Article on the early departure of the Strakosch Italian Opera Company for Philadelphia

“With the present week, the performances of Mr. Strakosch’s company at the Academy of Music are to terminate. It was intended that the season should extend over four additional representations, but the inducements to at once visit Philadelphia were so great that the promise of New-York was considered small by comparison and a determination to sacrifice the Metropolis was promptly arrived at. Without commenting at length upon a subject of which it is unpleasant enough to have to recognize the existence, we may briefly express the opinion that if the New-York public does not speedily show a stronger desire to encourage first-rate entertainments in general, and musical performance of the best kind in particular, it will soon have to forego both. Managers are realizing that short series of representations in the large cities of the East and West are infinitely more profitable than attempts to gratify the capricious tastes of the cosmopolitan audiences of this City, who are as thankless for the efforts of an honest and ambitious manager to please and edify them as less pretentious theatre-goers elsewhere are grateful for them. When we have to go to Boston or Philadelphia for opera we shall perhaps awake to the fact that a mistake has been made. There is no doubt, in our judgment, that a long spell of experience of this sort is approaching.”