THE BEGINNINGS OF OPERA
Scarcity of theatrical performances in America; Charleston
and Tony Aston; New York, Philadelphia, and elsewhere--The
Revolution and after; rivalry between New York and
Philadelphia--The New Orleans opera.
Accepting the year 1750 as the earliest in which indisputable records
appear of opera in New York, writers on American musical history pass
over the remainder of the century with a few brief references and
escape with evident relief to the arrival of García's Italian troupe in
1825.[37] This willingness to let the dust lie undisturbed on certain
phases of our musical development is hardly justifiable in the present
instance, for undoubtedly these writers were well aware that opera in
America during the eighteenth century was not such an infrequent and
sporadic thing as to deserve no extended mention. Mr. H. E. Krehbiel,
in his anecdotic and entertaining 'Chapters of Opera,' writes: 'There
are traces of ballad opera in America in the early decades of the
eighteenth century, and there can exist no doubt at all that French
and Italian operas were given in some form, perhaps, as a rule, in the
adapted form which prevailed in the London theatres until far into the
nineteenth century, before the year 1800, in the towns and cities of
the Eastern seaboard which were in most active communication with Great
Britain.'
If ballad operas were known in America in the early decades of the
eighteenth century and French and Italian operas were given before
the beginning of the nineteenth, it is surely worth while to consider
what part they played in the musical life of the country. The subject,
of course, is bristling with difficulties. Information is scarce and
not easily accessible. Much of the difficulty is due to the fact that
before the nineteenth century there were no opera companies, in our
sense. Operatic performances were given by regular theatrical companies
whose repertory was made up partly of straight drama and partly of
opera. Artistic versatility was a characteristic of the period, and
performers like Mrs. Oldmixon and Miss Broadhurst were prominent not
only on the dramatic and operatic stage, but also on the concert
platform. Our search for the beginnings of opera, therefore, lead us
naturally to early records of the American theatre, and an examination
of these elucidates some interesting facts.
I
The first mention of theatrical performances in America is found in
the whimsical autobiography of the mercurial Tony Aston--'Gentleman,
Lawyer, Poet, Actor, Soldier, Sailor, Exciseman, Publican; in England,
Scotland, Ireland, New York, East and West Jersey, Maryland, Virginia
(on both sides Cheesapeek), North and South Carolina, South Florida,
Bahamas, Jamaica, Hispaniola, and often a Coaster by all the same.'
In the 'beginning of Queen Anne's reign,' he tells us, he arrived
at Port Royal Harbor where Governor Moore was about to start on an
expedition against St. Augustine. This was in September, 1702. Tony
accompanied Moore and returned with him to Charleston in January, 1703.
'Well,' he says, 'we arrived in Charles-Town, full of Lice, Shame,
Poverty, Nakedness and Hunger:--I turned Player and Poet and wrote one
Play on the Subject of the Country.' We may assume, therefore, that
Charleston witnessed theatrical performances in 1703. In the same year
the redoubtable Tony went to New York. 'There,' he says, 'I lighted of
my old Acquaintance Jack Charlton, Fencing Master, ... after acting,
writing, courting, fighting that Winter ... my kind Captain Davis ...
gave me free passage for Virginia....' Apparently, then, there were
theatrical performances in New York in the winter of 1703-04.
Whether these and the performances in Charleston were the beginning of
the theatre in America, we cannot say, nor do we know if they included
operas. Quite probably they did. The autobiography from which we have
quoted prefaced the published edition of Tony Aston's 'Fool's Opera'
and it has been inferred that his work was played during Aston's visit
to America. As it was published several years after his return to
England there is not much reason to believe that New York or Charleston
heard it, but Aston's evident interest in works of the kind would
indicate that he exhibited his talent in such entertainments while he
was in this country. It may, however, be pointed out that opera was not
in high favor in England at that time. Beginning with 'The Siege of
Rhodes' in 1656 opera was the chief form of theatrical entertainment
until the end of the Commonwealth. For some peculiar reason--perhaps
Cromwell's love of music--it was tolerated in spite of the ban on the
theatres. But after the Restoration the drama came into its own again,
and with Congreve, Wycherley, Vanburgh, and others catering brilliantly
to the taste of the times, opera was temporarily neglected. Interest in
it revived under Queen Anne, with the coming of Handel and the Italian
opera, but, except for the temporary vogue of ballad-opera, following
the production of 'The Beggar's Opera' in 1728, English opera failed to
attract the popular favor. Indeed, it never reached a point where it
deserved to attract favor. Except for a few weak efforts in the Italian
recitative style English opera before the ballad opera was chiefly
drama with incidental music. The idea was popular in Elizabethan
times, as we may see from Shakespeare's plays. In the operas of
the Commonwealth and Restoration periods the musical side was more
emphasized, but the play was the thing, and there was no Shakespeare or
Jonson or Marlowe or Beaumont and Fletcher to endow the thing with life.
