Article on the influence of burlesque opera on theatrical performances

Event Information

Venue(s):

Event Type:
Minstrel, Opera, Play With Music

Record Information

Status:
Published

Last Updated:
24 March 2025

Performance Date(s) and Time(s)

29 Oct 1873

Performers and/or Works Performed

1)
LIST OF PERFORMER(S)/ORGANIZATION(S)
Participants:  Bryants' Minstrels;  Lester Wallack;  Lotta Crabtree;  Joseph Kline Emmet;  Lydia [actress] Thompson;  Edward Askew Sothern

Citations

1)
Article: New York Sun, 29 October 1873, 2.
A very long article on what the author identifies as the unfortunate influence of burlesque opera on theatrical performances. It begins:
 
“The Idiotic Drama is the only name applicable to a certain kind of performance which has of late taken possession of the theatre. The burlesque operas of Offenbach are evidence of its influence over the lyric stage. The popularity of Mr. Emmet, Miss Lotta, Mr. Sothern, Miss Lydia Thompson, and other exhibit its progress in the drama. It is the natural child of burlesque by a negro minstrel; so it may be called a mulatto…”