QUEEN CITY STAGES* PROFESSIONAL DRAMATIC ACTIVITY IN CINCINNATI, 1837 - 1861 DISSERTATION Presented In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy In the Graduate School of the Ohio State University By JAMES FRANCIS DUNLAP, B. S. In Si., A. M. The Ohio State University 195* Approved hyt Dr. John H« McDowell) TABLE OF CONTENTS C HAPTER PAGE I INTRODUCTION...................... 1 Statement of the problem...... 1 Importance of the study....... 2 Organization of the study 3 The chronological listing of playbills................... 11 II BACKGROUNDS....................... 18 III THE PERIOD 1845-1850............. 25 Theatrical highlights......... 25 Analysis of plays............. 38 Works by local playwrights.... 63 Playbills for the period...... 77 IV THE PERIOD 1851-1858............. 903 Theatrical highlights......... 903 Analysis of plays...............9X4 Works by local playwrights.... 941 Playbills for the period....... 959 V THE PERIOD 1859-1861.............1680 Theatrical highlights......... 1680 Analysis of plays..............1696 Works by local playwrights....1731 VI CONCLUSION........................ 1740 Playbills for 1859-1861....... 1758 1 A TABLE OF CONTENTS (cont'd) PAGE BIBLIOGRAPHY.................................... 2043 APPENDIX........................................ 2053 I - Unlisted American plays performed in Cincinnati, 1845-1861........ 2053 II - All dramatic entertainments, by title, 1845-1861................. 2065 III - Playwrights and composers and their works performed in Cincinnati, 1845-1861............2098 II LIST CF TABLES TABLE PAG-E I - Popular melodramas, 1845-1850........ 40 II - Popular farces, 1845-1850............. 43 III - Popular melodramatic spectacles, 1845-1850............................... 45 IV - All classic plays, 1845-1850......... 48 V - Popular comedies, 1845-1850........... 53 VI - All tragedies, 1845-1850.............. 56 VII - All burlesques, 1845-1850............ 59 VIII- All music dramas, 1845-1850..... 61 IX - Longest consecutive runs, 1845-1850... 64 X - Performance totals, 1845-1850......... 73 XI - Popular melodramas, 1851-1858...... 914 XII - Popular farces, 1851-1858............. 921 XIII - Popular melodramatic spectacles, 1851-1858............................... 924 XIV - All classic plays, 1851-1858......... 929 XV - Popular comedies, 1851-1858........... 933 XVI - All tragedies, 1851-1858.............. 935 XVII - All burlesques, 1851-1858............. 937 XVIII - All music dramas, 1851-1858........... 939 XIX - Longest consecutive runs, 1851-1858... 942 XX - Performance totals, 1851-1858......... 944 XXI - Popular melodramas, 1859-1861......... 1698 ill LIST OF TABLES (cont’d) TABLE PAGE XXII - Popular farces, 1859-1861............ 1709 XXIII - Popular melodramatic spectacles, 1859-1861...............................1711 XXIV - All classic plays, 1859-1861......... 1715 XXV - Popular comedies, 1859-1861.......... 1721 XXVI - All tragedies, 1859-1861............. 1723 XXVII - All burlesques, 1859-1861............ 1725 XXVIII - All music dramas, 1859-1861.......... 1726 XXIX - Longest consecutive runs, 1859-1861. • 1728 XXX - Performance totals, 185^-1861........ 1736 XXXI — Total number of plays, by category, 1845-1861................... 1738 XXXII - Three most popular plays, by individual title and from each category, 1845-1861................... 1739 iv LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE PAGE 1. Handbills for (a) the night of February 20, I860, at Wood1s Theatre, and (b) the premiere performance at the new Atheneum Theatre on April 26, I8 A7 ....... 12 2. Handbills for (a) the performance on October 14, 1857 at Wood’s Theatre, and (b) the performance at the National Theatre on November 19, 1859**•• 13 3« John Bates, builder and owner of the National Theatre......................... 19 4. The National Theatre as it appeared In 1858................................... 28 5* Location of the People’s Theatre, leased by William Shires, 1842-1846... 29 6* Advertisement for the "Great Buffalo Hunt", June 25, 1851............................ 907 7. Exterior of Wood’s Theatre as it appeared after being rebuilt in 1856.. 913 8. Exterior of Pike’s opera-house, 1859... 1683 9. The stage of Pike's opera-house as it appeared In 1866, when the theatre was rebuilt following a fire in March of that year.................................1684 v FOREWORD The efforts involved in this study of early dramatic activity in Cincinnati have been made more interesting and enjoyable because I began the study with a warm personal feeling toward both the city and its theatre. It was on a Cincinnati stage that I first saw a professional play, an opera, and a ballet. At the Taft Auditorium or the Cox Theatre I have seen many more. To do research in an era when the National, the People's, the Atheneum, and Wood's thea­ tres, together with Pike's Opera House, were entertainment centers in the "Queen City of the West" has served to deepen my regard for the theatre and the city* From the moment the writer of a dissertation begins his research to the end of the very last page, he realizes how dependent he is, at