Black Crook

Event Information

Venue(s):
Niblo's Garden

Proprietor / Lessee:
William Wheatley

Conductor(s):
Harvey Bradley Dodworth

Price: $0.75; Dress Circle $1 (secured); Reserved seats in Parquette and Parquette Circle, $1.50; Family Circle, $.50; Private boxes $8, $10; $1, Saturday matinees (all seats)

Event Type:
Play With Music

Record Information

Status:
Published

Last Updated:
2 August 2016

Performance Date(s) and Time(s)

12 Sep 1866, 7:45 PM
13 Sep 1866, 7:45 PM
14 Sep 1866, 7:45 PM
15 Sep 1866, 1:00 PM
15 Sep 1866, 7:45 PM

Program Details

Incidental music by Thomas Baker (“entirely new music” by arrangement with Leonard Grover, esq. AD: NYT 09/08/66, p. 7).
Performers: Annie Kemp, primadonna contralto (from Covent Garden); Mary Wells; Rose Morton (from Covent Garden, American premier); Milly Cavendish (theater Royale, Drury Lane, American premier); George Boniface; J.G. Burnett; H.C. Morton (first appearance); George Atkins (Sadler’s Wells Theater; American premier); Hernandez Foster (pantomimist, first appearance at Niblo’s); J.W. Blaisdell; E. B. Holmes; E. Barry Rendle
Ballet troupe of Jarrett and Palmer (director David Costa from the Grand Opera, Paris)
PRIMARY DANCERS:
Mlle Marie Bonfanti, premier dancer absolute; Mlle Rita Sangalli (from the grand opera, Paris and Covent Garden); Mlle Betty Rigl, first premier and soloist (from the Grand Opera, Paris)
SECOND PREMIERS AND SOLOISTS:
Louisa Mazzeri; Giovanna Mazzeri; Mlle. Giuseppe; Amele Zuccoli; Eugenia Zuccoli; Mlle. Lusardi; Marie Duclos;
DANCERS:
Mlles. [Emily] E. Rigl; Gabrielle; Amanda; Urban; Natalie; Marie; Doche; Nelone; Lacroix; Delval; Portois; Mlle. L. Portois; [Marie] Bertha; Chereri; St. Bertrand; Elise; Duval; Paulina
TIME TABLE
Overture: 7:30
Curtain Rises: 7:35
Sabot Dance and Ballet de fleur: 7:45
Incantation Scene: 8:10
The Grotto of Stalacta: 9:00
Pas de Naiad and Undine Ballet: 9:15
Dance of the Mermaids: 9:25
Demon Dance: 9:35
Crystal Cascade: 9:50
Moonlight Garden Scene: 10:35
Amazonian Dance and March: 10:15
Grand Transformation Scene: 10:50
Performance Terminates: 11:05

Performers and/or Works Performed

Citations

1)
Announcement: New York Clipper, 07 April 1866, 414.

“‘The Black Crook’ is the title of an original magical and spectacular drama, in four acts, written by O. M. Barras, and copyrighted, and which is to be produced for the first time at Niblo’s in early September, by Manager Wheatley, who promises to place it on the stage in a style of unexampled splendor. [full list of characters] . . . The scene is laid in and around the Hartz mountains, time, 1600. Note, Herztag is a hideous deformity, with leaden complexion, humped-back, knotted limbs, crooked body and lame. Von Puffengrun is corpulent and rubicund.”

2)
Announcement: New York Clipper, 28 July 1866, 126.

“We are promised grand things for the opening at Niblo’s in September—an immense company of dancing girls, imported expressly for this market; a gorgeous costumery also manufactured abroad, on account, probably, of the scarcity of sewing machinery in this country; a fabulous transformation scene [illeg.] in Europe; and so forth; to say nothing of French [illeg.], English auxiliaries, Dutch singers, and other outlandish effects.  But the spectacle in which all these imported things are to be shown off in is of American manufacture, and the ‘Black Crook’ it is called. If the text itself should make a hit, dressed as it will be in all this imported stuff, we ought to feel very grateful to the author.”

3)
Announcement: New York Clipper, 18 August 1866, 150.

“Great alterations and preparations of the most extensive kind, are being made at Niblo’s Garden, for the production of the spectacle of the ‘Black Crook’…A large cellar is at present being dug under the stage, and loads of gravel are carted away daily.  The carpenters are hard at work making the mechanical material for the piece. Several extra artists are at work on the scenery, and in every department behind the stage artists are busily engaged.”

4)
Announcement: New-York Daily Tribune, 24 August 1866, 5.

