For a long time Rotherhithe was London’s natural port, gaining its name from the Anglo-Saxon term for “landing-place for cattle.” There were shipyards in the area from Elizabethan times until the early twentieth century, and working docks until the 1970s. [Read more…] about Engineering Theatre: The Brunel Legacy in London & New York
A Rascal in Venice, Hero in Vienna, Opera Buff in Manhattan
Defrocked priest and poet Lorenzo Da Ponte wrote the words for Mozart’s three celebrated operas Don Giovanni, Le nozze di Figaro, and Così fan tutte. As the librettist’s ultimate challenge is creating character whilst thinking music, few could match Lorenzo’s achievement. [Read more…] about A Rascal in Venice, Hero in Vienna, Opera Buff in Manhattan
Exchanging New Amsterdam for Paramaribo
In August 1664 four English frigates sailed into the harbor of New Amsterdam, demanding the surrender of New Netherland. The colony was provisionally ceded by Peter Stuyvesant. He subsequently sent a delegation to sign the Articles of Capitulation. New Amsterdam was reincorporated under English law as the city of New York. Soon after the Second Anglo-Dutch (Sea) War broke out in which Charles II unsuccessfully tried to end Dutch domination of world trade. [Read more…] about Exchanging New Amsterdam for Paramaribo
Blame it on Shakespeare: The Astor Place Riot
In the early nineteenth century, theaters were among the relatively few purpose built public spaces where large numbers of people could gather. They were cathedrals of modernity. Repertoire was the main focus of attention, but the auditorium was a performance area in itself where topical issues were discussed. [Read more…] about Blame it on Shakespeare: The Astor Place Riot
Harlem & The Hellfighter Band That Set France Jazz Mad
When Paris first heard American jazz, it is – from our perspective – impossible to make sense of the cultural thunderbolt that must have hit audiences. This music was so wholly different to European ears that it was either scornfully rejected or eagerly accepted. [Read more…] about Harlem & The Hellfighter Band That Set France Jazz Mad
Myth and Migration: The Old West As Urban Invention
The idea of utopia as a place of peace and plenty away from the hardships of ordinary life, is a recurring theme in literature. The term entered popular usage after publication of Thomas More’s Utopia in 1516. His Eden is an idyllic island society wholly removed from the corruption of sixteenth century England. [Read more…] about Myth and Migration: The Old West As Urban Invention
Salons: American Rebels, French Etiquette and Lesbian History
When Benjamin Franklin traveled to Paris in 1776 seeking support for the Revolution, the old charmer became a popular guest at the city’s glittering salons. His successor Thomas Jefferson continued his PR work and established contacts with the city’s most prominent salonnières. Thomas Paine too was a visitor of various salons. Thanks to their socio-diplomatic involvement, the American Revolution became a central topic of discussion at such gatherings. [Read more…] about Salons: American Rebels, French Etiquette and Lesbian History
Anthropodermic Bibliopegy Skills of A Brooklyn Bookbinder
In early America, Boston was the main centre of the book trade (including bookbinding), followed by Philadelphia and, by a distance, New York. As most early bookbinders worked anonymously, it is difficult to put a timeline to developments. [Read more…] about Anthropodermic Bibliopegy Skills of A Brooklyn Bookbinder
Manhattan ‘Flash’ Culture: Madams and Sporting Men
Throughout the nineteenth century, prostitution was rife in American cities. In 1820 there were an estimated two hundred brothels in New York, growing to more than six hundred after the Civil War. By the early 1840s the city was the nation’s whoring capital, its own Gomorrah.
Most houses of assignation before the Civil War were owned and controlled by women. Some madams made spectacular careers, nobody more so than Fanny White whose Mercer Street brothel was, from 1851 onward, a meeting place for Congressmen, dignitaries and diplomats – a Manhattan whoreocracy. [Read more…] about Manhattan ‘Flash’ Culture: Madams and Sporting Men
Showmanship: The Master of Brass Meets The King of Waltz
The era of “Monster Concerts” started in Vienna in 1839 when Beethoven’s pupil Carl Czerny organized a performance to raise money for victims of a flooding of the River Danube.
Twenty pianists at ten pianos performed a program of four-hand duet pieces. In the history of musical entertainment, the tradition was raised to a new level after the end of Civil War in America. [Read more…] about Showmanship: The Master of Brass Meets The King of Waltz