuffle-ball change, chugs -- pop your notepad, people, a post-show quiz is possible -- double pullbacks, stomps, brushes, scuffs, the Cincinnati, cramproll and double-toe punches are all part of the happy-feet vernacular of the venerated dance form, an American original dating back to the 19th century.

The art of the tap finally found official recognition in 1989, when President George H. W. Bush granted the form its own day -- May 25, the birthday of tap titan Bill "Bojangles" Robinson -- the reason for Saturday's slightly belated, tap-tastic valentine.

"His interpretation of rhythm, his education, his library of sound, Bill Robinson brought such an articulation to it that was unprecedented," says Blake, who hoofed locally in "MadHattan" at New York-New York and in "Midnight Fantasy" at the Luxor. "You look at his tapes, go to YouTube, that stair dance he did today still breaks the most educated ankles."

(Tap trivia: "Mr. Bojangles," the poignant tune popularized by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band and fellow tapper Sammy Davis Jr., among others, was not penned for Robinson, but was instead based on an encounter between composer Jerry Jeff Walker and a white street performer in a New Orleans jail, though it has come to be considered a Robinson tribute.)

Down through the decades, tap dance has driven the careers of a cadre of performers, including the Nicholas Brothers, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Ruby Keeler, Ann Miller (credited as the fastest recorded tap dancer), Donald O'Connor, Gregory and Maurice Hines of Hines, Hines and Dad, and Savion Glover.

And John W. Bubbles.

"He truly was the godfather of tap," Blake says about the high-octane hoofer from the old vaudeville circuit. "Bill Robinson danced on his toes, but John Bubbles started dropping the heel, which opened up the rhythm and sound, more of a bass sound. His feet were so musical. He opened doors because he didn't sound like a tap dancer, but a musician."

Bandy twist, catch, dig heel, eight-note rhythm -- quiz, remember? -- the sugar, grace beat, heel twist, tacit and vamp are further entries in the vast tap dance-iverse.

"Tap dancing is this thing that comes around every seven or eight years, then fades out," says "Gravity" co-star Russell Hines, a cast member of "Bite" at the Stratosphere, about the form's rise-and-dive popularity with the public. Tapping's exposure peaked during the '60s heyday of TV variety series such as "The Ed Sullivan Show" and "The Hollywood Palace," notably re-emerging in 1996 when Broadway's "Bring in 'da Noise, Bring in 'da Funk" shot Glover to national prominence.

"Part of the problem is the same old thing, that once that older generation has faded out, (tap dance) fades out," Hines says. "When it comes back, it needs to have some updated fusion, twist, a little funk, rock 'n' roll, rather than just straight and traditional. It shouldn't always be looked at the same way."

Backing philosophy with footwork, Hines co-created a step called "the Gank," which he describes as "a weird kind of body percussion." Blake, who first gained skills as a New York breakdancer, married modern moves to the acrobatic antics of the nimble Nicholas Brothers. "It was the way they combined gymnastics and tap dancing," he says of the slick style the siblings practiced, called flash dancing. "Mixing that dance style with breakdancing, being so physical, I was in it to win it. No one can take this away from me. When I'm dead, my rhythm will live on."

As that beat goes eternally on ...

Pencils up, tap shoes down for the quickie quiz, dance devils: Flying swing-outs, flying circles, the buffalo, hot steps, riffs, over-the-tops, soft-shoe essence, paddle and roll, riffrolls ... you know what?

Just dance, Bojangles. Dance.

Contact reporter Steve Bornfeld at sbornfeld @reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0256.