Dance in Film · 1934
King for a Day (1934)
Roy Mack's 21-minute Vitaphone short gives Bill Robinson a starring vehicle rather than a specialty interruption, making his tap dancer's struggle to own and headline a musical show the entire plot.
King for a Day is a 1934 dance film centred on ballroom and social dance. For dancers, it's a chance to see the style performed on screen — the phrasing, partnering, and musicality that the same dances carry onto a real floor.
Jump to the 5 dance sequences ↓
Where to watch: TCM's U.S. title page listed WATCH NOW on 2026-08-08, while Apple TV maintained a U.S. catalog page; access may require a participating television subscription and can change.
The dance sequences in King for a Day
5 sequences — what is danced, by whom, and where to find it.
Bill Robinson's Stomp
Tap dance / stompDanced by Bill Robinson; uncredited female chorus dancers
Robinson calling the women to attention, singing his newly written stomp, and dancing it with them.
Robinson turns the song into an instructional dance: the lyrics cue the chorus while his own rhythmic demonstration modernizes the fictional revue. The number makes teaching, authorship, and performance part of the same scene.
Stream or rental only. No edition-specific timestamp or verified scene choreographer was found. TCM lists a 21-minute Watch TCM title page; availability is recorded under the closest allowed enum, rental, although access may require an authenticated television provider rather than an à-la-carte rental. No independently verified LODance Legend slug was found. The Smithsonian identifies Robinson's vocals and dance; the detailed scene review confirms the chorus instruction. Tap dance / stomp is not an exact dance_key in the validated taxonomy.
Brown's Black Orchids chorus rehearsal
Tap danceDanced by uncredited chorus dancers
Chorus dancers tapping in two lines through a doorway while the producer orders Bill kept out.
The two-line rehearsal establishes tap as the show's working language before Bill Green is denied an audition, giving the ensemble a clear dramatic function rather than treating it as background decoration.
Stream or rental only. No edition-specific timestamp or verified scene choreographer was found. TCM lists a 21-minute Watch TCM title page; availability is recorded under the closest allowed enum, rental, although access may require an authenticated television provider rather than an à-la-carte rental. No independently verified LODance Legend slug was found. Generic Tap dance is not an exact dance_key in the validated taxonomy.
Four-song Bill Robinson tap medley
Tap dance (Bill Robinson's old-time style)Danced by Bill Robinson
Robinson's extended solo moving through Old Folks at Home, Old Black Joe, (There Are) Smiles, and Love's Old Sweet Song.
The sustained medley lets Robinson vary weight, tempo, direction, and rhythmic attack across four familiar songs without breaking theatrical momentum. Its musical phrasing makes his feet the primary instrument.
Stream or rental only. No edition-specific timestamp or verified scene choreographer was found. TCM lists a 21-minute Watch TCM title page; availability is recorded under the closest allowed enum, rental, although access may require an authenticated television provider rather than an à-la-carte rental. No independently verified LODance Legend slug was found. The Smithsonian lists the four dances individually, while the detailed review describes them as one continuous medley; they are therefore retained as one scene. Generic Tap dance is not an exact dance_key in the validated taxonomy.
Got the Jitters shadow dance
Theatrical ensemble danceDanced by uncredited ensemble dancers
Ghostlike dancers entering beneath looming shadows during the instrumental break.
At the instrumental break, hunched dancers and enlarged shadows transform a city-street song into an expressionistic movement interlude. The silhouettes give the otherwise unnamed ensemble a precise visual and dramatic identity.
Stream or rental only. No edition-specific timestamp or verified scene choreographer was found. TCM lists a 21-minute Watch TCM title page; availability is recorded under the closest allowed enum, rental, although access may require an authenticated television provider rather than an à-la-carte rental. No independently verified LODance Legend slug was found. The Smithsonian credits “Got the Jitters” vocals to Hattie Noel, while the detailed scene review names Babe Matthews; the conflict is retained and no vocalist is listed as a dance performer. Theatrical ensemble dance is not an exact dance_key in the validated taxonomy.
Harlem Honeymoon / A Harlem Wedding finale
Theatrical ensemble danceDanced by Bill Robinson; Muriel Rahn; Hattie Noel; uncredited chorus dancers
Victorian gowns and parasols, a bride and groom framed by the chorus, dancing breaking out everywhere, and a stork arriving with a baby.
The finale stages a wedding between two rows of chorus dancers, then expands into an all-company celebration. Props, costume, and massed movement turn the short's last production number into a compact theatrical spectacle.
Stream or rental only. No edition-specific timestamp or verified scene choreographer was found. TCM lists a 21-minute Watch TCM title page; availability is recorded under the closest allowed enum, rental, although access may require an authenticated television provider rather than an à-la-carte rental. No independently verified LODance Legend slug was found. The Smithsonian catalog calls the group number “Harlem Honeymoon”; the detailed scene review calls it “A Harlem Wedding.” Both titles are retained rather than silently reconciled. Theatrical ensemble dance is not an exact dance_key in the validated taxonomy.
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