Sitting Bull Crystal Cavern Dance Pavilion Traditional Cache

Black Elk (left), while touring with Buffalo Bill's troupe in 1887

Alex Duhamel and his sons Pete and Bud helped build the pavilion, which was completed in 1934. A tipi-shaped building was constructed outside the hall to be used for ticket sales. A model of a traditional Lakota village, called the Sioux Indian Village, was also set up at this time next to the pavilion. Guests could walk through this village and interact with performers from the show; tribe members also sold their own wares here, which were available for purchase. Sitting Bull's name was appended to the attraction in honor of the late chief; one of the pageant performers was his nephew, John Sitting Bull.

Public performances were held twice daily—once in the morning and again in the evening—during the summer months from 1934 to 1957. Performers stayed at a private campsite on the grounds behind the village and proceeded from there to the pavilion, led by Alex and Peter Duhamel. Peter was also the original translator and emcee for the event. The pageant consisted of traditional Lakota ceremonies, led by Black Elk himself, which included healing, holy pipe, burial, and mourning rituals. Dances included the Ghost Dance, Sun Dance, and a Rabbit Dance, the latter of which the public was invited to participate in. New ceremonies were introduced for special occasions or to attract fresh publicity; an advertisement from 1940 promoted a "dog feed", in which the Lakota would roast and prepare a dog for a feast; and a "horse dance", which used horses to represent the four directions of the Earth. At the end of each performance, a hat was passed around for donations, and those proceeds went directly to the performers.

The 1883 Code of Indian Offenses had prohibited Native Americans—particularly the Lakota—from performing most of these rituals and dances, including the Ghost and Sun Dances, and was especially enforced after the Ghost Dance War and subsequent Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890. Thus, when the Sioux Falls Dance Pageant began performing in 1927, its ceremonies were technically illegal under United States law, until the repeal of this ban later in 1934. A 1940s advertisement claimed that the pageant had received "special permission" from the federal government to continue.

Traveling shows were also performed in Rapid City and across the Midwest. Once a day during the summer months, a group of dancers would perform outside the Duhamels' downtown mercantile store or at Baken Park in Rapid City; the downtown performances were later canceled due to traffic concerns. Other cities where shows were performed included Omaha, Nebraska; and Cedar Falls, Iowa in 1938. Chief Red Bear joined the group at their Cedar Falls shows; he and Black Elk also spoke about their experience at the Wounded Knee Massacre there.

After the outbreak of World War II, the deaths of both Alex and Peter Duhamel in 1941, and Black Elk's death in 1950, interest in the pageant waned. Bud Duhamel had taken over operations after the deaths of his father and brother. Black Elk had retired some years prior to his death, and it became difficult for the Duhamels to find Lakota who were willing to perform after his departure from the show. The Duhamel Sioux Indian Pageant eventually closed in 1957. Bud Duhamel continued to operate the Sitting Bull Crystal Caverns until 1998; the caverns themselves were open to public tours until 2015. Today, the dance pavilion is used as storage space. On December 14, 1995, the pavilion was added to the National Register of Historic Places for its cultural and religious significance, contribution to Lakota history, and its association with Black Elk.