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minstrel show

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noun
  1. a once popular type of stage show featuring comic dialogue, song, and dance in highly conventionalized patterns, performed by a troupe of actors traditionally comprising two end men, a chorus in blackface, and an interlocutor. Developed in the U.S. in the 19th century, this entertainment portrayed negative racial stereotypes and declined in popularity in the 20th century.
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Origin of minstrel show

An Americanism dating back to 1865–70
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for minstrel show

Historical Examples

  • Then there are stories of recent times in which the Negro is used purely for comic effect, a sort of minstrel-show character.

    Americans All

    Various

British Dictionary definitions for minstrel show

minstrel show

noun
  1. a theatrical entertainment consisting of songs, dances, comic turns, etc, performed by a troupe of actors wearing black face make-up
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012