Evangeline (1874 musical)

Evangeline; or, The Belle of Acadia is an American musical that was loosely based on Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's epic poem Evangeline.[1] The title character is a French Acadian forced to leave her home in Canada. After a long journey, she flies by balloon to Arizona. Along the way, she and others are arrested for harboring deserting sailors and sent to France by ship for imprisonment in the Bastille. Their ship, however, runs aground on the coast of a diamond-studded African nation. Complicating matters, an Acadian notary stalks Evangeline, holding a secret will that purports to divert her inheritance to him if she signs a marriage contract. Complications ensue.[1]

Evangeline debuted at Niblo's Garden on July 27, 1874 in a sparsely-staged production. With music by Edward E. Rice and lyrics and book by J. Cheever Goodwin, it was one of the first successful Broadway musicals to have a score written by a one-song writing team. Rice funded the musical's production, which only ran for a limited run of 16 performances; followed by a successful tour.[1] The original cast included Lizzie Harold in the title role, as well as Ione Burke, James Dunn (actor), and Connie Thompson.[2]

Although the musical's initial run was only modestly successful, it became a cultural classic of the American theater world for the late part of the 19th century. Among other revivals, it was given a successful Broadway revival in 1885, running for 252 performances. Fay Templeton played the popular trouser role of Gabriel.[1][3] The only musical that fared better during that time was The Black Crook.[4]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Shields, David S. "Evangeline 1885 – The Earliest Stage Images of an American Musical", Broadway Photographs, University of South Carolina, accessed April 23, 2016
  2. ↑ Green, Stanley (2014). Broadway Musicals Show by Show Eighth Edition. New York City: Applause. ISBN 978-1-4803-8547-4.
  3. ↑ Evangeline!, Internet Broadway Database, accessed April 23, 2016
  4. ↑ "Musical of the Month: Evangeline". The New York Public Library. Retrieved 2016-04-03.
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