Banvard’s Opera House

Event Information

Venue(s):
Banvard's Opera House [JUNE 1867-]

Price: $ .30; $.15 for children

Event Type:
Variety / Vaudeville

Record Information

Status:
Published

Last Updated:
26 May 2016

Performance Date(s) and Time(s)

08 Jul 1867, 8:00 PM
09 Jul 1867, 8:00 PM
10 Jul 1867, 8:00 PM
11 Jul 1867, 8:00 PM
12 Jul 1867, 8:00 PM
13 Jul 1867, 8:00 PM

Program Details

Panorama, dancing puppets, songs, “fancy dance,” magic (Prof. Logrenia), trained birds, mice, and cat, farce.

Performers and/or Works Performed

Citations

1)
Advertisement: New York Herald, 07 July 1867.
2)
Advertisement: New-York Times, 08 July 1867, 7.
3)
Review: New-York Times, 10 July 1867, 4.

“This house of entertainment appears, just now, to be 'all things to all 'men,'—and that must be a singular disposition which will not find some item in Mr. BANVARD'S altered programme to chime with its taste. The budget of amusement is opened with a panoramic representation of the Mississippi during the late war—in which the artist betrays his sanguine temperament in the liberal distribution of red over the scenes of blood and blazes, which rather monotonously constitute the long picture. This is succeeded by a brief exhibition of dancing puppets or automata. These little wooden actors, in the abstract, give great pleasure, and are much applauded. We have seen wooden actors in the concrete (flesh and blood) who have been much worse. The secret of the success of the automata is, doubtless, to be ascribed to their honesty. There is no sham about them. They are sticks passing for what they are, and not pretending to be anything else. After the puppets, there is a song by Mr. DUFFIELD, a gentleman, upon whose jocund face humor seems to have an easier seat than sentiment. Mr. DUFFIELD is succeeded by a girlish infant, who recited some harrowing verses of rapine and death; and this sad little creature is followed by the traditional 'fancy dance' by the customary thin, pale girl with the very dreamy step and the very conventional smile. Then we have another song about love from Miss STOCQUELER, and then more of the same, on the same subject, by Mr. DUFFIELD and Miss STOCQUELER together, who woo in verse with much ardor, mutually-agreeable, we should judge, expressed to the mild inspiration of one harmless piano. Upon these many things the curtain then descends for a brief airing of its striped beauties, to rearise upon the mysterious cabinet of Prof. LOGRENIA—a disciple of MACALLISTER, ANDERSON, and the other old-fashioned practitioners of magic in its infancy. This gentleman uses the primitive vases and canisters, and contents himself with transforming bran into birds and beans into handkerchiefs. He has a ready tongue, like most of his countrymen, for notwithstanding his name, the Professor has probably seen more of the Shannon than the Arne. In addition to the magic there is an exhibition of trained birds, mice and one cat, in which these little creatures are made to draw toy wagons, fire cannon and walk tight-ropes. This part of the entertainment must bring rare delight to those who think these tiny prisoners ought to be made earn their sustenance and endure their confinement too, as the culprits in our penitentiaries do—by hard labor. The entertainments at the Museum are finally concluded by a farce, which not being given by the real puppets, is not strictly entertaining.”

4)
Advertisement: New York Clipper, 13 July 1867, 111.
5)
Review: New York Clipper, 20 July 1867, 118, 3d col., top.

No mention of music.