English Opera Company: The Bohemian Girl

Event Information

Venue(s):
Olympic Theatre

Proprietor / Lessee:
Mrs. John Wood

Manager / Director:
Mrs. John Wood
Benjamin A. Baker

Conductor(s):
Anthony, Jr. Reiff

Event Type:
Opera

Record Information

Status:
Published

Last Updated:
24 September 2011

Performance Date(s) and Time(s)

18 Jul 1864, 8:00 PM
19 Jul 1864, 8:00 PM
20 Jul 1864, 8:00 PM
21 Jul 1864, 8:00 PM
22 Jul 1864, 8:00 PM
23 Jul 1864, 8:00 PM

Program Details

AD: NYH 07/20/1864 - “Castle, the favorite tenor, will sing ‘Fair land of Poland’ this evening.” No other mention of this song. Not clear if Castle sang it every night or only on Wednesday evening as advertised.

Balfe: The Bohemian Girl includes: “Pas seul” 1st act (Kruger)


Mrs. John Wood, lessee and director
Mr. Anthony Reiff, cond.
Mr. B.A. Baker, mgr.

Performers and/or Works Performed

1)
Participants:  English Opera Company [Mrs. John Wood];  Louisa Myers (role: Gipsy Queen);  G. Warren [bass] White (role: Devilshoof);  Mrs. N. E. Burroughs (role: Buda);  Annie Kruger;  William Castle (role: Thaddeus);  Sherwood C. Campbell (role: Count Arnheim);  Madame Comte Borchard (role: Arline);  Walter [minstrel, tenor] Birch (role: Florenstine)
2)
aka Zegeunerin; Zigeunerin
Composer(s): Balfe
Text Author: Bunn
3)
Participants:  Annie Kruger

Citations

1)
Announcement: New-York Times, 04 July 1864, 4.

      “[T]he house passes into the hands of an English opera company, composed of a portion of Mr. L F Harrison’s Philadelphia troupe. . . . [A]lthough not in the managerial confidence, we think we may safely announce that the ‘Bohemian Girl’ will speedily be produced.”

2)
Advertisement: New York Herald, 17 July 1864.

      Cast.  “During the first act of the Opera, ‘Pas Seul’ by Anna Kruger.”

3)
Announcement: New York Post, 17 July 1864, 2.

      “The English opera season at the Olympic Theatre is meeting with a success which does not always attend these enterprises.”

4)
Announcement: New-York Times, 18 July 1864.

      “Balfe’s inevitable ‘Bohemian Girl’ is to be produced to-night.  Although slightly hackneyed, it is more within the reach of the artists than Auber’s ‘Fra Diavolo.’”

5)
Advertisement: New-York Times, 18 July 1864.

6)
Review: New York Post, 19 July 1864, 2.

      “The ‘Bohemian Girl’ was given last night for the first time, and its well-known melodies fell gracefully on the ears of many who have for so long a time been accustomed to the more elaborate strains of the Italian composers.

     Madame Borchard sang acceptably as Arline, and Mr. Castle as Thaddeus and Mr. Campbell as the Count are worthy of all praise.  We have never heard the romanza, ‘The heart bowed down’ sang [sic] with greater feeling and expression than by Mr. Campbell; and Mr. Castle’s ‘Then you’ll remember me” and ‘The fair land of Poland’ were rendered in a manner that left nothing to be desired. Of the other characters little can be said, good or bad.  Mr. White as Devilshoof, and Miss Meyers as the Gipsey Queen, both looked and played their characters well; and Mr. Birch, who fortunately has very little music to sing, acted with considerable spirit.

     The chorus, mainly composed of singers from the academy, is passable, and the scenery beautiful, deserving great praise, and more so, as this part of the business is generally considered of minor importance—especially in English opera.”

7)
Advertisement: New York Herald, 20 July 1864.

      Adds Burroughs to the cast list.  Smaller ad says: “Castle, the favorite tenor, will sing ‘Fair land of Poland’ this evening.”

8)
Advertisement: New York Herald, 21 July 1864.

      “Every evening this week.”

9)
Announcement: New-York Daily Tribune, 21 July 1864, 6.

10)
Announcement: New York Clipper, 23 July 1864, 118.

      “Although ‘Chang Chow Foo has fallen,’ and ‘Delaware is aroused,’ yet the English Opera Troupe at Mrs. Wood’s Olympic are still singing their way to fame and greenbacks. . . . Take our advice and go hear the opera of the ‘Bohemian Girl,’ and ‘Then You’ll Remember Me.’”

11)
Advertisement: New York Clipper, 23 July 1864, 119.

      Cast.

12)
Review: New York Herald, 25 July 1864, 4.

      “The summer season of English Opera at the Olympic theatre has proved a great success.  During the past week the house was crowded nightly.”

13)
Review: New-York Times, 25 July 1864, 4.

      “The English Opera Company . . . have given, so far, three operas—all of them old and threadbare; still, the attendance has been highly respectable.”

14)
Review: New-York Daily Tribune, 25 July 1864, 5.

      “The English opera at the Olympic is doing very well.”

15)
Review: New York Clipper, 30 July 1864, 126.

      “Saturday evening is not set down in the annals as a good opera night, be it Italian opera, German, French, or Irish-American; yet we were pleased to find quite a large audience in attendance at Mrs. Wood’s Olympic, on the evening of the 23d, the attraction being the ‘Bohemian Girl,’ with the Campbell, Borchard, and Castle troupe to translate its beauties. . . . The ‘Bohemian Girl’ is a popular opera, because it contains so many pleasing melodies, and so much music that the uneducated ear can readily comprehend, and therefore enjoy; such operas do more to inculcate love for music than all the complicated and ornamental stuff called classical music that ever was written. . . . Borchard was the Arline of the opera, somewhat too robust for the little girl stolen by the gypsies about fifteen years previous; Miss Louise Myers would look this part much better than the Madame; but Louise was the Gipsy Queen, and she looked as much out of place in the character as Borchard in hers.  They both sang well, however, and were much applauded. . . . Campbell’s Count Arnheim was well done; we have seen the part botched so often that we had fears that even this clever singer might trip up in it, but he didn’t; he acted well, and sang with his usual taste and judgment. ‘The Heart Bowed Down’ was honored with an encore at the hands of a sympathizing audience. Castle, as Thaddeus, sang much better than he acted, and was encored in two or three of his songs. ‘The Fair Land of Poland’ was well sung, and was loudly applauded. Miss Louisa Myers has a good round voice, and is heard to good advantage in the concerted music; she is a pleasing little body, and we hope to see her in something better adapted to show her off than the Gipsy Queen.  Walter Birch did pretty well with the impossible and nasty part of Florestein.  Mr. Warren White, as Devilshoof, acted the part fairly, but he has not a very powerful voice, and therefore does not make much out of Devilshoof’s musical role.  Some of the choruses were capitally sung; indeed, we have heard choruses in certain Italian operas far inferior to that now singing at the Olympic.”