So that whatever operatic performances may have resulted from Tony
Aston's visit to America could not be of any importance, though they
might be of some historical interest. One wonders if Tony's regrettable
departure from these shores left America theatrically barren. Many
years pass before we discover any sign of life. Then from Jones's
'Present State of Virginia,' published in London in 1724, we learn
that a playhouse existed in Williamsburg, Va., at least as early as
1722. Ten years later New York saw the opening of a New Theatre in
the building of a gentleman with the explosive appellation of Rip Van
Dam. Its name would suggest that another theatre existed previously
in New York. We cannot say what operas, if any, were given there,
but probably the Gray-Pepusch 'Beggar's Opera,' Hill's 'The Devil to
Pay,' and Fielding's 'Flora, or Hob in the Well,' were produced. At
this period the ballad opera was enjoying its vogue in England, and
fashions both on and off the English stage were faithfully copied in
America. Almost until the end of the century ballad operas remained
very popular in this country. They had very little in common with opera
as we understand it and have no real place in the evolution of the
art-form. The music rarely was written especially for them, but was
arranged from existing compositions, especially from English, Irish,
and Scotch folk-tunes. Occasionally the 'composer' showed real skill
in making his adaptations, as Dr. Pepusch did in the 'Beggar's Opera,'
but more frequently still the music was singularly inept and the whole
entertainment bordered closely on extravaganza.
We find that 'Flora, or Hob in the Well,' was performed at the
Courtroom, Charleston, in 1735, and that the New Theatre in the same
city also produced 'Flora,' as well as 'The Devil to Pay,' in 1736.
New York probably was giving similar performances at the same time,
but we can discover nothing definite on the subject until 1739, when
we note that at Henry Holt's Long Room there was performed 'A New
Pantomime Entertainment in Grotesque Characters, call'd the Adventures
of Harlequin and Scaramouch, or the Spaniard Trick'd. To which will be
added an Optick'--whatever that was. A company of actors appeared in
Philadelphia in 1749, but their advent inspired the city magistrates
to 'take the most effectual measures for suppressing the disorder.'
The unfortunate artists whose presence constituted a disorder then
went to New York, where they fitted up a building of the Hon. Rip Van
Dam as the 'Theatre in Nassau Street.' There, in 1750 and 1751, they
gave a number of operatic performances, including Fielding's 'Mock
Doctor,' 'The Beggar's Opera,' 'The Devil to Pay,' Cibber's 'Damon and
Philida,' Fielding's 'Virgin Unmask'd,' 'Flora,' and 'Colin and Phœbe.'
In 1751 they went South and, as the New York Company of Comedians,
obtained from Acting Governor Lee of Virginia permission to build a
theatre in Williamsburg. They played at Fredericksburg in 1752 and in
the same year, as the Company of Comedians from Virginia, opened the
New Theatre in Annapolis, Md., with 'The Beggar's Opera.' They also
gave the 'Virgin Unmask'd,' the 'Mock Doctor,' 'Damon and Philida,' and
'The Devil to Pay.' Then, metamorphosed into the Company of Comedians
from Annapolis, they appeared in upper Marlborough, where they gave
'The Beggar's Opera,' 'With Instrumental Music to each Air, given by a
Set of private Gentlemen.' We have been unable to follow them further.
Part of the original New York company to which they belonged remained
in that city and formed the nucleus of a new company which in 1751-52
gave a number of operas at the Nassau Street Theatre, including Carey's
'Honest Yorkshireman.'