Preview of The Black Crook, with names, cast members, corps de ballet, scenic designers, etc.

5)
Announcement: New York Clipper, 01 September 1866, 166.

Description of improvements to the theater, and details regading cost of the production.

6)
Announcement: New-Yorker Musik-Zeitung, 05 September 1866.
7)
Announcement: New York Clipper, 08 September 1866, 174.
8)
Announcement: New York Post, 08 September 1866, 2.

For Monday, Sept. 10.

9)
Advertisement: New-York Times, 08 September 1866, 7.

For Mon., Sept. 10.

10)
Announcement: New York Post, 10 September 1866, 2.

Opening postponed until Wed., Sept. 12; second paragraph follows under "Amusements"on the lavishness of the production.

11)
Announcement: New-York Times, 10 September 1866, 5.

For Sept. 10.

12)
Advertisement: New-York Times, 11 September 1866, 7.

Announcing postponement until Sept. 12.

13)
Article: New York Post, 12 September 1866, 2.

Touches on the "immense and costly preparations," the plot, its length, and the ballet corps.

14)
Advertisement: New-York Times, 12 September 1866.

 Includes names of people who constructed the stage and machinery, “gas contrivances,” calcine lights (for the transformation scene).

15)
Announcement: New-York Times, 12 September 1866, 5.
16)
Announcement: New-Yorker Staats-Zeitung und Herold, 12 September 1866.
17)
Review: New York Post, 13 September 1866.

"The great theatrical excitement last evening was about the grand spectacular drama produced here for the first time at Niblo's Garden. The public were aware of the extensive--and, in some respects, unprecedented--preparations that Mr. Wheatley has been making for the representation of the 'Black Crook.' There was a general confidence that so shrewd and experienced a manager would not make such efforts and outlays of money, unless he was sure of accomplishing something very much out of the ordinary line of theatrical business.   

Accordingly the spacious Garden was filled last night from orchestra to gallery, in the aisles and in the lobbies a vast dense mass of eagerly expectant people. Hundreds were unable to procure seats and went away.

The performance more than equaled the expectation. The first act was noteworthy almost entirely from the beautiful spectacular display and fine performances of the ballet corps. The large ballet corps won the principal attention--and in personal charms, and in the beauty and gracefulness of their movements--excelled any similar corps ever brought to this country. Mlle. Bonfanti, the queen of the dancing troupe, won favor from the first. She is as pleasing in her manner as she is marvelously accomplished in her profession. Mlles. Sangalli, Rigi and Delvas were almost as well received, while the subordinate members of the corps were far above the average.

The character of Hertzog, the sorcerer, was well taken by Mr. C. H. Morton. That of the half idiotic Greppo, his drudge, was equally well done by Mr. George Atkins. The best acting in the first act was done by Miss Mary Wells--Dame Barbara--and Mr. J. S. Burnett--Count Wolfenstein Steward. Miss Milly Cavendish--Carlina--made a very pleasing impression by her graceful appearance and by her arch way of singing 'Naughty, Naughty Man.'

The interest in the acting was, however, quite subordinate. The scenic effects and the ballet corps were the great objects of attention and at each stage of the performance were most heartily admired and frequently applauded. Such a vision of beauty has rarely been seen on any stage--beauty perhaps less concealed than would be deemed proper by those of strict views as to where dresses should begin and end. The enthusiasm of the spectators knew hardly a limit when the wonderful closing scene of the second act was revealed to them. It is impossible to give an adequate conception of this and of the other scenes by mere description. It affords sufficient proof that if Mr. Wheatley has spent his money lavishly, he knows how to spend it to the best purpose.

The drama requires a long time for its representation--the close of the second act not having been reached last night until a quarter to eleven. Subsequent representations will enable the manager to shorten this, and perhaps some passages may be cut to advantage. Long as it was, the vast audience were as attentive and eager after three hours of sitting as at the first. Mr. Wheatley has made an unqualified success. The 'Black Crook' can be profitably kept on for a hundred nights if Mr. Wheatley sees fit to continue it for so long."

18)
Review: New-York Times, 13 September 1866, 4.

Mr. WHEATLEY opened his beautiful theatre last night after a prolonged recess, during which the house has been cleaned, redecorated, regilded, and put in apple-pie order. A new stage, of the most modern and best approved construction, has been made at great expense, and a vast amount of new scenery procured. The house was densely packed with a critical and appreciative audience, additional interest being imparted to the evening by the announcement of a new and original spectacular drama, entitled the ‘Black Crook.’

