Can Can - The Story of the Dance They Tried to Ban

It is the dance the scandalised the 19th century, a high-kicking, skirt-flipping whirlwind of legs, laughter and naughtiness. Nowadays considered a joyous staple of French culture, in its heyday the dance caused quite the social stir, even leading to attempts to suppress it. Here then is its flamboyant history and that of the music that made it so popular.

The can-can is born

The can-can evolved from the much more respectable quadrille, with its four pairs of dancers sometimes multiplied into long rows, as seen, for example in this famous Quadrille from John Strauss II’s opera ‘Die Fledermaus’:

The earliest version of the can-can emerged in Paris in the 1830s and was called the ‘Chahut’, meaning ‘Ruckus’, already giving some idea of its downmarket trajectory. It soon morphed into something more scandalous still, the elegant stylised moves of the quadrille replaced with dancers kicking their legs high in the air, revealing stockings, petticoats and sometimes more… Originally still danced in couples, the can-can eventually became associated with lines of high kicking female dancers. One of the most famous venues for the can-can was the Moulin Rouge, Paris’s premiere dance venue and centre of risqué entertainment.

Offenbach’s Can-Can

The dance is synonymous with one composer in particular, Jacques Offenbach. His ‘Galop Infernal’ from the operetta Orpheus in the Underworld (1858) became so associated with the dance that it is often simply referred to as the Can-Can, as if no other version exists, and despite the dance not being a can-can at all:

It is a piece that has spawned many a cover, a number of which take to heart the associations with the Moulin Rouge, even to the extent of parody, as in Bad Manners’ hilarious 1981 version:

Other composers

There have been a number of other notable can-cans apart from Offenbach’s famous ‘Galop.’ These include the can-can by Franz Lehár in his operetta The Merry Widow (1905):

Cole Porter wrote a musical called ‘Can Can’ (1954), which was later developed into a film musical staring Frank Sinatra and Shirley MacLaine:

There are can-cans in Léonide Massine’s ballets ‘La Boutique fantasque’ (1919) and ‘Gaîté Parisienne’ (1938), at the end of Jean Renoir's film ‘French Cancan’ and at the finale of the Dance of the Hours from the opera La Gioconda by Amilcare Ponchielli.

Other pieces, such as Aram Khachaturian's 'Sabre Dance’ from his ballet 'Gayane' (1938) and the music hall standard Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay have also become associated with the dance.

The scandal of the skirts

Why was the can-can considered so scandalous? After all, it was only a dance, wasn’t it? Well, yes and no. The thing is, in socially conservative 19th century society the sight of a leg or, shock-horror, undergarments was considered an impropriety of the highest order.

The dance also broke the mould in terms of ideals of feminine behaviour. At a time when women were supposed to be demure and reserved, the dance became a symbol of sexual and social freedom and, ultimately, female emancipation.

As such, the can-can was heavily frowned upon by some, with reported attempts—never successful—to suppress it. The police were often also called to clubs to maintain order, though it's hard to say if they were really keeping an eye on things… or just enjoying the show.

Scandal to icon

Today, the can-can is seen as quintessentially French, with its colourful skirts and lively music still charming audiences worldwide. Modern performers keep the spirit of the dance alive in cabarets and theatrical performances, where it’s often more playful than scandalous. Though it may no longer be cause for police intervention, the can-can remains a dance that dares to show a little leg and a lot of attitude.