of mutual romantic interest. Sissle and Blake risked the public's rejection by shedding most of the racial stereotypes that had been the norm for theatrical performances. Creation "I'm Just Wild About Harry" underwent a complete rewrite during rehearsals and was nearly cut from the show. Blake's original version of the song was a Viennese waltz, but according to the authors of America's Songs, performer Lottie Gee encouraged rewriting the number as an up-tempo one-step. Blake disliked the suggestion and feared it would ruin his waltz but capitulated after Sissle agreed with Gee. Audiences did not respond well to the revised version during early performances. Blake was on the verge of dropping the number from the show when a dancer was taken ill and had to be replaced. The understudy was a singer who did not know the steps, so when he was unable to follow the routine he ignored it and improvised. America's Songs quotes Sissle's recollection of how the performance saved the song: "He dropped out of line and with a jive smile and a high-stepping routine of his own, he stopped the show cold." Structure Composer Alec Wilder calls "I'm Just Wild About Harry" a "strong, direct, simple song, the principal device of which is a strong fourth beat tied to the down beat". The song moves in short melodic bursts characteristic of the era: lighthearted but rhythmic. The tightly rhymed lyrics comprise a straightforward set of comparisons that border on comic exaggeration. Yet Furia and Lasser describe the song's overall impact as "an infectious delight". Within the context of the play, the number occurs early in the second act when the leading lady declares her love for the leading man. Her father is the wealthiest man in town, which poses obstacles to the match. The overall plot concerns a mayoral race in all-black Jimtown where two dishonest grocery store owners vie for political office. One of the corrupt grocers wins the race shortly afterward and appoints the other chief of police. Harry leads the community protest that returns the two grocers to their store, and wins the girl. Reception Shuffle Along was a significant theatrical success that "ended more than a decade of systematic exclusion of blacks from the Broadway stage". The show opened in New York City at Daly's 63rd Street Music Hall on May 23, 1921 and ran 504 performances. The venue was actually a