The ‘Black Crook’ is a story of sorcery, demonism, and wickedness generally, in which one Herztog, (Mr. MORTON,) a deformed and ill-natured, but very learned man, grown desperate in spirit, makes a compact with Zamiel or Satan, by which he agrees to win over to perdition one human soul for each year of life to be granted to him, the account to be settled on the last day of the year, before the clock strikes midnight. The lover-hero, Rodolphe, is enamored of Amina; he is a poor painter—she a rural beauty. Count Wolfenstein, sees her, and by force of feudal power takes her for himself, locking her lover in a dungeon. The Black Crook, in search of a soul for his next New-Year, visits Rodolphe, tells him of a cave of gold in the forest, also that his love, Amina, is noble, and induces him to go in search of the creature. On the way Rodolphe sees a dove pursued by a serpent, kills the reptile and saves the bird, who proves to be the Fairy Queen Stalacta. She exposes Hertzog’s trick, and assists Rodolphe. The reader will now readily see that the Count is slain, Amina rescued and married to Rodolphe, and the Black Crook (Hertzog) himself very justly sent to the Devil, instead of sending the gay young lover.

The house was fairly packed with a mass of humanity exceeding the crush at any time, even at that house of crushes. The first act is trashy, but affords scope for fine spectacular display, and introduces the English and French ballet troupes, who were received with enthusiasm. Mlle. BONFANTI, the premier danseuse, is as light as a feather, and exceedingly graceful. She, with Mlle. SANGALLI and Mlle. RIGI, was encored twice during the Pas de fleurs. The Pas de Sabot is also a charming arrangement, in which Mlle. ROSI DELVAL received the well-merited applause of the house. Miss MILLY CAVENDISH (Carline) was encored in her song of ‘The Naughty Men.’ The act closed with a grand incantation scene laid in a wild glen, whose weird and unholy look was quite apropos to the devilish business therein enacted. The curtain went down on the second act at 10:45 o/clock. The features of the act were the dances held in the gorgeous grotto of Stalacta. Mlle. SANGALI and the full ballet appeared in the Pas de Naiad, after which came the ballet success of the night, the witching Pas de Demons, in which the Demonese, who wear no clothes to speak of, so gracefully and prettily disported as to draw forth thunders of applause. No similar exhibition has been made in an American stage that we remember, certainly none where such a combination of youth, grace, beauty and elan was found. The curtain was rung up three times at the close of this act, in compliance with the peremptory demands of the house. The late hour, not far from morning, at which the Black Crook closed, prevents a further notice of its merits. Mr. WHEATLEY, who has made an actual outlay of not far from $50,000 in preparation of the piece, is to be congratulated upon its success. It will be repeated every night, and is well worth seeing, as it is decidedly the event of this spectacular age.”

19)
Announcement: New York Clipper, 15 September 1866, 182.

Synopsis and list of performers.

20)
Announcement: New-York Times, 15 September 1866, 4.
21)
Review: New-York Times, 17 September 1866, 4.

The ‘Black Crook,’ which was first produced at Niblo’s Garden on Wednesday last, will be given to-night and every night for months to come, and on Saturdays at matinee. No one need go to see the play—it’s a very odd mixture of ‘Der Freischutz,’ ‘Undine,’ the ‘Naiad Queen,’ and several little Teutonic nursery tales; at least, it was before the stern knife of public somnolence cut its very bowels away, leaving an inanimate skeleton of legendic absurdity. But everybody should, and apparently everybody does, go to see the magnificent spectacle and the delightful ballet which are incidental and ornamental to the ‘Black Crook.’ Such dancing has never been seen here; such unembarrassed disporting of human organism has never been indulged in before. The ‘Demon Dance’ alone would fill the house for six consecutive months, and every audience would repeat itself often. The success of the spectacle is assured; the wondrous combinations effected by every appliance of art and wealth known to the stage, constitute an attraction hitherto unequaled in its line.”

22)
Review: New-York Daily Tribune, 17 September 1866.