Hallam's London Company of Comedians, subsequently the American Company
and later the old American Company, continued the work of supplying
Americans with regular theatrical performances, including operas. We
have been unable to follow their activities in detail. In 1765 New
York heard the pantomime ballad 'Harlequin's Vagaries,' perhaps the
'Harlequin Faustus' of Rich, with music by Gaillard. Three years later
was given Bickerstaff's 'Love in a Village,' the music adapted by Arne
from his own compositions and from the works of Handel, Boyce, Howard,
Baildon, Festing, Geminiani, Galuppi, Giardini, Paradies, Abos and
Agus. Everything was grist to the ballad-opera mill. Bickerstaff's 'The
Maid of the Mill,' with music by Dr. S. Arnold, was played in New York
in 1775.
II
Theatrical activities were naturally curtailed severely during the
war, but with the establishment of peace there was a great revival.
After the Revolution, indeed, the popularity of the theatre became
much greater and more widespread than it ever had been before. And
coincident with the popularity of the theatre came the popularity of
opera. Even in Boston the old prejudice against the theatres began
to disappear, though the blue laws of 1750 were still in force.
Several attempts were made at various times to circumvent these laws
by presenting operas under the guise of concerts, and the resulting
performances must occasionally have been wonderfully concocted. We
find an announcement in 1770 of 'A vocal entertainment of three acts.
The songs (which are numerous) are taken from a new celebrated opera,
call'd "Lionel and Clarissa."' An entry in the diary of John Rowe
during the same year reads: 'In the evening I went to the Concert Hall
to hear Mr. Joan read the Beggar's Opera and sing the songs.' In 1792
Alexander gave in Boston 'a musical entertainment called the Poor
Soldier delivered,' and from that time forward the friends of opera in
Boston met with no opposition, though it was long before Boston became
an operatic city.
In the meantime Maria Storer was winning fame throughout the country as
a ballad opera singer. Such pleasant and innocuous pieces as 'Thomas
and Sally,' 'Dorcas and Squire,' and 'Lionel and Clarissa' were very
popular at the time, and old favorites like the 'Beggar's Opera' and
'The Devil to Pay' held their own with a vitality that was surprising.
The fact is that the American people, exhausted by the labor and
suffering of the war, were in the state of mind now generally ascribed
to 'the tired business man,' and the English ballad opera was just the
sort of light entertainment they needed. English opera retained its
popularity, especially in New York, until well into the nineteenth
century; but from about the year 1790 it was forced to compete with
French and Italian opera introduced by refugees from France and St.
Domingo, and gradually it lost ground until eventually it disappeared
completely.
Between 1789 and 1793 there were given at concerts in Philadelphia
compositions by Rousseau, Dalayrac, Gluck, Paesiello, Monsigny,
Sacchini, and Cimarosa, and it is not improbable that operas by these
composers were also given, though we find no mention of the fact.
The first unquestionable record of a French or Italian opera in this
country is the performance of Pergolesi's _Serva Padrona_, under
the title of 'The Mistress and Maid,' given by a French company at
Baltimore in 1790. In 1791-92 Dibdin's 'The Deserter,' adapted from
_Le Déserteur_ of Monsigny, was given in New York, and it may be of
interest to note that Sheridan and Linley's 'Duenna' was given in
the same season. Charleston, always an enterprising city musically,
harbored a company of French comedians who arrived from St. Domingo in
1794, and enjoyed performances of operas by Rousseau, Grétry, Cimarosa,
Paesiello, and other composers then popular in Europe.
