19th Century American Drama

19th Century American Drama• Early drama had been considered sinful• College of William and Mary - the site of

perhaps the first accepted play in 1702• 1716 – 1st playhouse built in

Williamsburg, Virginia

• 1778 – Continental Congress denounced stage shows because they “diverted the minds of people from . . . the defense of the country.”

• 1st play worthy of consideration The Contrast by Royal Tyler (1787)

• 19th Century – theatre blossomed with showboats in major cities – known as “Mississippi Playhouses”

• “The Road” became a lucrative business• Touring companies successful for over 50

years until radio and movies

Three Major Types of American Theatre

1. Minstrel Shows – done in black face and featuring African American songs

2. Vaudeville – Variety show – clean for whole family

3. Melodrama – over-sentimentalism – plight of the poor heroine in the clutches

of the villain

• Eugene O”Neil (1888-1953)

• Leading American dramatist of the 1st part of the 20th century

• Plays were realistic and expressionistic and dealt with psychological truths

• Emperor Jones

• Another major contribution of American Theatre – Musical Comedy

• Fredrick Lowe• My Fair Lady

Theatre Around the World

Avant-garde theatre:“Theatre of the Absurd”

• Samuel Becket• Waiting for Godot

• Today’s drama expresses diversity and blending of culture through a redefining of past conventions