“Niblo’s Garden opened in a literal blaze of glory on Wednesday evening. The audience assembled on that occasion was so large that it filled the house in every part, overflowed into the lobbies, and, in the shape of frequent and large detachments, extended to the street and pervaded the neighborhood. Great enthusiasm prevailed before the curtain, and great excitement behind it. A livelier scene than was thus presented would not well be imagined. ‘The Black Crook’ was played by easy stages from 7¾  o’clock until 1½. Most of the auditors remained til the gorgeous end. Hopes were entertained, at one time, that the performance would last until the merry breakfast bell should ‘wake the snorting citizens.’ But these proved fallacious. By dint of great energy on the part of Mr. Wheatley and the mechanics, ‘The Black Crook’ was at length played through; and a patient multitude, dazed and delighted, went to brief dreams of fairy-land. It takes time to digest so much radiance, and we have not, therefore, been in haste to describe this extraordinary drama. Having swallowed the rainbows, however, it is now our pleasant duty to say that they are very good to take. The scenery is magnificent; the ballet is beautiful; the drama is—rubbish. There is always a bitter drop in the sweetest cup, a fly in the richest ointment. Mr. Harras’s drama is the bitter drop and the superfluous fly in this instance. Several very fine names are applied to ‘The Black Crook’ in the bill of the play. It is called ‘grand,’ ‘romantic,’ ‘magnificent,’ ‘spectacular,’ and ‘original.’ To approach such a production in any other than a spirit of reverential awe is, perhaps, to fail proper respect for genius. Mr. Barras is understood to have devoted several of the ripest years of his scholastic life to this stupendous drama. But awe is a spirit that cannot be summoned as easily as Zamiel. Besides, we have read Lord Byron’s ‘Manfred,’ and Goethe’s ‘Faust,’ and Hoffman’s stories, and even Mr. Reynold’s Romance of Secret Tribunals.’ Then, too, we have seen so many spectacles, in which the fairies war on the demons, and conquer for love’s sake and in the holy name of virtue! Mr. Barras, an old reader and an old actor, has picked up a good many literary and theatrical properties in his time, and they have been more or less useful to him we dare say; but it must be remembered that the fields of literature are open to all gleaners, and hence that plenty of people will infallibly recognize Mr. Barras’s properties. To call ‘The Black Crook’ ‘original’ is merely to trifle with intelligence. Herein, for example, we encounter our venerable and decrepit friend the Alchymist, who wants to live forever, and is perfectly willing to give, not only his own soul to the Devil, but every other soul that he can possibly send to Arvernas. Here, too, is the humble youth, torn from his peasant maid and shut up in ‘the lowest cell,’ ha! Ha! by the Baron cruel and bold. And then the Fiend’s Minister, the Alchymist, surnamed ‘the Black Crook,’ is on hand to release him and send him on the road to avarice, vengeance, and perdition. Here are the old manorial or baronial servitors, the red-nosed steward and the high-capped dame; and along with them comes the arch and piquant little village-maid, who sings a song and smiles, and shows her pretty ankles to the sheepish swains. There are fairies, too, and demons; and, in the upshot, of course, the former conquer the latter, and the paired lovers are joined in happiness, and the Baron bold is run through the bold body, and the Fiend is cheated of his prey, and the Black Crook is removed, through a dreadful hole in the earth, to a region of great heat and many dragons. And that Mr. Barras calls an original drama! For the construction of it, we can only say that the literary materials, stage business, etc., appear to have been put into an intellectual bag and vigorously shaken up together. And there we leave the high dramatic theme. There was, if fact, no need of the pretense of a drama, in this instance, or, if there was, almost any old spectacle would have been preferable to ‘The Black Crook.’ All that was needed was a medium for the presentation of several gorgeous scenes, and a large number of female legs; and it was only necessary that the medium should not be tedious. And this brings us to the real merits of the entertainment that is now nightly offered at Niblo’s Garden, and which, we presume, will be offered nightly for many weeks to come. Some of the most perfect and admirable pieces of scenery that have ever been exhibited upon the stage are employed in the illustration of this piece. The best one, we think, in an artistic point of view, is that which closes the second act. A vast grotto is herein presented extending into an almost measureless perspective. Stalactites depend [sic] from the arched roof. A tranquil and lovely lake reflects the golden glories that span it like a vast sky. In every direction one sees the bright sheen or the dull richness of [illeg.] gold. Beautiful fairies, too, are herein assembled—the sprites of the ballet, who make the scene luxuriant with their beauty. There is not so much [illeg.] power in this scene as there is in Mr. R. Smith’s Der Freischutz combination of horrors, which closes the first act, but it is a successful work in a higher region of art. Both these scenes will bear study. They are not common efforts. They evince rare poetic sensibility and even imagination. Everybody ought to see them. The last scene in the play, however, will dazzle and impress to even a greater degree, by its lavish richness and barbaric splendor. All that gold and silver, and gems, and light and woman’s beauty can contribute to fascinate the eye and charm the senses is [illeg.] in this gorgeous spectacle. Its luster grows as we gaze, and deepens and widens, till the effect is almost painful. One by one curtains of mist ascend and drift away. Silver couches, on which the fairies loll in negligent grace, ascend and descend amid a silver rain. Columns of living splendor whirl, and dazzle as they whirl. From the clouds droop gilded chariots and the white forms of angels. It is a very beautiful pageant. The brothers Drew of London devised this scene and they certainly merit great praise. Among the lesser scenes, two bits of painting are especially remarkable: one is ‘A Wild Place in the Hartz Mountains,’ painted by Mr. D. A. Strong; the other is Mr. Hayes’s ‘Valley at the Foot of the Hartz Mountain.’ But all the scenes are excellent; and though we cannot say that anything has been done for the dramatic art, by the production of ‘The Black Crook,’ we can heartily testify that Scenic Art has never, within our knowledge, been so amply and splendidly [illeg.]. In respect to the ballet, it is the best complete [illeg.] of the kind that has been seen in this country. To differentiate between the dancers would be as difficult as to distinguish one rose from another [illeg.] a wilderness of roses. But if either be more fascinating than another it is Mlle. Rigi. The greater share of applause, on Wednesday, fell to the lot of Mlle. Sangalli. Marie Bonfanti, too, was welcomed with cordial enthusiasm. We have not space to [illeg.] upon the beauties that were so liberally revealed on the occasion—nor is there need. The town will take care to see for itself what treasures of grace Messrs. Jarrett and Palmer have [illeg.] from the opera-houses of Europe. Mr. Costa, however, is to be especially congratulated on the success of his directorship of the Ballet. There was little acting in the spectacle to detain the critical pen. Mr. Burnett and Miss Wells mainly contributed what there was. Miss Millie Cavendish, one of the new players, made a very pleasing impression, and is unquestionably destined to achieve a high position among the ‘chambermaids’ of the local stage. ‘The Black Crook’ will be condensed as its run proceeds, and will thus pass off more rapidly and pleasantly. The theater wears a very light and cheerful aspect, and Mr. Wheatley has assuredly [illeg.] this Fall season ‘with earnest of success’.”

