Thomas Wade West
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Thomas Wade West
Thomas Wade West (died 1799), was an American (originally English) actor and theatre manager. West broke the monopoly of the Old American Company in 1790 by founding the Virginia Company in Richmond (also called Virginia Comedians and South Carolina Company), which toured Virginia and the Carolinas. He founded several theatres and was the manager of the Charleston Theatre. He owned and operated profitable seasonal theaters in Alexandria, Charleston, Fredericksburg, Norfolk, and Petersburg. He also designed mechanical scenery. West's operation in Richmond, Virginia, was destroyed in the Richmond Theatre fire on December 26, 1811. He had raised money from subscribers to construct the building. West was married to Margaretta Sully West, father of Ann West Bignall and father-in-law of John Bignall John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * ...
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Old American Company
The Old American Company was an American theatre company. It was the first fully professional theatre company to perform in North America. It also played a vital role in the theatre history of Jamaica. It was founded in 1752 and disbanded in 1805. It was known as the Hallam Company (1752–1758), the American Company (1758–1785) and the Old American Company (1785–1805). With a few temporary exceptions, the Company enjoyed a de facto monopoly of professional theatre in the United States until 1790. History Hallam Company The company was organised by William Hallam, former proprietor of the New Wells Theatre in London, and was led by his brother Lewis Hallam. Their company consisted of 12 adults and 3 children, drawn from English actors of "modest accomplishment". They arrived by the vessel ''Charming Sally'' at Yorktown, Virginia, on 2 June 1752, and made their early performances in nearby Williamsburg. Their first performance, ''The Merchant of Venice'', is generally cons ...
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Charleston Theatre
Charleston Theatre, also called Broad Street Theatre was a theatre in Charleston, South Carolina between 1794 and 1833. It was the first permanent theatre in Charleston, the first with a permanent staff, and the only theater for much of its duration. It was succeeded by the New Charleston Theatre (1837–1861). History Since the first temporary theatre Dock Street Theatre in 1736, several playhouses had been constructed in Charleston to house the Old American Company during their visits in the city, the last of whom, Church Street Theatre, built in 1773 to replace the New Theatre of 1754, burnt down in 1782. Charleston was the center of a planter aristocracy which spent half the year in the city living a society life in which theater was considered a suitable part, and a new theater house was therefore regarded necessary after the repeal of the Vagrancy Act of 1787, which had the effect of banning the theater. Charleston Theatre initially housed the Company of Thomas Wade West, ...
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Newspapers
A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as politics, business, sports and art, and often include materials such as opinion columns, weather forecasts, reviews of local services, obituaries, birth notices, crosswords, editorial cartoons, comic strips, and advice columns. Most newspapers are businesses, and they pay their expenses with a mixture of subscription revenue, newsstand sales, and advertising revenue. The journalism organizations that publish newspapers are themselves often metonymically called newspapers. Newspapers have traditionally been published in print (usually on cheap, low-grade paper called newsprint). However, today most newspapers are also published on websites as online newspapers, and some have even abandoned their print versions entirely. Newspapers developed in the 17th ...
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Richmond Theatre Fire
The Richmond Theatre fire occurred in Richmond, Virginia, United States, on Thursday, December 26, 1811. It devastated the Richmond Theatre, located on the north side of Broad Street between what is now Twelfth and College Streets. The fire killed 72 people, including Virginia's governor George William Smith, former U.S. senator Abraham B. Venable, and other government officials in what was the worst urban disaster in U.S. history at the time. The Monumental Church was erected on the site as a memorial to the fire. Background A previous building at the same location was known initially as the first Academy of Fine Arts and Sciences in America, and subsequently the site was known as "The Theatre Square." Chevalier Quesnay de Beaurepaire, a French officer who served in the American Revolutionary War, had developed the idea for the academy but the plan was abandoned due to the war. Richmond's first theatre, a barn-like building, opened its doors on October 10, 1786, with a perform ...