In the meantime there existed a healthy rivalry between New York and
Philadelphia touching the excellence of their respective operatic
organizations. Wignell and Reinagle opened the New Theatre in
Philadelphia in 1793 and gave especial prominence to opera. As might be
expected when Reinagle was at the helm, the performances reached a high
standard of artistic merit. Reinagle himself was one of the conductors
and among them also was Filippo Trajetto, whom we have already met in
the concert life of Boston. Mrs. Oldmixon, Miss Broadhurst and Miss
Brett seem to have been the vocal stars. In New York James Hewitt,
George Geilfert or Gilfert, and Francis Hodgkinson directed the
musical activities of the theatre and exerted themselves strenuously
to surpass Reinagle's organization. Dunlap writes in his 'History
of the American Theatre': 'We have noticed the improvement made by
Mr. Hodgkinson in the orchestra at New York, improvements rendered
necessary by the excellence of this branch of theatrical arrangement
in the rival company of Philadelphia. (The orchestra at Philadelphia,
under the direction of Reinagle, who sat at the harpsichord, was much
superior to that of New York.) Instead of the "one Mr. Pelham" and
his harpsichord, or the single fiddle of Mr. Hewlett, performers of
great skill filled the bands of the two rival cities. In New York the
musicians were principally French; most of these gentlemen who had seen
better days,--some driven from Paris by the revolution, some of them
nobles, some officers in the army of the king, others who had sought
refuge from the devastation of St. Domingo.' Certainly, the debt of the
United States to France is heavy in many directions.
Dr. Ritter has been at pains to compile a list of the English operas
given in New York between 1793 and 1823. The former year saw Shield's
'The Farmer,' Storace's comic opera, 'No Song, No Supper,' and Dibdin's
'The Waterman.' During the season 1793-94 there were played Dibdin's
'Lionel and Clarissa,' and 'The Wedding Ring,' Arnold's 'Inkle and
Yarico,' Shield's 'Poor Soldier,' 'Love in a Camp,' and 'Rosina,'
'The Beggar's Opera,' 'No Song, No Supper,' and 'The Devil to Pay.'
Dibdin's 'Quaker,' Arnold's 'The Children of the Wood,' Storace's 'The
Haunted Tower.' Carter's 'The Rival Candidate' and 'Macbeth' with music
were given in 1794-95. In 1796 were produced 'Rosina,' 'The Children
in the Wood,' 'The Maid of the Mill,' Reeve's 'The Purse,' Shield's
'Robin Hood,' 'No Song, No Supper,' 'The Haunted Tower,' 'The Surrender
of Calais,' Arnold's 'The Mountaineer,' Altwood's 'The Prisoner,'
'Poor Soldier,' 'The Padlock,' and an English version of Rousseau's
'Pygmalion.' What is probably the first American opera was produced in
New York on April 18 of the same year. It is called 'The Archers, or
the Mountaineers of Switzerland,' and was written by Benjamin Carr to a
libretto by William Dunlap. In 1796 also appeared 'Edwin and Angelina,'
composed by Victor Pelissier to a libretto by one Smith. This has often
been spoken of as the first American opera, but apparently it saw the
light some months later than Carr's work, and, in any case, Pelissier
was not an American. Another opera from his pen, to a libretto by
William Dunlap, called 'The Vintage,' was produced in New York in
1799--but we are anticipating.
The seasons of 1797 and 1798 seem to have been rather poor in New
York. Dr. Ritter notes only Storace's 'Siege of Belgrade' and Shield's
'Fontainebleau' in the former year, and Mrs. Oldmixon in 'Inkle and
Yarico' in the latter year. Nothing is mentioned for 1799 and 1800
except Pelissier's 'The Vintage' and an opera composed by Hewitt to
a libretto by Dunlap. In 1801 appeared Kelly's 'Bluebeard,' Reeve
and Mazzinghi's 'Paul and Virginia,' 'The Duenna,' Shield's 'Sprig
of Laurel,' and Kelly's 'The Hunter of the Alps.' Then there is a
hiatus until 1807 and 1808, when we find 'The Siege of Belgrade,' Dr.
Arnold's 'The Review,' Kelly's 'We Fly by Night' and 'Cinderella,'
'Forty Thieves,' Storace's 'Lodoiska,' and Mazzinghi's 'The Exile.'
Another famine followed until 1812 when 'Bluebeard' was produced. The
years 1813-14 saw Henry Bishop's 'Athis,' 'The Farmer and His Wife,'
and 'The Miller and His Men.' Between 1814 and 1819 are noted 'The
Poor Soldier,' 'Love in a Village,' 'Review,' 'Siege of Belgrade,'
'Bluebeard,' 'Lodoiska,' 'The Maid of the Mill,' 'Castle of Andalusia,'
'The Beggar's Opera,' 'Lionel and Clarissa,' 'Fontainebleau,' Kelly's
'Bride of Abydos,' and 'Rob Roy.' From this time on the vogue of
English opera rapidly declined and there are signs of a growing
interest in Italian, French, and German opera, though New York had
little opportunity of hearing such before 1825. An opera called 'The
Barber of Seville,' adapted by Bishop probably from Rossini's work, was
produced in 1819-20. Such adaptations seem to have been not infrequent,
and it can hardly be said that there was any artistic excuse for them.
