Thomas Heric is a neurologist and author who also has an interest in theatre, particularly vaudeville. Unlike many other genres of theatre, vaudeville focuses on variety within the performance, often through the grouping of a number, often unrelated, acts. It became particularly popular in the United States in the late 19th century, enjoying a slow evolution in the process.
Early History
Vaudeville as a genre of theatre first began making an appearance in the early 1860s, when concert saloon and variety hall owners would enlist groups of performers, each of whom usually specialized in different types of acts, to entertain their patrons. It is unknown when the vaudeville moniker was first attached to such ensemble shows, however, they soon started to gain popularity. It is interesting to note that variety theatre already existed in a number of forms throughout Europe and elsewhere long before vaudeville, but it was the US-variant of the genre that established many of the common tropes of the genre that we know today.
Polite Vaudeville
Up until the 1880s, vaudeville was usually performed by travelling troupes of performers, much like you may find with a circus act. In fact, it was a former circus ringmaster named Tony Pastor who lead the charge into middle-class society when he established “polite” vaudeville, which was performed in a number of New York theatres for more affluent audiences. Thomas Heric notes that this is when the modern interpretation of vaudeville took form, with the “birth” of vaudeville as a true genre often being considered to be October 24th, 1881, when Pastor stage a show at New York’s Fourteenth Street Theater.
Early History
Vaudeville as a genre of theatre first began making an appearance in the early 1860s, when concert saloon and variety hall owners would enlist groups of performers, each of whom usually specialized in different types of acts, to entertain their patrons. It is unknown when the vaudeville moniker was first attached to such ensemble shows, however, they soon started to gain popularity. It is interesting to note that variety theatre already existed in a number of forms throughout Europe and elsewhere long before vaudeville, but it was the US-variant of the genre that established many of the common tropes of the genre that we know today.
Polite Vaudeville
Up until the 1880s, vaudeville was usually performed by travelling troupes of performers, much like you may find with a circus act. In fact, it was a former circus ringmaster named Tony Pastor who lead the charge into middle-class society when he established “polite” vaudeville, which was performed in a number of New York theatres for more affluent audiences. Thomas Heric notes that this is when the modern interpretation of vaudeville took form, with the “birth” of vaudeville as a true genre often being considered to be October 24th, 1881, when Pastor stage a show at New York’s Fourteenth Street Theater.
