The Bowery Theatre

46 Bowery, New York, NY | 1826-1929

Photo Credit: The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Print Collection, The New York Public Library. "New York Theatre, erected 1826. Front on Bowery, 75 feet, depth 170 feet" The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1826 - 1900. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/5e66b3e8-d2c2-d471-e040-e00a180654d7

FALSE FACE, FALSE HEART, my YA Historical fiction project, set in the Bowery Theatre in New York City during the tumultuous year of 1849 has sent me on a journey Combing Through Research.

Theatre in the mid-nineteenth century was a bit like the wild west. The Bowery Theatre has a long and colorful history as one of the most prolific theatrical venues in New York City during the 19th and early 20th Centuries. When it first opened, comedy, minstrel shows and musical performances catered primarily to the Uppers – or gentry crowd, although it attracted Lowers from the working neighborhoods as well. Unlike today, the house lights remained on during the entirety of the show so patrons could be seen. During a performance, it was common for both classes to hurl insults, rotten fruit and vegetables at the actors as well as each other.

The Bowery was one of the only theatre’s in the city that allowed unaccompanied women (often prostitutes) to attend, occupying the top gallery ironically referred to as the “cockloft.” Gentlemen of the elite were known to leave their wives and daughters on the lower level and pay a visit to these ladies up above.

The Bowery burned seven times, (1828, 1835, 1838, 1845, 1923 and 1929) to be rebuilt more elaborately and with increased seating capacity each time. By the late 1830’s and early 1840’s the theatrical offerings gradually began to cater to the working class and less to the elite. Credit for transforming the Bowery from the stodgy early days to a wildly popular showplace with coarse entertainment and a financial success, was manager Thomas Hamblin. However, his reputation was clouded by his rakish and violent personal life. (More on the tyrannical womanizer and possible murderer in an upcoming post!)

Bowery Theatre Interior. Seating Capacity - 4000!

Photo Credit: (August 24, 1845). "Interior View of the new Bowery Theatre". New York Herald:

Check out the Manhattan Unlocked blog for a detailed history of the Bowery Theatre!

Sources:

Lueger, Michael. “Playing Around with Nineteenth-Century Theatre in Dr. Robert Davis’s Broadway 1849.” The Theatre History Podcast. Episode 65. Howlround.com. July 25, 2018. https://howlround.com/playing-around-nineteenth-century-theatre-dr-robert-daviss-broadway-1849