#tingle tangle

INOX-VALVOLE

10 of Coins

This card features a “Dancing Machine” by Grit and Ina van Elben at the Berlin Tingle-Tangle in 1931. 

This “machine” has one real dancer at the front controlling a line of “dancers” moving in perfect sync. There was more than just a visual delight here.  It was a strong commentary about the growing popularity of chorus line dancing that was coming from America and France and was now being seen on the stages of Berlin.  Synchronised dancing was anathema to real artists who considered the chorus lines to be lacking in artistry and originality.  The synchronized dancers were resorting to displays of precision as an end unto itself without any regard for skill or creativity. 

The dancers were interchangeable and indistinguishable. Berlin performers were not. The audiences, however, were becoming more and more provincial and philistine as the reputation of cities like Berlin grew and drew people from the countryside. Their tastes ran a bit different from the edgier and more challenging art that gave Berlin its name.  Hence the dancing machine.  

It was a way to entertain and also have a go at the audience’s lack of taste at the same time. 

The background is a menu board of a typical German Kneipe.

Have a look at this typically American chorus line from 1930.

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card from The Cult of Weimar Tarot www.cultofweimar.com

a/s/l?

youngish/lady/Tingle Tangle, USA