Description

The minstrel show, also called minstrelsy, was an American form of theater developed in the early 19th century. The shows were performed by mostly white actors wearing blackface makeup for the purpose of portraying racial stereotypes of African Americans. There were very few African-American performers and black-only minstrel groups that also formed and toured. Minstrel shows stereotyped black people as dimwitted, lazy, buffoonish, cowardly, superstitious, and happy-go-lucky. A recurring character was Jim Crow, an exaggerated portrayal of a black man in tattered clothes dancing, whose name later became synonymous with the post-Reconstruction period in American history. Each show consisted of comic skits, variety acts, dancing, and music performances that depicted people specifically of African descent. Minstrel shows aimed to confirm racist beliefs that black people were not civilized enough to be treated as equals. Often, the humor centered on situations where, whenever black characters tried to become citizens, they would fail, and fail comically.