every stage of the work, on the aid and kindnesses of many people. He cannot name them all. On my list, I cannot omit grateful mention of the particular help given me by the followings my advisers at the University, Dr. John H. McDowell and Dr. Charles J. McGaw, of the De­ partment of Speech, for their pertinent comments and sug­ gestions both in the formative and later stages of the dissertation, and Dr* Harold R. Walley, of the Department of English, for his interest and most generous guidance during all phases of the study; the Staff of the Ohio Historical and Philosophical Society, in Cincinnati, and particularly vi « the librarian, Mrs. Alice P. Hook, for her enthusiastic interest in my subject and untiring aid with it; the Staff of the library of the Ohio State Archaeological and Histor­ ical Society, in Columbus, and especially Mrs. Marian Bates and the assistants who so willingly brought out all those newspaper files; Mrs. Herbert Kight, Mrs. Albert G. Parker, Jr., and Miss Margaret Mary Christin, for their life-saving and last-minute donations of hands and minds; and, finally, to my wife and our parents, who gave a very special brand of assistance, and in more ways than they know. Vii o NOTE: Tli® chronological listings of playbills for all theatres in operation during the years l&^-l&^l, the basis of re sear oh for this study, have not been bound with the dissertation* Pages 77*902; 959-1679; and 1759-204o, whioh are the chronological listings, may be found in the following looatlons: The library of the Ohio His­ torical and Philosophlcal Society in Cincinnati; The library of the Ohio State Archeologloal and Historical Society in Columbus; and the Ohio State University Theatre Collection, In the Main Library of tbs University* viii 1 CHAPTER I - I?':TRCDl. C'i'IOI'i What follows is a study, presented in partial fulfillment of tne requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, of one aspect of the history of theatre in Cincinnati, Ohio, from 1837 to 1861. This study, which deals with plays and other dramatic entertainments given in regular theatres, is part of a larger body of research covering all phases of Cincinnati's theatre history for the above years. The extent and colorfulness of professional dramatic activity in the Queen City during the 1837-1861 period require a more detailed examination than is appropriate here. The writer intends to present an enlarged account in the near future, using material upon which this study has been based as a point of departure. The purpose of this study is to contribute to the general body of knowledge of 19th century American theatre by (a) assembling and analysing bills of plays and their accompanying entertainments, previously uncollected, which were given in an important city on what was then America's western frontier, and (b) by presenting evidence found within those bills of native plays which have heretofore been lost or whose earlier performance dates have been unknown. In a narrower sense, the study adds to the history of Cincinnati itself. The rapid civic and economic growth of Cincinnati during the twenty years preceding the Civil War is well and generally known. The city*s position as a center of theatre activity during those years is not. Belief in the value of that dramatic activity led to the selection of Cincinnati for the study. Cincinnati in mid-19th century was the first major city west of the Alleghany Mountains. By virtue of Its position as a strategically located Ohio River port, it was an important commercial and social center and the largest city in the area. Theatre was an important element in Cincinnati life, both for its citizens as well as for the many visitors who stopped in the city while enroute by river steamer to Pittsburgh or New Orleans. Up to the present, this dramatic activity has not been made a part of the larger picture of 19th century American theatre history. The contribution made by Cincinnati theatre warrants its inclusion through a study of this kind. In addition to its extensiveness, theatre in Cincinnati offers an unusual situation for the a tudent interested in 19th century theatre history. Not only is he able to examine numerous shorter theatrical ventures of a varied nature, but he may also trace a single theatre in continuous operation over a period of twenty-four years covered by this study. This is a rare opportunity in an era characterized by brief terms of management. Cincinnati also makes available a picture of American provincial theatre in a unique locale, a kind of neutral territory--neither definitely north, south, nor west, but rather bordering on those sections. A final but most pertinent indication of the importance of theatrical activity In Cincinnati lies in a collection of plays produced on Queen City stages during the years 1845-1361 and not known elsewhere. These dramas are of two general types: (a) works by either local playwrights or actors who spent much or their careers in Cincinnati, and (b) anonymous plays which give strong evidence, through subject matter, character names, or newspaper accounts, of being American in origin.