23)
Review: New York Clipper, 22 September 1866, 190.

“‘The Black Crook’ is the great dramatic sensation of the day.  Everybody is talking of it and the many beauties it reveals to our bewildered gaze. It is an undress piece, of a model dramatic character, and, as an irredeemably fast young man once remarked, ‘we have not seen such a sight since the day we were weaned.’ But let us straightway return to the ‘Crook.’ Several months ago Mr. C. M. Barrass, the author of the ‘Black Crook,’ was notified by Manager Wheatley that he accepted his play. Although those critics who also write plays condemn the text of Mr. Barrass’ new play, we must not forget that they were not impartial critics, and, therefore, not qualified to judge of the merits of a play written by any one not belonging to their set. It is not probable that Mr. Wheatley, with his vast experience, would have accepted the ‘Black Crook’ if he had not discovered the elements of success which it embodies. Well, after months of preparation, weeks of rehearsal, etc., the play was presented for the first time at Niblo’s on Wednesday evening, Sept. 12th, to an audience which filled every available space in the auditorium of that establishment. To begin at the beginning, we herewith append the plot of

 

                    ye blacke crooke.

                     A Legend of Niblo’s.

                        BY 'OUR OWN ARTIST.’

In the heart of a vale, near the mountains of Hartz,

Lived an artist, Rodolphe, who was known in those parts

As a bonny faced fellow, whose heart high did burn

For the belle of the village, who loved him in turn;

But ‘twixt these two lambs and their loves came in time

A wolf in sheep’s clothing, ycelpt Wolfenstein;

He was lord of the place, and no sooner had seen her

The fair ‘Rose,’ I mean, who was known as Amina

Than he soon fully proved by his actions that he

Was—although a born noble—a meaner than she.

One day, in the midst of a gay village fete,

Where—truth, fact and candor compel me to state,

The brisk sabot dance and the costumes full scanty

Of Regal, Sangalli and Marie Bonfanti

Made me envy the fellows who in the parquette

Could watch all these charmers without a lorgnette; 

For ’though I object to a crush, crowd, or cram,

I’m fond of a jolly girl’s neat ‘joli jambe—’

One day, as I say, when the lovers were gay

And every one happy, there sauntered that way

With his bloodthirsty vassals, the count, who, by gad!

Seized Amina and swore that her Rodolphe was mad!

‘Mad! mad!’ – cried Amina, as mad as Marche haré!

Thus the Count—and with ‘Ho! There!’ two rogues of his band,

With a stagger, seize Rodolphe by shoulder and hand,

And bear him away to a cell underground

N. B. off O. P., where they liquor all round.

While, like a policeman, the Count in his whim

Takes the women all off to his stronghold with him.

