Past e-mail, additional thoughts

Ok folks. Here is what I said in e-mail and can qualify here.

As far as history on the cakewalk, I assisted and then co-taught a class (at University of Illinois) called Dancing Black/Popular Culture (I know, I know--little white me) so I have some background on that as well as texts that illuminate historical elements. Happy to share or collaborate there. Still up for this and we can look at it given diversity of student and any emphasis on race. 

I almost feel like the cakewalk idea could be one of humilation--meaning that there would be some prize (cakes) but in order to get it you have to do your best Al Jolson, mammy, legs UP cakewalk to get it. If you're not over the top enough or minstrel enough, you get a gong (and maybe the booby prize of a crappy canned beer?).  This could be a ying-yang component with your "Let Them Eat Cake" so you either have to be beautiful, sylph-like and perfect (ballet) to get the cake or the other image. Maybe we could even flip genders so guys have to do ballet and women have to cakewalk...It sticks with the binary ideas you have set up and illustrates how both cliches are cruel and limiting. I like it as a metaphor for all groups who have to conform to a stereotype to get "somewhere" though there are some loaded racial images with the minstrel stuff (but I'd love to see white, middle class chicks really trying to get their legs high for a cake)...this would be for choreography for students and us and not random audience members because Seth is right, we don't want to humiliate strangers. Only each other and the people we know and with whom we are comfortable. There should be a smiley face icon after that. 

Here also might be a place for a teacher/student or master/apprentice binary. I can't find it on YouTube but Mark Morris' "Tamil Film Songs in Stereo" pas de deux is an excellent example of this thought. 

Comments like this are mainly notes to myself where I am so generous that I tell everyone else along with myself. I tend towards the didactic sometimes so it is essentially me saying to myself: Hey self! Stay on task. You can't change the world tomorrow or by talking at people even though your misdirected desire to be a preacher takes you there. 

I think that things should stay as physical as possible. It is easy to espouse the theory behind the games/dance/work without actually physically committing to them so that is my area of interest and practice. I also want to take a look at how general the theme of "other" is right now and see if we can personalize or rarify it in some way. Though it is necessary and relevant, as a selling point, some folks might be put off by a "versus" situation unless we can package it in a witty, clever way with a hook (which I think your "theme" taps). I am enough of an ego-maniac to call myself a teacher. Even so, I like teaching when I can trick people into learning either by charm, seduction, humor or all three. When something is funny, I am disarmed and open to accepting it. 

People are very anti-intellectual right now and don't want to feel "talked at" about difficult gender and race issues so it is always interesting to me to find a funny, ironic take on something. I am wondering how we can do that and I think right now the gaming aspect suits it well. What is the greater "game" and how can we package it as something that is intriguing, wry, and intelligent without feeling  condescending to anyone? Is it a tacky game show with a nutty, exaggerated name? Is it like a "Battle of the Network Stars" idea and can we get some interesting "guest artists" in the community to debase themselves publicly for entertainment value (I LOVED that show when I was a kid--really dating myself here)?

Battle of the Network stars in my childhood was watching people like Ron (Richie) Howard and Henry (Fonzie) Winkler compete with Penny Marshall (Laverne) and Scott Baio in an egg-toss-ladder-over-a-pond-then-shetland-pony-race kind of ridiculous competition. All were inept. All were humiliated and fell into the pond and fell off the pony. Even so they were still TV stars ...

I hope qualifying the thoughts helps make them seem less personal...