1883-12-08uu

The critic of plays and musical performances for the Hamilton Spectator had something to say about audiences in the city, and in December 8, 1883 column, he lets his feelings be known in no uncertain terms :

“Recently a very fine play was presented by a very fine company at the Grand Opera House here. It is safe to say that such a finished performance has not been seen in Hamilton in the history of years.

“Such artists as Sarah Jewett, Annie Russell, Fanny Ten Eyck and Herbert Kelsey took part. And yet the company played to starvation business. The manager went away grumbling, and vowing that Hamilton was one of the worst show towns he had ever struck. It may have been that Divorce was not properly advertised. It may have been that Hamilton people thought the show was a bad one.

“And this is almost invariably the case. Good shows come here, and in nine cases out of ten, they draw poorly. Last season, E. A. McDowell’s company played a week’s engagement at the Grand and dropped money every night. Yet the company was an excellent one, and the plays presented were first class.

“But Charles L. Davis comes along with a miserable affair called Alvin Joslyn, outs up as much paper as a circus does and fills the house. And the people who go to the show laugh at Davis’ inane cackle and chuckle gleefully over the superb idiocy of the play.

“Such a state of affairs as this does say much for the intelligence of Hamiltonians. It will be argues that Davis does not appeal to a higher order of intelligence and that the class of people who go to see him is not the same class that patronize better shows. Perhaps. But this does not do away with the stigmas cast upon the ambitious city by this state of affairs. Hamiltonians are great theatre-goers as a rule. But they seem to prefer mediocre and poor performances to good ones in the majority of cases.”¹

                ¹ “Music and the Drama  : Information Concerning Singers and Players”

Hamilton Spectator.  December  08, 1883.