Not far from this castle, there dwelt in a nook

Of the hills a magician, surnamed the Black Crook—

A man who could doubtless to Greeley impart

Much more than ’een he knows about the black (he)art!

Be this as it may—on a rare stormy day,

In the alchymist’s [sic] home there’s the devil to pay: 

For the ‘Crook,’ in a rage at his troubles and age,

Half frightens the life out of Greppo, his page,

By making him go—notwithstanding his fright—

With him, through the storm and the terrible night,

To the Devil’s Glen, where, with the usual stage trick

Of red fire and lime light, he ‘raises Old Nick;’

Then a compact is made, and the winds howl and crack,

Flames flash, and the real water torrent at back

Turns crimson with gore; but ’tis quite understood

That the water’s a great deal more real than the blood.

Then from the left and from the right, all clothed in white,

A number of feminine ghosts heave in sight;

And what is far stranger, ’though none of the number

Are frightened at all by the flashes or thunder,

Yet they smile with delight—when, to crown the whole mass

Of funniments, King Death rides on in gas!

Which, doubtless, friend Wheatley intends as a witty

Conceit against gas being made in the city.

Meanwhile, at the caste the Count entertains

The ladies he’s kidnap’d, and takes so much pains

To please them with presents, and goodness knows what

That they really seem rather to like it than not—

Especially Barbara, ’mina’s half mother,

Who’s burled one hub and now sighs for another—

Thinking Von Puffengruntz, Woolfenstien’s [sic] stewart [sic],

If got well to windward to her may be lured;

And little Carline, too, with ankle so natty,

Who looks like an angel and sings like a Patti—

One sip from whose lips would make for a savan dish

Dear to the soul as a pipe of sweet Cavendish.

(If any one thinks this description a ‘waker’

And it will not affront him—we’re open to back her)—

She’s maid to Amina, who’s sighing forlorn

For her lover Rudolphe [sic], who so rude off was borne

And cast in dungeon deep, where he now stands

Secured by the fetters he holds in his hands.

Of course like Jeff Davis he longs to get free,

When whom through a hole in the wall should he see

But the sorcerer, Black Crook, who in vain tries

To soften the look of his own saucer eyes

Which gleam as he offers his freedom to dole

To the captive Rudolphe in exchange for his soul.

This the artist refuses at first, but when told

That Amina is false, but that jewels and gold

To be found in a silver lake up in the hills

Will accomplish more wonders than all the quack pills,

Or all the love philters ’ere made, he departs

In search of the dross that wine most women’s hearts;

And Black Crook, expecting the search will be death,

Sends Greppo ’long with him, and draws a long breath:

For he’d bargained one life should be yearly o’erthrown

To the Devil as rent for the lease of his own.

           ’Twas not to be thought of that they would fall in

With Stalacta, the queen of the fays of the fin!

           "Tis so! And their pleasures to further enhance

She orders her mermaids to give them a dance—

Then come tripping on a troop of fairy fishes,

All looking, as ‘Sairey’ would say, so ‘delishes

That one would like nightly at Willard’s to meet ’em

If ’twere but the fashion to skin ’em and eat ’em.

But this sight was nought to the ‘Pas de demon,’

Danced by four of the loveliest fays of the throng

In costume so simple, becoming and charming,

That if by our ladies ’twere worn, their alarming

Extravagant ward relies could be with much ease

Reduced to silk tights, puff drawers and chemise—

With Costa, Bonfanti, and lithe Duval Rosa,

Their poses to Rudolphe were really a poser.

All this and much more did he gaze on before,

O’er laden with riches he sailed from their shore

In Stalacta’s own galley—boat trusty and true

As the world renowned little ship; Red, White and Blue.

How he gets safely home—how he sets up as ‘Prince,’

How at a Bal Masque he makes the Count wince,

How they fight a great fight—and how Black Crook’s defied

By Stalacta—and how she gives Rodolphe his bride—

You will know if you go to the Garden ‘Niblo,’

Where the Scenery, Ballet, and Fairy Tableau

Will tell you more deftly than we in a book

Of the grand mystic spectacle drama—‘Black Crook.’

 

In the heart of a vale, near the mountains of Hartz,

Lived an artist, Rodolphe, who was known in those  parts                              As a bonny faced fellow, whose heart high did burn                           For the belle of the village, who loved him in turn;                                    But ‘twixt these two lambs and their loves came in time                              A wolf in sheep’s clothing, ycelpt Wolfenstein;                                             He was lord of the place, and no sooner had seen her

The fair ‘Rose,’ I mean, who was known as Amina

Than he soon fully proved by his actions that he

Was—although a born noble—a meaner than she.

