Pepsi Bethel

Birthday: August 31, 1918

Death: August 30, 2002

Alfred “Pepsi” Bethel is best known for his mark on Authentic Jazz Dance as a performer and teacher in the mid-20th century. Bethel was one of few practitioners of authentic jazz dance in the post-big band/swing era. His career thrived in social, competitive, and professional venues including nightclubs such as the famed Savoy Ballroom, his self-formed Southland 400 Club, the Whitey’s Lindy Hoppers, and his Los Angeles based group The Jivadeers. In the 1970s Bethel extended his authentic jazz influence as a teacher with permanent teaching positions at the Alvin Ailey School and Clark Center for Performing Arts. Bethel became known for his unique approach to teaching, featuring a rhythmic delivery, an emphasis on individual expressiveness, live music, and combinations derived from authentic jazz dance movement vocabulary.