1. Discuss the French Royal Theatre.
2. Discuss the rise of Realism and Naturalism.
4. Discuss the history of the American Musical Theatre.
5. Discuss the Current Theatre.
3. Discuss the history of threatre in America.
As mentioned earlier, America did not have a truly American theatre until the beginning of the twentieth century, but that does not mean that threatre did not exist in America prior to that time, even though there are few surviving records of early theatrical performances in America. The main obstacle to the quick development of theatre in America was from the opposition of the Puritans. The Pilgrim Fathers who landed at Plymouth Rock in 1620, had a strong hatred for all aspects of English life associated with loose living, and theatre was among their dislikes. There are recorded of only a few spasmodic performances of plays for the remainder of the seventeenth century, and by the time strolling players began arriving from England, the populace was still sharply divided for and against theatre.
In the beginning, theatre had much oppositions and began to disguise itself as dramatic readings around 1702. In 1709, the Governor's council of New York forbade "play-acting and prize fighting" altogether. However, in 1716, at Williamsburg, then the capital of Virginia, the first theatre building was contracted and build - though we know little of the performances that took place. As the population increased, amateur performances were given in any building that would suffice. By 1736, students at William and Mary College were producing plays, starting with the tragedy of Cato, which became one of the most popular tragic plays in America during the eighteenth century. This was soon followed by other productions, such as The Busybody, The Recruiting Officer, and The Beaux' Stratagem; all of which were fashionable plays in London at the time. But what contributed most to the growth of theatre in America, was the arrival of English touring companies, especially the ones that settled in staying here. By the middle of the century, theatres were established in Charleston, Philadelphia, New York, and Baltimore.
In 1670, the founders of Charleston, were noblemen with a charter from Charles II, and by no means were prejudice against theatre. By 1735, a variety of plays and operas were being performed, even though Charleston did not have a theatre until 1751. The Charleston theatre was built by Walter Murray and Thomas Kean, a company out of New York. Their success paved the way for the arrival of William and Lewis Hallam from England, whose financial misfortune in England made it advantageous to bring their entire company to the "Western Wilderness."
In 1752, the Hallam Company arrived at Yorktown and set off for Williamsburg where they converted a storehouse to a theatre and opened on 5 September 1752. The company was a great success and toured up through Annapolis, the Maryland area, and arrived in New York. Hallam decided to take his company to Philadelphia, but he would have to overcome a strong Quaker element that equally divided the city. He was able to secure permission from the Governor to perform, but he would not have the same luck in many other cities that had opposition to theatre; nonetheless, the supporting citizens would address the issue to London and reverse the anti-theatre decision. This means of support was unfortunate, in that it made the theatre a weapon of political propaganda for the British government; thus, it is no wonder that the first Continental Congress, on 24 October 1774, seemed to doom theatre by passing a law prohibiting stage performances, but after the Revolutionary War, President Washington put forth his support of the theatre. After the season in Philadelphia, Lewis Hallam purchased William's share in the company and took it to the West Indies, but after their arrival in the West Indies, Lewis fell ill and died leaving the company with no strong leader; thus, it drifted apart.
The widowed Mrs. Hallam met the actor and gentleman David Douglass in the West Indies. After marriage, in 1758, he brought her, her children, and some members of his original company, which was then the American Company, to New York. He was met with a blank refusal from the authorities to perform theatre, so instead, he used his building as an "'histrionic academy' in which he gave dissertation on subjects which were 'moral, instructive and entertaining'" (Cleaver 212). This only lasted a short time before he repetitioned the authorities and received permission for thirteen performances. The success of these performances established the reputation of the American Company, so Douglass did a long series of tours to Philadelphia, Newport, Williamsburg, and Annapolis. Douglas proved to be an efficient manager of his then prosperous company and contributed greatly to the establishment of theatre in America. In 1774, the then widower Douglas returned to New York to prepare for a new season, but the new Congress passed its law forbidding all public amusements; thus, the company packed up and left for the West Indies.
During the Revolutionary War, theatre was not fully suppressed, in fact, troops of both sides found relaxation in the stage. Many plays were performed by the occupying British, and even Washington's troops performed Cato during the long wait at Valley Forge. During the occupation of Boston by the British General, Burgoyne, who was also a playwright, many stage performances were given in the city. It was during a performance of his farce intended to ridicule the Yankee troops, The Blockade of Boston, that the play was interrupted by a sergeant announcing that the rebels have attacked the lines. "He was applauded for his very natural acting, and it was only after some time that it was discovered that he was in fact no actor..." (Cleaver 214). This was the attack that led to Burgonyne's surrender at Saratoga.