One day, in the midst of a gay village fete,

Where—truth, fact and candor compel me to state,

The brisk sabot dance and the costumes full scanty

Of Regal, Sangalli and Marie Bonfanti

Made me envy the fellows who in the parquette

Could watch all these charmers without a lorgnette; 

For ’though I object to a crush, crowd, or cram,

I’m fond of a jolly girl’s neat ‘joli jambe—’

One day, as I say, when the lovers were gay

And every one happy, there sauntered that way

With his bloodthirsty vassals, the count, who, by gad!

Seized Amina and swore that her Rodolphe was mad!

‘Mad! mad!’ – cried Amina, as mad as Marche haré!

Thus the Count—and with ‘Ho! There!’ two rogues of his band,

With a stagger, seize Rodolphe by shoulder and hand,

And bear him away to a cell underground

N. B. off O. P., where they liquor all round.

While, like a policeman, the Count in his whim

Takes the women all off to his stronghold with him.

Not far from this castle, there dwelt in a nook

Of the hills a magician, surnamed the Black Crook—

A man who could doubtless to Greeley impart

Much more than ’een he knows about the black (he)art!

Be this as it may—on a rare stormy day,

In the alchymist’s [sic] home there’s the devil to pay: 

For the ‘Crook,’ in a rage at his troubles and age,

Half frightens the life out of Greppo, his page,

By making him go—notwithstanding his fright—

With him, through the storm and the terrible night,

To the Devil’s Glen, where, with the usual stage trick

Of red fire and lime light, he ‘raises Old Nick;’

Then a compact is made, and the winds howl and crack,

Flames flash, and the real water torrent at back

Turns crimson with gore; but ’tis quite understood

That the water’s a great deal more real than the blood.

Then from the left and from the right, all clothed in white,

A number of feminine ghosts heave in sight;

And what is far stranger, ’though none of the number

Are frightened at all by the flashes or thunder,

Yet they smile with delight—when, to crown the whole mass

Of funniments, King Death rides on in gas!

Which, doubtless, friend Wheatley intends as a witty

Conceit against gas being made in the city.

Meanwhile, at the caste the Count entertains

The ladies he’s kidnap’d, and takes so much pains

To please them with presents, and goodness knows what

That they really seem rather to like it than not—

Especially Barbara, ’mina’s half mother,

Who’s burled one hub and now sighs for another—

Thinking Von Puffengruntz, Woolfenstien’s [sic] stewart [sic],

If got well to windward to her may be lured;

And little Carline, too, with ankle so natty,

Who looks like an angel and sings like a Patti—

One sip from whose lips would make for a savan dish

Dear to the soul as a pipe of sweet Cavendish.

(If any one thinks this description a ‘waker’

And it will not affront him—we’re open to back her)—

She’s maid to Amina, who’s sighing forlorn

For her lover Rudolphe [sic], who so rude off was borne

And cast in dungeon deep, where he now stands

Secured by the fetters he holds in his hands.

Of course like Jeff Davis he longs to get free,

When whom through a hole in the wall should he see

But the sorcerer, Black Crook, who in vain tries

To soften the look of his own saucer eyes

Which gleam as he offers his freedom to dole

To the captive Rudolphe in exchange for his soul.

This the artist refuses at first, but when told

That Amina is false, but that jewels and gold

To be found in a silver lake up in the hills

Will accomplish more wonders than all the quack pills,

Or all the love philters ’ere made, he departs

In search of the dross that wine most women’s hearts;

And Black Crook, expecting the search will be death,

Sends Greppo ’long with him, and draws a long breath:

For he’d bargained one life should be yearly o’erthrown

To the Devil as rent for the lease of his own.

           ’Twas not to be thought of that they would fall in

With Stalacta, the queen of the fays of the fin!

           "Tis so! And their pleasures to further enhance

She orders her mermaids to give them a dance—

Then come tripping on a troop of fairy fishes,

All looking, as ‘Sairey’ would say, so ‘delishes

That one would like nightly at Willard’s to meet ’em

If ’twere but the fashion to skin ’em and eat ’em.

But this sight was nought to the ‘Pas de demon,’

Danced by four of the loveliest fays of the throng

In costume so simple, becoming and charming,

That if by our ladies ’twere worn, their alarming

Extravagant ward relies could be with much ease

Reduced to silk tights, puff drawers and chemise—

With Costa, Bonfanti, and lithe Duval Rosa,

Their poses to Rudolphe were really a poser.

