By Kathy Kovach
Storytelling is as old as time. It’s how God wired us. I’m
sure Moses sat near the fire, regaling the Israelites with stories about his
ancestors. “I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of
old,” (Psalms 78:2, ASV.)
Centuries later, Jesus took principles and made them into
relatable stories that he orally taught to those gathered. “Jesus spoke all
these things in parables to the multitudes; and without a parable, he didn’t
speak to them,” (Matthew 13:35, WEB.)
The ancient Greeks and Egyptians honed storytelling to an
art. They were so successful that their blueprint stood the test of time.
Entire nations were influenced, none more so than Great Britain.
From there, it was only a matter of time before it would hop
the pond.
In 1510, European theater made it to Puerto Rico, giving the island the honor of becoming the first to hold refined performances in the Americas.
In the 16th century, theater moved north, and plays were
performed in the Spanish-held territories that eventually became the United
States. In what is now known as Louisiana, several performances took place on
October 12, 1721. The town of Los Adaes celebrated the arrival of the Spanish
governor, the Marquis de San Miguel de Aguayo. This cultural event brought the
people together to solidify Spanish control after a time of uncertainty.
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Hamlet and his mother |
English actor David Douglass met Hallam in Jamaica. After
Hallam’s death, Douglass married his widow, actress and theater director Sarah
Hallam. The two traveled with the company, now known as the American Company,
to Philadelphia where they opened the Southwark Theatre in 1766. This was
considered the first permanent theater in America. On a roll, they also built
the John Street Theater in 1767, modeling it after Southwark. There, the first
American-written play, The Prince of Parthia by poet Thomas Godfrey, was
performed in that same year.
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| Quakers |
American Colonial era theater suffered the same opposition as England had during its turbulent times. Those in Puritan and Quaker regions felt it was frivolous and often sacrilegious. Others opposed any British influence, as most of the plays had come from there. Massachusetts in 1750, Pennsylvania in 1759, and Rhode Island in 1761 all banned theater performances. Most of the states followed during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783) thanks to the Continental Congress.
It was difficult to come back from such prejudices. In 1794,
Yale College president, Timothy Dwight IV, wrote the following in Essay on Theatre:
". . . to indulge a taste for playgoing means nothing
more or less than the loss of that most valuable treasure: the immortal
soul."
Yikes!
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| Encampment at Valley Forge |
Despite the congressional ban, George Washington himself recognized the importance of entertainment as a distraction. He asked for his favorite play, Cato, set during the Roman Civil War, to be performed for the troops after the harsh winter at Valley Forge.
The storytelling seed has been planted deep within all of us. Its branches weave through time, barrel over social status, and travel across continents.
Welcome to America, Live Theater!
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