Theatre History: What was the "first" play in the United States?

My first year teaching middle school theatre, I was surprised by how few students understood that Theatre has ancient roots. In their defense, the history of theatre is not a major topic in elementary social studies classrooms, if it is even mentioned at all. It make sense that the students' frame of reference would be what they have experienced for themselves.

I love theatre history and it was a great pleasure to bring some of that knowledge to the curriculum in subsequent years. They are genuinely shocked by how old the art form is and how widespread the practice of performing stories for an audience has been across the world. What surprises them even more is that some historical "facts" can be disputed. This is particularly so when we talk about historical "firsts".

historical marker in Accomac, Virginia

For example, as a conversation starter I will sometimes ask: "When was the first play performed in the United States?" We discuss their answers, which they are allowed to guess or Google. I often get the following:

• 1690 at Harvard
• 1754 at a tavern in Virginia
• any other date & place found on Wikipedia

Then we consider that the United States has only been an name used for a particular area of North America since 1776. Of course, that geography has changed in the 245 since. We can then go further to consider what play may have been the "first" in the American colonies. But, then again, people have been on that land before the Colonies were formalized, even before the colonists reached the land. And we typically think of those colonies in the context of the 17th and 18th century. Did the Vikings perform plays in North America? In what ways did the indigenous peoples perform for one another?

It is a bit more than they bargained for, but in an elective class that the majority of students present didn't elect to take, it is an important idea to consider. Our definitions, our ideas about what is important or good or fact, may be limited by the context in which we search, or exist. It is a great way to get students who are used to thinking academically (not necessarily creatively) to realize that things can go in many different directions. That's an important understanding in a classroom where creativity and imagination are essential tools.

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Finding Purpose in the Pause

Pauses and stops are disruptive by nature. What if we saw them as opportunities instead?

This morning I woke up to the second snow day of the week. While it is nice to have a more relaxed day at home, it also means rescheduling and restructuring lesson plans and rehearsal schedules and more, I'm sure. But in that re-, there's possibility. I will look at all of those plans with a new perspective and restructure goals under new limitations and dynamics. Being home also allows other opportunities, too (doing laundry while I work is huge).

From a more poetic viewpoint, there's possibility in a day like today - to any pause in our routine. I wrote more about it on the Young Playwrights Guide blog today. You can read that here.

Okay. Back to work!

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Theatre History: Lincoln and Booth

Robert Todd Lincoln

One of my favorite stories from American theatre history is also connected to one of the most tragic. Last year, I included it in the discussion of theater and stage spaces in the middle school Theatre classroom. As I've previously written, that class is often populated with students who have been placed in the class rather than chosen it. Their interest in the art form is tepid, at best, so I love connecting it to other subjects whenever possible. The students' reactions to those connections are excellent.

This story may have taken place around this time of year in either late 1864 or early 1865 and involves the only surviving child of President Abraham Lincoln (Robert Todd Lincoln) and the older, more successful brother of his assassin, John Wilkes Booth (Edwin Booth). The story was told by Robert Lincoln to a friend in a letter dated many years after the event and goes something like this:

Edwin Booth as Hamlet

Robert Todd Lincoln was standing on a crowded train platform in Jersey City, NJ. He was pressed against a train that suddenly started moving. He lost his balance and slipped into the narrow opening between the train and the platform when someone grabbed him by the collar and pulled him to safety on the platform. Lincoln turned to thank the helper and found himself face to face with Edwin Booth, arguably the most famous actor in America at the time. Lincoln said he thanked Booth by name; however, it is not clear that Booth recognized Lincoln. At that time, Robert Todd Lincoln would have been about 22 or 23 years old and serving in the Union Army. He had not yet held any public office and presidential families were not as public and therefore not as recognizable as they would be today.

Obviously, Edwin Booth's youngest brother would murder President Lincoln just a few months later. Booth was devastated by this and it took him quite a while to return to the stage and the public. It is said that learning he saved the life of Robert Lincoln helped Edwin heal and feel a sense of redemption. It is also a remarkable coincidence and fantastic story!

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