The Hanlon Brothers: From Daredevil Acrobatics to Spectacle Pantomime, 1833-1931

202 Pages·2009·3.97 MB·English

by  Mark Cosdon

C
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THEATER HISTORY s
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“vMidea rikn sCigohstd oinnt’os stkhiell Hs aasn tloranisn’e tde cshcnhioqluare sa nandd c itrhceuisr spiegrnfoifircmanerc ec.o Amfbteinr eth tios ,p arnoy- T HANLON BROTHERS
account of the nineteenth-century American theatre will have to recognize the H
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entrepreneurial talents and the comic legacy of the Hanlon dynasty.” H From
—Laurence Senelick, author of The Chekhov A
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Theatre: A Century of the Plays in Performance Daredevil Acrobatics to
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“Meticulously researched and engagingly written, The Hanlon Brothers offers N
B Spectacle Pantomime,
new insights into the history of the performance troupe that pioneered many
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of the safety practices, physical routines, and comic traditions we recognize O
T 1833-1931
today everywhere from tightrope acts at the circus to slapstick gags in Marx H
Brothers movies.” E
R
—Heather S. Nathans, author of Early American Theatre from the S
: F
Revolution to Thomas Jefferson: Into the Hands of the People r
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As young men, the Hanlons—six brothers from Manchester, England—stunned D
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audiences around the world with their daring acrobatic feats. After a tragic acci- r
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dent severely injured one brother (and indirectly led to his suicide in a manner d
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achievable only by someone with considerable acrobatic talents), they moved into i
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the safer arena of spectacle pantomime, where their uproariously funny and techni- A
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cally astonishing productions proved hugely successful. Their shows, Le Voyage en ro
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Suisse, Fantasma, and Superba, toured for more than thirty years, a testament to a
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their popularity and to the Hanlons’ impressive business acumen. In this carefully ic
s
researched and lavishly illustrated book, Mark Cosdon documents the careers of t
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this talented family and enumerates their many contributions to modern popular S
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entertainment. e
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Mark Cosdon is an associate professor of theatre and performance studies at le
Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania.  His articles on theatre history and P
a
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popular performance have appeared in a number of journals, including Theatre His- t
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tory Studies, Journal of American Drama and Theatre, and Asian Theatre Journal.  m
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e
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$28.50 usd
isbn 0-8093-2925-5
Cover illustration: Hanlon’s Superba—Ever New, lithograph
isbn 978-0-8093-2925-0
by J. Morgan & Co. Billy Rose Theatre Division, New York US
PTuilbdleinc LFoiburnadrya tfioorn tsh.e Performing Arts, Astor, Lenox, and niverouthe
Printed in the United States of America sity Presrn Illino Mark Cosdon
sis
A Series from
Southern
Illinois
University
Press
robert a.
schanke
Series Editor
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The Hanlon Brothers
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THE
HANLON
BROTHERS
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From
Daredevil Acrobatics to
Spectacle Pantomime,
1833–1931
Mark Cosdon
Southern Illinois University Press
Carbondale and Edwardsville
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Copyright © 2009 by the Board of Trustees,
Southern Illinois University
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
12 11 10 09 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Cosdon, Mark, 1967–
The Hanlon Brothers : from daredevil acrobatics to
spectacle pantomime, 1833–1931 / Mark Cosdon.
p. cm. — (Theater in the Americas)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-8093-2925-0 (alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 0-8093-2925-5 (alk. paper)
1. Hanlon-Lees (Theatrical troupe) I. Title.
PN2599.5.T54C67 2009
791.092'241—dc22
[B] 2009016933
Printed on recycled paper.
The paper used in this publication meets the mini-
mum requirements of American National Standard
for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for
Printed Library Materials, ansi z39.48-1992. ∞
Disclaimer:
Some images in the original version of this book are not
available for inclusion in the eBook.
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Contents
List of Illustrations ix
Note on the Chronology of the Hanlon Brothers xi
Acknowledgments xiii
Introduction 1
1. Prepping for Pantomime: The Hanlon Brothers’ Fame and Tragedy,
1833–1870 5
first interlude: jean-gaspard deburau 35
2. The Macabre Pantomimes of a Fermented Unconscious: 1870–1879 39
3. Le Voyage en Suisse in Europe, 1879–1881 50
second interlude: the ravels 77
4. The American Premiere of Le Voyage en Suisse 81
third interlude: georgel. fox and humpty dumpty 91
5. The First American Tours of Le Voyage en Suisse 95
6. The Changing Taste in American Theatricals:
Fantasma and Superba 112
7. Legacy 133
Notes 141
Bibliography 163
Index 169
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Illustrations
1. “Thomas Hanlon’s l’Échelle Périleuse” 8
2. A gymnastic routine the Hanlons unveiled in Russia 13
3. William Hanlon preparing for his Zampillaerostation 19
4. William Hanlon in a photographer’s studio, circa 1861 21
5. Frederick, Edward, and Thomas Hanlon, circa 1866 26
6. William and Alfred Hanlon in an aerial routine 29
7. Le Voyage en Suisse—The Arrival, Act 1 58
8. Le Voyage en Suisse—The Upset, Act 1 58
9. Le Voyage en Suisse—The Voyage to Switzerland, Act 2 61
10. Le Voyage en Suisse—The Smash Up, Act 2 62
11. Le Voyage en Suisse—Falling through the Ceiling, Act 3 64
12. Le Voyage en Suisse—Finale Rigi-Kulm Hotel, Act 3 65
13. The Hanlon-Lees in Le Voyage en Suisse, circa 1881 90
14. Zamaliel towering over Lena in the Hanlons’ Fantasma 116
15. A family portrait, circa 1886 118
16. Hanlon’s Scenic Studio 119
17. Hanlons’ Superba (1890) 123
18. A drunken clown hallucinates threatening trees 124
19. The Hanlons’ Fantasma 126
20. A poster advertising the Hanlons’ A Lively Legacy 128
ix
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