At the time Bert Williams performed, American theatre was dominated by Vaudeville and minstrel shows, which required black performers to wear blackface and conform to strict racial stereotypes. The minstrel show was “one of the earliest, hardiest and most irrepressible entertainments on the American popular stage” (1). At the same time, Vaudeville incorporated the minstrel show into its frantic, nonstop entertainment, and its demanding audiences reinforced the strict racial tones of the minstrel show, as this was the type of character they expected on the stage. A contemporary of Williams described the theater environment as a place where “a [black] man with a banjo would draw almost as big a crowd as an elephant in a circus” (1).  Williams’ partner George Walker shared this sentiment, remarking, “no one credited a black person with the ability to act” (1). In this theater, the joke seemed to always fall on the black performer, but Bert Williams redefined the role of the scapegoat in the minstrel show in his essay, “The Comic Side of Trouble.” Williams argues, “Troubles are funny only when you pin them to one particular individual. And that individual, the fellow who is the goat, must be the man who is singing the song or telling the story” (5).  In this way of thinking, Williams acknowledges the fact that white performers make themselves the butt of jokes too, and that when done the right way, these jokes do not have to have a racial punchline. As can be seen from Williams’ challenge to the theatrical convention at the time, he faced much controversy when he first became a headliner in big-time vaudeville (3). In one instance, a racist white vaudevillians’ organization, the White Rats, protested his performance, causing many theater managers to change their advertisement billings to list Williams lower on the program, despite his status as the headliner (3).  The theatre was tainted by racism at this time, but despite all the forces working against him, Williams succeeded in breaking down social barriers and helping change convention to create a more inclusive, less stereotypical theatre.