Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett
In 1889, the Bostonians extended their tour to visit the Pacific states, including some remote mountain towns west of Denver. Previously known as the Boston Ideal Opera Company, the company traveled under the management of three principals, Karl, MacDonald and Barnabee.
The Bostonians visited the Tabor Opera House in Leadville in July 1899, performing “Fatinitza” for a filled house. On July 8, 1889, the “Carbonate Chronicle” announced, “The great operatic event of the year in Leadville will be the appearance of the famous Bostonians. The success of the company has indeed been flattering – it is an American organization of which Americans may just feel proud.”
On June 24, 1889, the “Leadville Daily Chronicle” described how the extension of the Bostonian tour, expand their territory to Leadville. The article reported, “During their last engagement in Chicago a proposition to tour the leading cities of the Pacific slope was made to them by Will J. Davis, manager of the Haymarket theater in that city, acting for himself and Al Hayman, the manager of Baldwin’s theater and the New California theater of San Francisco. Terms were agreed upon, after some deliberation, for it was something unusual for this company to prolong its season so far into the summer as this tour is completed. However, all objections were surmounted, and Messrs. Hayman and Davis secured the celebrated singers by paying them a good round certainty for ten weeks. The speculative managers assumed the entire risk. The Bostonians left Chicago Sunday, April 28, for Los Angeles, where they sang the week of May 6. Then followed the tremendous four weeks success in San Francisco which has but recently closed. The company opens to-morrow night in Denver, following with engagements at Pueblo, Leadville, Colorado Springs, Lincoln, Nebraska, Omaha, and Sioux City. The company numbers some seventy-odd people, and includes all the principal artists, chorus singers and members of their own orchestra. They travel by special train and in very good style, it being the intention of Karl, Barnabee, and MacDonald, the proprietors, to furnish sleeping car accommodations for the entire company at their own expense. Costumes, personal baggage and special scenery help make the size of the special quite as large as most regular trains. The personnel of this company, anyway considered, is not approached by any similar organization in the country. It is almost wholly Bostonian, the exception being credited to Chicago, in the case of the three principals, while Cincinnati and Baltimore are credited with one each. There is a distinct New England flavor to the chorus and orchestra. The independent airs of the Boston girl are plainly present in the pretty young ladies in the chorus, while the young men might pass for Harvard students.”
The “Leadville Daily Chronicle” rejoiced, “At last! After countless visits to Colorado by that greatest of all operatic organization, the Bostonians, Leadville will see them. While in the city last Thursday, Manager Peter McCourt of the Tabor Grand, Denver completed the arrangements whereby the great company will visit Leadville, the dates having been fixed on Monday and Tuesday, July 1 and 2” (June 24, 1889). However, the best laid plans don’t always work, and the troupe rearranged a section of the tour as Emma Abbot had already performed in “Bohemian Girl.”
On July 1, 1889, Leadville’s “Carbonate Chronicle” announced, “The ‘Bostonians’ Will Come Next Week and Give Us Two Treat.” The article continued, “The final arrangements were completed yesterday and the great organization with its many superb singers will give two performances at the Tabor Opera House. It was first decided, when Mr. Dailey, representing the company, was in Leadville, to play here on Monday and Tuesday, giving “Bohemian Girl” and “Fatiniza.” Learning that the former opera had been played here by the Abbott company, it was thought best to change that and also the dates, playing Pueblo and Colorado Springs before Leadville and also give Aspen a chance to see this really wonderful company. The state-tour, therefore, will be as follows: Monday, Colorado Springs; Tuesday and Wednesday, Pueblo; Thursday and Friday, Leadville; Saturday, Aspen. The “Musketeers” and “Fatinitza” will be played in the Cloud City, in the order named. The selection is a splendid one and could not have been bettered, The Bostonians will tour the state in their special train. The mounting and costuming of the opera’s will be one of the features at the Tabor. Among the principals appearing in the “Musketeers” will be Juliette Corden, Louise Bianchi, Carlotta Maconda, Josephine Bartlett, Gertrude Colby, W. H. McDonald, Edward Hoff, H. C. Barnabee and Fred Dixon. Marie Stoue and Jessie Bartlett Davis will be among the principals in “Fatinitza.”
In 1889, the Bostonians toured with five rail cars: two Pullman buffet and sleeping cars, a day coach and two baggage cars (Sioux City Journal, 14 July 1889, page 9). Besides the principal artists there were thirty singers in the grand chorus, thirteen orchestral performers, and baggage, scene and property masters; seventy people toured with the company (Los Angeles Herald, 5 May 1889, page 3). The company toured with settings for six operas, but this did not mean that they were limited to those productions. In Leadville, “The Three Musketeers” replaced the anticipated “Bohemian Girl.” Also, not all communities or venues could support six full-scale productions. For example, the Bostonians performed only two operas in Leadville, while the advertised for six at Salt Lake City’s Grand Opera. This mean that the company toured with a significant amount of special scenery, and multiple shows necessitated careful labeling of each piece; individual pieces would be labeled for immediate identification. This is not to say that the Bostonians did not supplement their special scenery with stock scenery from the various venues, but they would have also used clearly labeled scenery. “Fatinitza,” required only three settings for the three-act opera; a Russian Outpost on the Danube; Izzet Pasha’s Harem; and Count Kantchukoff’s Palace.
There is a door piece at the Tabor Opera House in Leadville that is clearly labeled “Fatinitza, Act 1st in 1, LH.” The extant door was for the Russian outpost on the Danube. Interestingly, the set piece does not stylistically match any of the other scenic items at the venue.
However, there remains one lone shutter that depicts half of a winter scene. Is it possible that a touring production left a scenic piece as they quickly packed up for their next stop? None of the other attic scenery was specifically marked for a show. The only common markings were on wings for groove set positions, such as L1 and R1. This would indicate stage left, first position and stage right, first position; down stage grooves.
As I was contemplating the possibility of the Bostonians, or another touring company, leaving a scenic piece at the Tabor Opera House, I came across an article in the “Los Angeles Daily Herald” from 1889. On May 5, an article about the Bostonians 1889 Transcontinental tour reported, “Nothing ever used in any of the many operas they present has been left behind. Scene, property, costume, and in fact every accessory to a perfectly finished performance of each opera was brought along” (page 3). Los Angeles was their first stop on the tour. I have to wonder if this was still the case as the tour neared an end in Leadville, and the elevation took its toll on both performers and stagehands.
“Fatinitza” returned to the Tabor Opera House in Leadville four years later. On April 20, 1893, the “Leadville Daily Chronicle” advertised three upcoming operas performed by a much smaller company, the Calhoun Opera Co. Their line up included “Fatinitza,” “Said Pasha” and “Boccaccio.” The shows were produced on a much smaller scale than the Bostonians in 1889. Instead of the Bostonian’s seventy-member company, the Calhoun Opera company toured with only forty people. Of these forty individuals, five of them constituted the orchestra. Reviews for the Calhoun Opera Co. shows were mediocre. Leadville’s “Herald Democrat” announced “an evenly balanced company.” The article continued, “One of the striking features of the Calhoun Opera Company is the nice equilibrium of the principles in producing artistic effects. They have been very intelligently selected, and the proprietor and chief manager, Mr. Shunk of Chicago, is to be congratulated on having organized a company that is compact and even well equipped to gain popular favor.”
Regardless of which touring company left the outpost hut for “Fatinitza,” the construction dates are approximately, 1885 to 1895.
To be continued…
Very nice , thank you for sharing. I grew up in Leadville but never knew the history.
You are welcome!