After the War, the professional actors slowly returned, at first to test the feelings and reception of the people. By 1786, Hallam with his new partner, John Henry, had returned with their company. They built a new theatre in Baltimore before moving to Richmond, Virginia and then returning through Philadelphia to New York. In Philadelphia, they once again met Quaker opposition, and so opened plays as "moral lectures," and billed She Stoops to Conquer as a "Lecture on the Disadvantages of Improper Education, Exemplified in the History of Tony Lumpkin."
During this period, various American authors were tried out by the company, but few performances were repeated. Oddly, a tragedy by Barnaby Bidwell, The Mercenary Match, was performed by students at Yale and was greeted with roars of laughter. William Dunlap was part of the American Company and later to become its manager as well as the first historian of the American stage. Upon Dunlap's return from London in 1787, he wrote his first play, but it was not produced - probably because it had no lead parts for the lead actors of the company. He was encouraged to produce his second, The Father of an Only Child, which was performed in September 1789, and well received.
Starting in 1791, arguments between actors, managers, and owners in the American Company caused it to split into such companies as the New American Company in New York; the New Exhibition Room in Boston, which would later become the Federal Street Theatre; and the Chestnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia. In its process to reorganize, the American Company, as well as each new company, would recruit talent from England; thus, not only increasing the number of theatres in the country, but also bringing in a flood of talent to fuel the growing interest and acceptance of theatre for the nineteenth century. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, the main capitals of drama were the cities of New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and Charleston; the secondary circuit was in such cities as Baltimore, Washington, Richmond, Savannah, and many of the Atlantic seaboard towns. But still during this time, the plays presented were old familiars - new plays were infrequent and not usually of any lasting merit. The issue of a play was not the play itself, but of the comparison of how parts were acted by one company or actor to another.
The nineteenth century was a time of expansion for the American theatre. Companies ventured up the Allegheny River and established theatres in Pittsburgh, they pushed down to Frankfort by way of the Ohio River and wagon, they flowed with the Mississippi to Nashville, Cincinnati, and New Orleans to give the French theatre competition, and they also moved into Alabama and St. Louis. In the 1820s, the American theatre began to be graced by great actors from abroad, such as Edmund Kean, Ira Aldridge, and William Charles Maceady. American theatre also began to produce its own native actors of status, such as Edwin Forrest (1806-1872) and the actress Charlette Cushman. Forrest is best remembered for his passionate renderings of Shakespeare's tragic heroes, but he achieved his greatest success in The Gladiator, written by the American playwright Montgomery Bird. Forrest's encouragement to other Philadelphia playwrights began the creation of American originals, one such being Metamora, by John Augustus Stone. Forrest sponsored a competition that produced the first original American tragedy, Last of the Wependoes.
Dion Boucicault is perhaps the most important figure in the American theartre during this era. At the age of nineteen, he achieved instant success with his play London Assurance in London. He not only wrote plays, but also performed in most of them. He came to America with his wife, Agnes Roberston, in 1853, where they appeared together in many of the leading companies. In 1855, he produced Grimaldi, or the Life of an Actress, in New Orleans. Soon he turned to domestic drama with such plays as The Sidewalks of New York and Ten Nights in a Bar Room. His most successful plays were aimed at his native Irish immigrants in such plays as The Colleen Bawn, Arragh-na-Pogue, and The Shaughraun. He was also instrumental in organizing fellow dramatists to help limit plagiarism.
It would be odd to discuss the history of theatre in America without mentioning perhaps the most important family in the American theatre, especially that of the nineteenth century - the Booths. Junius Brutus Booth, the first member of his family to be an actor, came to America in 1821, at the age of twenty-five. Although he had an erratic and temperamental disposition with possible mental instability, he enjoyed a successful career of theatre until his death. His sons, of which were Junius Brutus, Jr., Edwin Thomas, and John Wilkes, all faired well in the theatre. But the most remembered event of the Booths, occurred on the fateful night of 14 April 1865, when John Wilkes entered the Ford's Theatre and assassinated President Lincoln during Laura Keene's performance in Our American Cousin. This dastardly action forced Edwin into retirement until 1866, when he was persuaded to return by a faithful following. Edwin (1833-1893) is considered to be one of the first great American actors and one of the finest performers of Shakespeare's Hamlet.
