Davies was so impressed with Hinton Battle's performance on Broadway in The Wiz that he asked Battle to play the demon Sweet.
The cast also includes Christine Andreas and Hinton Battle.
"It's a little harder," said Hinton Battle, who played James Early in the original cast and who appears as Wayne in the screen version.
Hinton Battle ("Circle of Life" from The Lion King)
This eventually led her to Broadway, where she debuted in The Tap Dance Kid starring Hinton Battle.
Hinton Battle remains the most successful performer in the history of this category with a perfect score of three wins in three nominations.
The film's dance numbers, choreographed by Hinton Battle, also feature many period dances, primarily the jitterbug.
Its New York run was directed by Bond and Hinton Battle, who also choreographed the show.
The film also has some explosively entertaining dance numbers, in which Hinton Battle plays Bill (Bojangles) Robinson.
Hinton Battle (born November 29, 1956) is an American actor, dancer, and dance instructor.