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Margaretta Sully West
Margaret Sully West or Margaretta Sully West, née Sully, (d. 1810), was an American stage actress and theater director. She was the director of the Virginia Comedians and as such the leader of the theatrical activity within contemporary Virginia. Life Margaret Sully West was married to Thomas Wade West, mother of Ann West Bignall and mother-in-law of John Bignall. Her spouse, in companionship with Thomas Bignall, had broken the theater monopoly of the Old American Company in 1790 by establishing the Virginia Comedians. The Virginia Comedians established the so called "Virginia circuit", and regularly performed in Richmond- Fredericksburg- Charleston (1794)-Norfolk (1795)- Petersburg (1796)- Alexandria (1797), cities where they also constructed playhouses. Margaret Sully West took over the management of the Virginia Comedians when she was widowed in 1799, and as such played an important role, being the managing director of one of few theater companies existent in America at t ...
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Ann West Bignall
Ann West Bignall (died 1805) was an American stage actress. Biography Born in the late 1760s, she was the daughter of actors Thomas Wade West and Margaretta Sully West. She was married to actor John Bignall (d. 1794) and in 1795 to actor James West. Career She emigrated with her family to the United States in 1790 and was engaged with them in the Old American Company until her father founded the Virginia Company (also called Virginia Comedians and South Carolina Company), which toured the Southern States of Virginia and the Carolinas. After this, she was active within the company of her parents until her death. The company virtually had a monopoly in Virginia and the Carolinas, and she was the leading lady and one of the star attractions. In 1804, Aaron Burr Aaron Burr Jr. (February 6, 1756 – September 14, 1836) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the third vice president of the United States from 1801 to 1805. Burr's legacy is defined by his famous perso ...
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John Bignall
John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Epistle of John, often shortened to 2 John * Third Epistle of John, often shortened to 3 John People * John the Baptist (died c. AD 30), regarded as a prophet and the forerunner of Jesus Christ * John the Apostle (lived c. AD 30), one of the twelve apostles of Jesus * John the Evangelist, assigned author of the Fourth Gospel, once identified with the Apostle * John of Patmos, also known as John the Divine or John the Revelator, the author of the Book of Revelation, once identified with the Apostle * John the Presbyter, a figure either identified with or distinguished from the Apostle, the Evangelist and John of Patmos Other people with the given name Religious figures * John, father of Andrew the Apostle and Saint Peter * Pope John ...
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1799 Deaths
Events January–June * January 9 – British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger introduces an income tax of two shillings to the pound, to raise funds for Great Britain's war effort in the French Revolutionary Wars. * January 17 – Maltese patriot Dun Mikiel Xerri, along with a number of other patriots, is executed. * January 21 – The Parthenopean Republic is established in Naples by French General Jean Étienne Championnet; King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies flees. * February 9 – Quasi-War: In the single-ship action of USS ''Constellation'' vs ''L'Insurgente'' in the Caribbean, the American ship is the victor. * February 28 – French Revolutionary Wars: Action of 28 February 1799 – British Royal Navy frigate HMS ''Sybille'' defeats the French frigate ''Forte'', off the mouth of the Hooghly River in the Bay of Bengal, but both captains are killed. * March 1 – Federalist James Ross becomes President pro tempore of the United States Senate. * Mar ...
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18th-century American Male Actors
The 18th century lasted from January 1, 1701 ( MDCCI) to December 31, 1800 ( MDCCC). During the 18th century, elements of Enlightenment thinking culminated in the American, French, and Haitian Revolutions. During the century, slave trading and human trafficking expanded across the shores of the Atlantic, while declining in Russia, China, and Korea. Revolutions began to challenge the legitimacy of monarchical and aristocratic power structures, including the structures and beliefs that supported slavery. The Industrial Revolution began during mid-century, leading to radical changes in human society and the environment. Western historians have occasionally defined the 18th century otherwise for the purposes of their work. For example, the "short" 18th century may be defined as 1715–1789, denoting the period of time between the death of Louis XIV of France and the start of the French Revolution, with an emphasis on directly interconnected events. To historians who expan ...
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American Male Stage Actors
American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, people who self-identify their ancestry as "American" ** American English, the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States ** Native Americans in the United States, indigenous peoples of the United States * American, something of, from, or related to the Americas, also known as "America" ** Indigenous peoples of the Americas * American (word), for analysis and history of the meanings in various contexts Organizations * American Airlines, U.S.-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas * American Athletic Conference, an American college athletic conference * American Recordings (record label), a record label previously known as Def American * American University, in Washington, D.C. Sports teams Soccer * ...
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