By the middle of the nineteenth century, theatre was following the opening of new frontiers and the remarkable growth of cities. The California Gold Rush of 1849, helped establishe theatres on the Pacific Coast in such cities as San Francisco, Stockton, and Sacramento. In 1850, New York was a city of half a million inhabitant supporting no less than six theatres. Theatres were larger, seating up to four thousand, and employed more effective settings and greater realism. Gas lighting was more versatile, effective, and less dangerous than it had previously been. The use of limelight, perfected by Drummond, was also used for its brilliant white light. Finally in 1879, Thomas Alva Edison would supervise the installation of electric filament lamps at the Madison Square Theatre. By 1880, there were some 250 touring theatre companies playing in 5000 theatres across America.
In the last thirty years of the nineteenth century, changes in transportation by railways, improvements in education, and the growth, expansion, and increase of the population were all elements that forced theatre to change more towards a business. The manager became the most important figure in the theatre - treating the theatre as a business with potential gains and losses, taking advantage of all the implements that a business should in investments, costs, and advertisements. It was an era in which theatre began to organize in groups and unions and rivals - all out to make a buck. At the start of the twentieth century, many new theatres were being built, audiences increased their support and following, and the managers, actors, and playwrights made fortunes.
In the beginning of the twentieth century, new American writers had to learn the business of stagecraft, and so there developed several small groups of individuals, who were interested in serious writing and drama. These were groups of amateur actors, directors and designers that may have been lacking in technical skill, but replaced it with an infectious enthusiasm which pushed them forward with an ever improving standard of drama. Among them was the Harvard English Literature professor, George Pierce Baker, who tried without success, to have his "47 Workshop" drama course made into full academic acceptance. In 1925, he left for Yale, where he became professor of a newly created Department of Drama that eventually made graduate status. His efforts produced a pool of prominent actors, playwrights and directors for the American theatre in its rise to international status. Since then, colleges and universities have offered degrees in drama and actively produce public performances.
The Depression of 1932, was fatal to many theatre organization and guilds. It was during this difficult times that Hallie Flanagan directed the Federal Theatre Project aiding the theatre in many enterprises throughout the country. The countless productions she organized kept many an actor alive as well as uncovered an enormous potential for repertory theatres - though much ground was lost in the ensuing war. However, after the war, there was a significant development in theater in diversity, experimentation, innovation and an expanse of local urban theaters in many towns. Also from the Federal Theatre Project grew two notable shoots: the American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) and Orson Welles. The ANTA was established by a group of theatre lovers that had Congress pass a charter to incorporate. After W.W.II, ANTA began a vigorous campaign towards nationwide membership building up funds for long-range programs to encourage the theatre throughout the nation. Orson Welles was a true directorial genius who had worked with the Federal Theatre Project, but after its demise in 1939, he and John Housemand formed the Mercury Theatre. There they produced many modern-dressed productions and revivals as well as new styles. But the most memorable event of the Mercury theatre was its radio theatre performance of H. G. Wells's War of the Worlds, a production that truly gripped America.
Although the Mecca of theatre was considered to be Broadway, theatre by no means was restricted solely to the footlights of Broadway theatres. "The United States has never been without an extensive network of theaters" (Rehmer Past to Present). For decades, professional theatres that operated on significantly reduced budgets have operated in many of the nation's largest cites. During the 1950s and 1960s, the continuous movement away from the "big business of commercial theater" brought about the formation of non-Broadway theatre groups, universities and colleges would begin to provided extensive training programs and facilities, and Dinner Theaters would staged small-scale productions. In the 1950s, the term "off-Broadway" came to refer to these theatres that were found primarily in Greenwich Village and on the upper East and West sides of Manhattan. By the 1960s, an other group of theatres was recognized as "off-off-Broadway" theatres: a term referring to a semiprofessional or wholly amateur theatre located in sundrious facilities throughout the country. Many of these theatres flourished, such as the La Mama Experimental Theatre Club, the Judson Poets, and the New York Shakespeare Festival Public Theatre. The success and creative energies housed in these theatres, as well as the specialized group of devotees they attract, has pushed Broadway over as the source oasis of theatrical creativity.
Between Broadway and the non-Broadway theatres, there is a vast conglomeration of original scripts, classical revivals, musicals, import productions, thrillers, and comedies. Interesting and affordable theatre, promoted by an extensive mass media coverage in this modern age, have made the theatre season a centerpiece of American cultural activity. Most every town has at least one form of theatre available to its populace - if only by the means of Television's A&E stations.
1. Discuss the French Royal Theatre.
2. Discuss the rise of Realism and Naturalism.
3. Discuss the history of threatre in America.
4. Discuss the history of the American Musical Theatre.
5. Discuss the Current Theatre.