A similar adaptation of Mozart's _Nozze di Figaro_, made by Bishop, was
played in New York in 1823 and two years later there was presented a
mutilated version of Weber's _Freischütz_. It is worthy of note that
John Howard Paine's 'Clari, the Maid of Milan,' containing the song
'Home, Sweet Home,' was produced in New York on November 12, 1823. The
opera itself soon melted into oblivion, but the song has survived as
one of the most widely popular lyrics ever composed. Other operas given
in New York between 1819 and 1825 include Braham's 'English Fleet,'
'The Deserter,' Bishop's 'Henry IV,' Kelly's 'Russian,' Bishop's
'Montrose,' 'The Duenna,' and Bishop's 'Maid Marian.'
III
One turns with relief to contemporary opera in New Orleans. The
preëminence of New Orleans as an operatic centre among American cities
of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries was as marked as
that of New York has been in recent times, though its population was
only a fraction of that possessed by New York, Philadelphia, or Boston.
Of course, New Orleans really was not an American city and did not
contain any considerable number of American residents until many years
after the Louisiana Purchase. It was, in effect, a French provincial
city with a metropolitan flavor due to its position as the head of a
rich and important colony. When one remembers the notably gregarious
instincts of Frenchmen and their intense and tenacious devotion to the
homeland, it is easy to understand how in New Orleans they reproduced
as far as possible the social and artistic conditions of Paris. The
thoroughly French character of New Orleans and its life remained
unchanged during the Spanish régime, and even the purchase effected no
appreciable change until many years had passed. This was especially so
at the opera, which even now remains a thoroughly French institution,
and it has been said that until after the Civil War American visitors
to the opera were very rare. Indeed, opera is a form of art which has
always appealed less to native Americans than to foreign-born citizens.
Information on the actual beginnings of opera in New Orleans are
rather scanty, but we know that a regular troupe of French comedians
and singers appeared there in 1791, and it is to be assumed that they
presented operas of Grétry, Gluck, Dalayrac, Monsigny, and others,
more or less efficiently. Opera, drama, and ballet in the best French
manner were given at M. Croquet's Théâtre St. Philippe in 1808. Another
theatre was built in St. Peter Street in 1810, and among the operas
given there in that and the following year were Paesiello's 'Barber of
Seville' and Zingarelli's 'Romeo and Juliet.' The arrival of John Davis
in 1811 with a troupe from San Domingo marks one of the real epochs in
American operatic activities. Davis built the Théâtre d'Orléans in 1813
and, when it was burned down four years later, he rebuilt it at a cost
of $180,000. This new theatre was by far the finest and best appointed
in America. Opera was given there three times a week by a regular opera
company, and not by artists who combined opera with the spoken drama,
as was customary elsewhere in America. After the death of John Davis
his son Pierre conducted the theatre for twenty-five years. The glories
of French opera in New Orleans during those years must await mention in
a later chapter, but, remarkable as they were, they hardly surpassed
the achievements of the elder Davis during a period when opera
elsewhere in America offered little of interest or artistic importance.
The works of Rossini, Mozart, Spontini, Méhul, Grétry, Gluck, and other
of the most eminent operatic composers were given in the best manner
by competent orchestras and ensembles, by distinguished conductors and
soloists. Beginning with García's visit in 1825, New York received
frequent attentions from foreign opera companies, and soon was enjoying
an operatic life which has now grown to proportions surpassed by few
cities in the world, but at least half of the nineteenth century had
passed away before New Orleans lost its proud position as the real home
of opera in America.
W. D. D.
FOOTNOTES:
[37] One must except Mr. Sonneck, who has unearthed some interesting
material on opera in America prior to 1750. The reader is referred to
his article in 'The New Music Review,' New York, Vol. 6, 1907.