A Look Back At 100 Years of the Rockettes: Rare Photos and A Deep Dive Into The Dance Troupe’s History

It’s been 100 years of high kicks, precise dance routines and Christmas magic thanks to the world-famous dance company, the Rockettes. The group is synonymous with the holiday season, known best for their incredible—well, spectacular—show, The Christmas Spectacular.

But the dancers have appeared at many of your favorite entertainment events, like the Tony Awards, Saturday Night Live and the MTV Video Music Awards, to name a few. Learn more about the early days of the Rockettes, including how they became the renowned group of dancers they are today.

The Rockettes weren’t always the Rockettes

Today, everyone knows the iconic dancers as the Rockettes, a group that is beloved for putting on holiday performances at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall. But they didn’t start out in New York City, and they weren’t always known as the Rockettes.

In 1925, 16 female dancers were chosen for a dance troupe by Russell Markert after he witnessed the precise, coordinated dances of the theatrical group the Ziegfeld Follies. Markert was inspired to create a similar dance troupe, and so the group was formed in St. Louis, Missouri and subsequently named the Missouri Rockets.

Two years after their formation, they were acquired by Samuel “Roxy” Rothafel. He and Markert relocated the dancers to New York City, and they were officially renamed the Roxyettes. By 1932, Radio City Music Hall became their permanent home, where they received their new and current name: The Rockettes.

The ‘Christmas Spectacular’ begins

One of the most renowned recurring performances ever is the Rockettes Radio City Christmas Spectacular, which debuted in 1933. Each year, the joyful 90-minute show runs for about two months, from the beginning of November to just after New Year’s.

The Christmas Spectacular, which was created by Leon Leonidoff and Vincente Minnelli, began on December 21, 1933, and originally ran for a period of 14 days. These early performances were slightly different from what you know today, as they were performed alongside films such as Flying Down to Rio (1933) and Walt Disney’s The Night Before Christmas (1933). The original show also featured different dance numbers, but one that has remained over the years is the beloved “Parade of the Wooden Shoulders.”

Although the show is known for bringing cheer during the holiday season, the atmosphere outside of Radio City at the time of its inception was anything but joyous. The show premiered about four years into the Great Depression, a time of economic decline, poverty and unemployment. The show was created as an antidote to that, bringing holiday cheer and lifting the spirits of audiences who were living through that difficult period of time. Of course, it was also a tactic designed to bring in said audience to the newly opened Radio City Music Hall, but the Christmas Spectacular also introduced an enjoyable holiday tradition for folks that has been ongoing ever since.

The Christmas Spectacular was reimagined in 2008 for its 75th Anniversary, with every piece of the show being updated, from new dance numbers to an additional 10 dazzling costumes.

The Rockettes perform at other events

Although they are mostly linked to the Christmas Spectacular, the Rockettes have become a staple for many other holiday traditions and big events everywhere.

In 1940, the Rockettes became one of the first performers to entertain the United States Organizations (USO), eventually leading to the creation of USO Shows in 1941. Their initial performance took place shortly after the beginning of World War II and was meant to boost morale and bring a bit of joy to the troops.

Seventeen years later, the Rockettes made their debut at the 1957 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, something that the group is still known for today. This was another way to increase the Rockettes’ visibility and draw in even more audiences to their shows at Radio City, but the performance has become another holiday tradition.

Over the years, the Rockettes have performed at a number of pop culture events, among them presidential inaugurations and the 1988 Super Bowl Halftime Show, as well as many holiday and television specials.

The Rockettes have always been and will always be a source of entertainment for folks around the world and will continue to bring smiles 100 years after they first arrived.