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Full Description
In the early twentieth-century, Canada's theatres were mostly controlled by Americans. As variety shows flooded these stages, new forms of blackface, inspired by modern forms of amusements, changed the theatre. In this era marked by progressive social reforms, the stage embodied the modern ethos of imitation, mimicry, and change.
Staging Blackface in Canada covers a moment when Canadians did not produce professional theatre, but they built amusement parks, wrote songs, and produced records. As the stage (drama), and its variants (burlesque, light opera) adapted elements from the new stages (amusement parks, social dance, and film), the modern culture popularized forms of blackface that impacted white, Anglo-Protestant, and English-speaking audiences, and drew theatrical criticism.
This book explores a twenty-year period in Canada's history when there was no media regulation, and no mandate to promote Canadian culture. Through an examination of theatrical reviews, images, and textual records, Staging Blackface in Canada locates how the Canadian stage became a playground for ethnic jokes, racial caricature, and women's emancipation. It also locates some of the first Black musicals and operas to appear on Canadian stages.
Contents
Prologue
Introduction: Staging Blackface in Canada's Modern Era
Chapter 1: Free, Continuous and "High-Class" Vaudeville at Toronto's Amusements, 1898-1910
Chapter 2: Black Vaudeville and Burlesque at Theatres: Salome, Oriental Operas, and the Integration of the Stage, 1898-1909
Chapter 3: American Syndicates, Jewish "Coon" Acts, and the Foreign Annexation of Canadian Stages, 1904-1913
Chapter 4: Ziegfeld Follies and Sound Recording Modernize the Musical with Imitation Songs, and Mimetic Dances in Toronto and Montreal, 1907-1919
Chapter 5: Amateur Blackface During World War One, and the Birth of a Nation at Home, 1914-1919
Conclusion
Selected Bibliography
