Article on the programming at the Stadt-Theater

Event Information

Venue(s):
New-Yorker Stadt-Theater [37-39 Bowery - pre-Sept 1864]

Record Information

Status:
Published

Last Updated:
16 April 2015

Performance Date(s) and Time(s)

04 Mar 1864

Citations

1)
Article: New-Yorker Staats-Zeitung und Herold, 04 March 1864, 8.

“It seems as though the Stadttheater management’s intention is to familiarize the public with the various dramatic treatments of serial novels by Sue; in a short span of two weeks, we were presented with both parts of ‘The Wandering Jew’ as well as a stage adaptation of ‘Secrets of Paris.’ Responsible in the first place for selecting these old novelties are the beneficiaries of the performances, who, through the choice of these plays, often nurture a peculiar taste. As an example, we have only to remember the recent performance of ‘Mermaid of the Danube’ [Das Donauweibchen]: we had expected that at her benefit evening Mrs. Becker-Grahn would have offered us something more dignified than Dr. Frank’s pathetic reworking of an otherwise interesting Sue novel. In retrospect, there was one redeeming element for those already acquainted with the novel: they could experience how an interesting story could suffer from a bad, or at least deficient, dramatization. Furthermore, even if the play weren’t the best, the performance also wasn’t such that it could cover up the deficiencies of the play. We have not experienced such an unsure and fragmentary performance at the Stadttheater in a long time as this one; it seemed as though roles in the play remained ‘Secrets’ to some of the actors. But it would be unfair not to admit that Mesdames Grahn, Hoym, Steglich-Fuchs and Messrs. Hoym and Knorr did the best they could with their roles.”