Vaudeville

Vaudeville, term for variety shows deriving from Vau de Vire, a French valley and source of 15th-century songs, or from voix de ville, French street songs. It was applied from the 1880s to U.S. shows with musical, comic, dramatic, acrobatic, and juggling acts. Noted artists included Eddie Cantor, Will Rogers, and W. C. Fields. Vaudeville declined in the 1930s.