The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1898-09-21
THE DECLINE
OF NEGRO
NINSTRElSY.
The Once Popular Form Of En-
tertdinment Is RdDidfu Los
in0 It's Hold Upon the
Affections Of the
Thedter GOinO
Public.

Up to 1880 there was no more popular
form OF amusement i'm the United
States than negro minstrelsy Then IL
lapsed and degenerated until 1885, when
IL virtually collapsed.
Boston had it's Morris brothers. Pell
and Trowbridge and an occasional How
ard Athenaum troupe. New York glo-
ried in It's half dozen temples of song
and dance exclusively devoted to this
art along Broadway Uncluding the
Hope chapel the Marble hall. corner OF
Prince) or contiguous streets. with the
Melodeon. at SO Bowery. and such well
known organizations as Donaldson's,
Hooley's, Wood & Christy's, at tho
memorable 4A Broadway: Whites.
Neil and Dan Bryant's and Emersons.
with such drawing cards as Dave Wam-
bold, the sweet voiced tenor who made
his debut at the age OF 13, and Uncle"
Dan Emmett, the original burnt cork
minstrel OF America. who was the COM
poser of Dixie" Some of these COM
panies went later to augment the at
fractions of Philadelphia and Chicago,
while Backus. Wambold Abecco and
Birch formed the most perfect aggrega-
tion OF BLACK face artists in Califor-
MAS chief city and from 1866 TO 1872
tenanted $50 Broadway as the San
Francisco minstrels, to the delight OF
| Gotham and their own financial ad-
vantage.
For q quarter OF century before the
civil war and for 10 or Is years later
there was genuine announcement of
this form of thespian art In every large
community i'm the United States. To
every small town and village the ad-
vent of minstrel show was of as much
enthusiastic interest as circus.
To Edwin p. Christy. whose name is
TO the minstrel platform what that of
Edwin Forrest Is to the dramatic stage.
| is due the credit of establishing this
| form of popular entertainment in New
York city in 1s47.
Just why the public lost its general
interest in this species OF entertainment
| II is very difficult TO explain. There is a
strong probability, however, that the
large exodus of the genuine negro from
the south into the northern and eastern
states dispelled the sentimental illusion
with which he had been regarded as a
superlatively comic being.
There still remain Cleveland & Will
sons Consolidated. Primrose. Thatch-
er. William II. West. AL q. Fields. Dock
stader and a few other organizations,
but they are monster equipments for
the road. combining i'm themselves all
| the features of modern farce comedy
and the musical elements of minstrelsy.
They advertise largely their refined
programme" but many acts are today
given with white faces. and choice ball
| lad singing is always the favored spe-
! cialty. There isn't more than 10 per
| cent OF the old time rollicking humor
and acting in the present delineations.
| But we shall ever sigh for that an
| cient burlesque stump speech. We
know that the glamour OF youth has
| fallen from our eyes; that no such crea-
! ton ever existed in fact. on earth or In
the sea. as the tattered black individual.
| with the never falling green colored
cotton umbrella, who mounted bar
| rel. a table or chair and delivered the
most senseless concatenation of words
| that could be contrived. If he didn't
manage to fall of to the floor to pune
tuate the end OF his grafton. the audi
ence felt that II had been defrauded OF
a large portion OF its legitimate and ex-
pected fun.
Then there was the everlasting inter-
ude. where n manager was supposed TO
be engaged in hiring talent for a dramat-
ic combination OF his own. IL was always
the same business" The new applicant
rehearsed Hamlet" and Damon and
Pythas." and when, in response TO the
Grecian's explanatory lament. The sun
goes rushing down the west" this
would be aspirant for histrionic honors
shouted, Let her rushl" or, I'm sup
posed Richard III representation, In an
swer 10 the tragic demand OF "A horse
my kingdom for horse!' the trembling
knave humbly acknowledges, Master.
forgive me, but I slowed your mule"
how every one did laugh! There were
the incongruity and the absurdity 10
tickle the spectators. There were also
the plantation songs and dances, which
were perhaps more correct phases oi
genuine slave life than anything else.
But. alas. negro minstrelsy has had
it's day. and. to paraphrase what the
Prince OF Denmark said OF Yorick, I'VE
shall not look -pon its like again.
Il w. TH0RNE DEvoLN