The Silver Belles are five African-American women, 84 - 96 years of age, who have been performing in front of appreciative audiences at various entertainment venues from the Apollo Theatre in Harlem to Carnegie Hall. This sprightly and charming documentary directed by Heather Lyn MacDonald presents their love of dancing, their camaraderie, and their ability to weather the storms of life and particularly of old age. The Queen of the troupe is Bertye Lou Wood who was the dance captain at the Apollo in the 1930s where they first met; she formed the Silver Belles in 1986. She has a lively sense of humor and an indomitable will even when slowed down by a broken hip. Bertye led the women in the Apollo chorus line in a strike for higher wages and a week's vacation: it was the first strike for black performers. Even though she can't dance anymore at 96, she provides inspiration for the Silver Belles.
Cleo Hayes escaped from rural Mississippi and got her first job dancing at the Grand Terrace with Earl Hines. In 1934, she made it big in New York when she was hired as an "Apollo Rockette" at the new Apollo Theatre. That was followed by a stint at the Cotton Club. Hayes reminisces about traveling in South America and her work with the first black USO unit in World War II where she was subjected to terrible racial prejudice. Her recuperative skills are tested when she falls down some subway stairs; after extensive rehabilitation, she returns to dancing with the Silver Belles.
Marion Coles is a real trooper who now dances with a heart pacemaker. She grew up in Harlem and in 1936 joined the Apollo's Number One Chorus Line. Coles now passes on her knowledge to young dance teachers who are eager to pick up the skills she accumulated through the years. Her friends know that her enthusiasm for dance knows no boundaries. They say of her: "Dance, dance, dance, she'd dance all day if she could."
Fay Ray at 84 is a resilient survivor who left home in Louisiana at the age of 12. She joined the vaudeville circuit and later went on to work with some of the most accomplished dancers in America. During World War II, Ray became a certified welder; in the 1960s, she traveled with USO shows. She later added two other jobs to her varied resume: driving a taxi in New York City and working on the pipeline in Alaska. At one point Ray says: "I light up like a Christmas tree when I go out there, the right music will just push you."
Elaine Ellis, at 86, is a buoyant woman who started her dance career at The Cotton Club and moved on to Café Zanzibar, Club Mimo, and the Apollo. She has battled cancer twice and even managed to attend rehearsals after her radiation treatments.
A final member of the Silver Belles team is Geri Kennedy, manager of the group who has a great fondness for these women and their amazing careers and talent. She wants their histories and current accomplishments to be known to the world. This documentary is a wonderful step in that right direction.
