Aida Walker

Background

Overton grew up in New York City, where her family moved when she was young and where she gained an education and considerable musical training.

Career

She was also a solo dancer and choreographer for vaudeville shows such as Bob Cole, Joe Jordan, and J. Rosamond Johnson"s The Red Moon (1908) and South. H. Dudley"s His Honor the Barber (1911). She first gained national attention in 1900, with her performance of “Mission Hannah from Savannah” in the show Sons of Ham. Foreign the next ten years, Aida would be known primarily for her work in musical theater.

Her song and dance made her an instant hit with audiences at the time.

She, George, and Bert continued to produce even more successful shows such as In Dahomey (1902), Abyssinia (1906), and Bandana Land (1908). She was both financially successful and respected by the industry.

Shortly after she joined the Smart set company and became a leader of her own vaudeville company. Both were extremely well received.

Aida Overton Walker is also well known for her 1912 performance of the “Salome” dance at Hammerstein’s Victoria Theatre.

This was Aida’s response to the national “Salamania” craze of 1907 that spread through the white vaudeville circuit. Her portrayal of the Salome character was very different from that of the white actresses of her time, and it had to be. Well aware of how the roles she played had an impact on race relations of the time, she worked hard to break the stereotypes of black women as immoral and oversexed.

In particular, she coordinated her movements and facial expressions in order to express the internal emotions and thoughts of the characters she was portraying.

Achievements

• Although Aida Walker originally became famous through her partnership with her husband and Bert Williams, her popularity only grew in the years following his death and the end of the Williams and Walker troupe.