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Years ago, while teaching college courses in the History of American Musical Theatre, my research exposed numerous instances of innovation in the art form (“this was the first time…”) as theatrical technologies, along with musical styles and forms, evolved. I began to “collect” such phrases, which later included people, theatrical venues and other occasional oddities, into the collection and organized the data chronologically. |
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At this site, we focus on historical firsts. Innovation creates history, and this is a collection of innovative events, decisions and inventions. Among other things, the collection includes initial appearances of popular shows, songs and performers. Here, you’ll find descriptions of theatrical firsts in America from 1665 to 2000. Each “historical first” appears in bold type. |
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Generally, the New York opening is considered the finished form of any work (even if subsequent changes occur during the New York run). For the sake of maintaining some historical perspective, this site covers events through the 1999-2000 season. |
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Ongoing additions to the site include textual entries and pictures of people and theatrical venues. One project will soon offer links to audio files of songs in the public domain; other improvements may occur as they are invented or suggested. |
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We owe much to those who have assisted in the development and presentation of this material. Please see our “Cast & Crew” page. To everyone who appears there, I offer my deepest thanks. |
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Perhaps you will find something here that will initiate your own research. You might want to have an item considered for inclusion at the site (if so, please contact me). You might wish to correct an error that you find here (if so, by all means contact me). You may even find items that will pique your curiosity and motivate you to seek answers. We hope that this site will bring you closer to the theatrical art form that has proven time and again to be our most beloved: the musical. |
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Wayne Hamilton, MFA 2009 |
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Thank you for visiting FirstOnStage.com, a web site that was literally decades in the making. We hope you find the information here useful in your classes, in your research or in exercising your intellectual curiosity. If so, we hope you’ll make a donation to help support FirstOnStage. This information comes to you quickly and easily without the cost of expensive textbooks or hours of searching for the proverbial needle in the digital haystack. Your gift will enable site developers to provide ongoing enhancements, including additional textual content, pictures and audio files. PayPal will safely and securely process the transaction. Thanks for your interest and your generous support! |
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The Maid and the Moonshiner, which opened in New York on August 16, 1886, had a libretto by Charles Hoyt (1859 - 1900) and music by Edward Soloman (1855 - 1895). The piece is notable because it was the first staging effort by Julian Mitchell (1854 - 1926), who went on to direct shows for the next forty years. History remembers Mitchell as one of the first modern directors. He assisted Hoyt with this piece and eventually gained fame in the staging of musicals for Joe Weber and Lew Fields and later for Florenz Ziegfeld. As the middle class rose in size and spending power in America, they demanded entertainment that suited their tastes. Some, like Tony Pastor, anticipated this and provided family-style entertainment for the masses. Charles Hoyt also responded to those demands. At the same time, his writing, which catered to the middle class, had much to do with transforming American musical theatre from being a copycat of European forms to a musical style of its own. Born in New Hampshire, Hoyt had careers as a journalist and cowboy before settling into the theatre. His first plays were produced in the western states, but he eventually wrote straight plays and musical libretti that appeared on Broadway. In September of 1897, Weber and Fields opened The Glad Hand, or Secret Servants. This show was the first of their productions to be staged by Julian Mitchell, who by this time had been directing professionally for more than ten years. He staged more than eighty productions in his career, and is credited by some as being 1) the most prolific musical-theatre director ever and 2) the first director to integrate dance numbers with the story line. His stylish work with Weber and Fields caught the attention of professionals and the public alike. In fact, his chorus line stagings were especially attractive to Florenz Ziegfeld. Julian Mitchell (1854 - 1926) directed musical productions for more than forty years. This is especially remarkable because Mitchell was almost totally deaf. He started out working in theatre as a call boy, then worked briefly as a dancer before his deafness forced him to give up performing. He then turned his attention to putting together touring productions. After joining the ranks of professionals in New York with a Charles Hoyt production (The Maid and the Moonshiner), he grew in talent and fame before ending his career as the stager of Ziegfeld's Follies. After serving as conductor for three years with the Pittsburgh Symphony, Victor Herbert returned to the theatre with Babes In Toyland, October 13, 1903. This show marked Herbert's place as a master of musical theatre. It was commissioned by Fred Hamlin and Julian Mitchell as a sequel to their production of The Wizard of Oz.
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The Maid and the Moonshiner, which opened in New York on August 16, 1886, had a libretto by Charles Hoyt (1859 - 1900) and music by Edward Soloman (1855 - 1895). The piece is notable because it was the first staging effort by Julian Mitchell (1854 - 1926), who went on to direct shows for the next forty years. History remembers Mitchell as one of the first modern directors. He assisted Hoyt with this piece and eventually gained fame in the staging of musicals for Joe Weber and Lew Fields and later for Florenz Ziegfeld. As the middle class rose in size and spending power in America, they demanded entertainment that suited their tastes. Some, like Tony Pastor, anticipated this and provided family-style entertainment for the masses. Charles Hoyt also responded to those demands. At the same time, his writing, which catered to the middle class, had much to do with transforming American musical theatre from being a copycat of European forms to a musical style of its own. Born in New Hampshire, Hoyt had careers as a journalist and cowboy before settling into the theatre. His first plays were produced in the western states, but he eventually wrote straight plays and musical libretti that appeared on Broadway.