The Tiller Girls were among the most popular dance troupes of the 1900s, first formed by John Tiller in Manchester, England, in 1890. Whilst on visits to the theatre, Tiller had noticed the overall effect of a chorus of dancers was often spoiled by lack of discipline. Tiller found that by linking arms the dancers could dance as one; he is credited with inventing precision dance. Possibly most famous for their high-kicking routines, the Tiller Girls were highly trained and precise.
John Tiller's first dancers performed as 'Les Jolies Petites'. He originally formed the group the pantomime 'Robinson Crusoe' subtitled 'The Good Friday That Came On A Saturday' in 1890 at the Prince of Wales Theatre, Liverpool. and from this were founded the Tiller School of dancing and the Tiller Girl troupes. The number of troupes grew to dozens, and their fame spread around the world. The troupes were all slightly different, but within each troupe the girls were matched very precisely for height and weight. Individuality within the troupes was discouraged in favour of a strong group ethic. The Tillers performed as resident dancers at the Folies Bergère in Paris, the London Palladium, the Palace Theatres in Manchester and in London (as the Palace Girls or Sunshine Girls), the Blackpool Winter Gardens, on New York's Broadway, where Tiller had a dance school, and at hundreds of other theatres over the British Isles, the Continent and the United States.
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The Tiller Girls performed a 'Tap and Kick' routine, which was originally called 'Fancy-Dancing' but today is known as 'Precision Dancing'. The routines may consist of straight lines or geometric figures. Every tap and kick troupe has tried to steer away from Tiller's arrangements, but sooner or later conforms to Tiller's methods.
Siegfried Kracauer stated in 1923, "These 76 energetic women dance about in geometric shapes: the regularity of their patterns is cheered by the masses, themselves arranged by the stands in tier upon ordered tier."
In certain shows a Tiller line-up could be as many as 32 girls who were selected for uniform height and weight. In 1923 the stage play Nifties of 1923 featured twelve Tiller Girls.
After John Tiller's death in 1925 the U.K. Tiller schools were kept alive first by his wife Jennie Tiller, then by some of the head girls. (The U.S. Tiller school in New York City was continued under the leadership of Mary Read until 1935.[1]) However, as attitudes changed in the early 1970s so did dance, and the precision kicking routines of The Tillers were considered dated. For the first time since their inception the popularity of Tillers waned. However, the legend was to be kept alive by the very ladies that retired in the late 1960s and early 70s. In 1989, following a request by the Parkinsons Society to Mrs Sandy Jones, herself an ex Tiller Girl, a line-up of the original 1950s and 1960s Tiller Girls was organised, and the ladies returned to the stage for a benefit performance to aid the actor Terry-Thomas. This unexpected comeback and the resultant publicity that ensued led to the formation of The 1960s Tiller Girls under the stewardship of Bruce Vincent and resident choreographer and original Head Girl Wendy Clarke. The 1960s Tillers continued kicking for over 300 shows at theatres and on television, many at the London Palladium and prestigious charitable events all over the UK, including 40 Glorious Years (for HRH The Queen), and were semi-adopted by Lily Savage, aka Paul O'Grady, for his shows and videos in the 1990s. The ladies announced their retirement in April 2009, on The Paul O'Grady Show, after having danced with the current hot band of America and teen idols, the Jonas Brothers. At that time most of the ladies were in their mid to late 60s and early 70s in age. The last official routine was held at the London Palladium, the girls' official home, at the end of 2008, at a benefit for ex-servicemen.
The Radio City Music Hall Rockettes, an American dance troupe, follow and keep alive the Tiller Girls tradition of high-kicking precision dancing.
Russell Markert, founder of The Rockettes, reminisced:
"I had seen the Tiller girls in the Ziegfeld Follies of 1922. If I ever got a chance to get a group of American girls who would be taller and have longer legs and could do really complicated tap routines and eye-high kicks, they'd knock your socks off!"
Many a Tiller girl would be a little offended at this remark, as many of the Tiller Ballet and Tap Routines have never been replicated with such precision. However the Rockettes Kick routines today are precision dance at its very best, original and real entertainment.
The Rockettes first kicked to life in 1925 as the "Missouri Rockets" and made their show business debut in St. Louis, the realization of a long-time dream of their creator, Russell Markert.
It is known that some of the Tiller Girls and American girls who trained with Mary Read were also involved in the Rockettes. One girl, Lily Smart, who trained with the Tiller School of Dance in Manchester and was with the 1922 troupe in the Ziegfeld Follies, settled in America and joined the Rockettes, performing with them for many years. Russell Markert added his own style to the Precision Dance routines; this found its way back to the Tiller girls in the United Kingdom.
Girls that had visited the USA during the late 1930s and 40s danced for the troops and liked the American style of dancing and the costumes with headdresses that they saw. American films also showed showgirls and had a big impact on the British audience. From the late 1940s through the 1970s the Tiller girls adopted a lot of the American showgirl styles that could trace their roots back to “Les Folies-Bergère” in the late 1890s.