All this and much more did he gaze on before,

O’er laden with riches he sailed from their shore

In Stalacta’s own galley—boat trusty and true

As the world renowned little ship; Red, White and Blue.

How he gets safely home—how he sets up as ‘Prince,’

How at a Bal Masque he makes the Count wince,

How they fight a great fight—and how Black Crook’s defied

By Stalacta—and how she gives Rodolphe his bride—

You will know if you go to the Garden ‘Niblo,’

Where the Scenery, Ballet, and Fairy Tableau

Will tell you more deftly than we in a book

Of the grand mystic spectacle drama—‘Black Crook.’

 

This is the argument of the play, which is not by any means devoid of literary merit, but any piece, however well written it may be, will fall into comparative insignificance as a play when so overloaded, as the ‘Crook’ is, with such magnificent scenic effects and extraordinary ballet divertissements. All continuity of the piece is lost in the auxiliaries, and the beautiful and extravagant display of natural feminine charms, draws the attention of the beholder from the dialogue. The great ballet troupe brought from Europe by Messrs. Palmer and Jarrett is a large and good one, but the principal dancers Marie Bonfanti, M’lle Rita Sangalli, and Betty Rigi, are no better dancers than we have already had in this country. Bonfanti is petite, beautifully formed, as light as a feather, as graceful as a swan, and rather prepossessing, but she cannot compare with Galetti, Lamareux, Rolla, Cubas, Pougared or Soto, for difficult steps, pirouetting and toe dancing. Sangalli is a voluptuous dancer and quick in action. Betty Rigi, whose name does not appear in quite so large types in the bill, is a vigorous danseuse, and received considerable applause. The premieres and soloists, Louisa and Giovana Mazzeri, Amele and Eugenia Zuccoli, M’lles Guiseppe, Luisidi, Marie Duclos, and Paulina, are pretty in form and feature and graceful dancers. The corps de ballet is composed of many young and fascinating damsels. The ballet may be ter[illeg.] an attractive adjunct to the drama, by no means necessary to its proper development, but adding a new attraction by its connection with it. Of itself, the ballet has never been popular in this country; but interwoven with pantomime, it made the Ravel family a success. The Ronzani troupe was one of the best ever seen in this country, and its deplorable failure proved beyond a doubt that the American public appreciated stage dancing as an adjunct only. In act second, Rigi, Zuccoli, Zuardi, and Mazzeri appear in the most picturesque costume and execute a bewildering dance. The Amazonian March and dance in the third act is very pretty. The scenic effects in this piece have never been surpassed in this country. The Wild Glen in the heart of Brocken is beautiful, as is the Grotto of Stalacta, which is dazzling with stalactic glories and living loveliness; from this ’rises a bed of coral, falling from which is a perfect cataract of silver water, with nymphs disporting in the bath. This scene is certainly magnificent, and is alone worth the price of admission; though very costly, it does not begin to show off its real expense, owing to the colors not being as brilliantly brought out as they might be. But it is the last scene of all that caps the climax. This transformation scene has never been equaled on the American stage, and language fails to give a proper idea of its magnificence. It is the most complicated one we ever saw. The air is freighted with human forms, and everything is enchanting. The piece was pretty well cast. Miss Mary Wells’ make up and acting of Dame Barbara was very good indeed. Burnett made a capital Steward, Boniface as Rudolphe was acceptable, and Morton made as ugly a Crook as the author could have wished. Rose Morton made a pleasing Amina, and Annie Kemp was charming as the O[illeg]. Milly Cavendish, a London importation, sang pleasingly, but her style is too much of that of the concert room. She is a clever singer, but a poor soubrette actress. The curtain dropped on this piece the first night at nine minutes past one. Owing to some defect in the gas, the transformation scene would not work, and the curtain was dropped for ten minutes, after which everything worked smoothly. At the close of the piece, in response to a call, Mr. Wheatley came forward, dressed in the character of a supernumerary, and said:—‘Permit me to thank you, on behalf of the author, the artists and myself, for the friendly manner in which you have overlooked the drawbacks of this first night; but believe me, the labor to attain even the smoothness you have enjoyed has been immense. I was surprised myself that everything worked perfectly.’ On the second night the pandemonium and one other scene was cut out, and the forty minutes wait between the acts on the first night were considerably shortened, which brought the piece to a close at twelve o’clock. It now terminates at eleven o’clock, or a little after. Taken altogether, in this country, and all connected with its production, deserve each and every department. There is such a rush for seats that the house we are told is sold for a week ahead.”