The Yankee Doodle Boy gets digitized
Since 1968, the Museum has been home to a large collection of scripts, sheet music, and scores created by George M. Cohan, the most prolific theater artist in the … Continue reading
The short, sad story of actress Clara Bloodgood
On the evening of December 5, 1907, respected actress and society woman Clara Bloodgood fatally shot herself in a Baltimore hotel room. She was in town to star as the … Continue reading
Speedway Concourse and Transverse Road, AKA the Grand Concourse
In 1874 the disparate villages of Westchester County (Morrisania, Kingsbridge, et al.) were annexed to New York City and formed what we now know as the Bronx. At the time, … Continue reading
Cymbeline; what’s a love story without some scandal?
It was January 25, 1897, the opening night of William Shakespeare’s romance Cymbeline, based on the legend of an early Celtic British king, at Wallack’s Theatre. The lavish production starred … Continue reading
Brides and Debutantes: White Dresses all Around
The start of summer brings with it the beginning of wedding season. As a bride-to-be myself, I couldn’t help but take a closer look at the numerous wedding invitations that … Continue reading
A Call to Serve: Scenes from the Henry Street Visiting Nurse Service
With fresh tears in her eyes, a young girl approached Lillian Wald, a graduate of New York Hospital School of Nursing. Concerned for the girl’s well-being, Wald followed the child … Continue reading
Benjamin J. Falk, photographer and master of light
It’s 1881. You’re an actor in the latest smash-hit sensation. Wanting to gain a little publicity for yourself, the show, and a potential national tour, the producers send you off to … Continue reading
Chantecler, a Barnyard Fantasy
While digitizing the vast collection of over 30,000 photographs that make up the theatre production files at the Museum of the City of New York, a project generously funded by the Institute … Continue reading
Up on the roof, entertainment en plein air
Spring in New York City is glorious. Allergy issues aside, the season of rebirth is especially welcome after this winter’s polar vortex shenanigans. And though I celebrate the sunny days … Continue reading
Alfred E. Smith – the people’s politician?
This week, we have a guest post from one of the interns who worked with us over the summer, Karis Raeburn, who has since returned to Dayton, Ohio, where she … Continue reading
Conservation of the J. Clarence Davies Map Collection
The Museum is nearing the completion of the two-year National Endowment for the Humanities grant-funded project “Conserving, Digitizing, and Creating Access to the J. Clarence Davies Collection of Art.” Begun … Continue reading
100 years of the Actors’ Equity Association
Look at the cast list in any theater program across the country and you will see a small * beside a performer’s name leading to a footnote indicating the performer … Continue reading
Eugene O’Neill: the sailor, the sickness, the stage
In December 1912, a young man experiencing the onset of tuberculosis committed himself to Gaylord Sanatorium in Connecticut. The third son of a well known Irish-American actor, the young man … Continue reading
