Imre Kiralfy and
Bolossy Kiralfy
Bolossy Kiralfy (1848–1932), one of The Kiralfy Brothers, was a performer, producer, writer and creator of musical extravaganzas in the late 19th, early 20th centuries. He was a "great international showman" and ushered in the "era of the Spect ...
were highly influential
burlesque and
spectacle
In general, spectacle refers to an event that is memorable for the appearance it creates. Derived in Middle English from c. 1340 as "specially prepared or arranged display" it was borrowed from Old French ''spectacle'', itself a reflection of the ...
producers in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
toward the end of the 19th century. The brothers paved the way for many of our modern day spectacles. With backgrounds in music and dance, these performers turned producers dazzled
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
with theatrical wonders. The brothers had a long and successful partnership and even continued to have success in their individual careers. From
folk dancing in Europe to directing and producing in the United States, the Kiralfys spent their lives astounding audiences with unseen visual phenomenon and were never afraid to push the boundaries earning them a special place in entertainment history.
Family life
The Kiralfy Brothers, Imre (1845-1919) and Bolossy (1848-1932), were the eldest of seven siblings born in the 1840s in
Pest—(since 1873 incorporated with
Buda and
Óbuda
Óbuda was a town in Hungary that was merged with Buda and Pest on 17 November 1873; it now forms part of District III-Óbuda-Békásmegyer of Budapest. The name means ''Old Buda'' in Hungarian (in German, ''Alt-Ofen''). The name in Bosnian ...
into
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
)—during the
Hungarian Revolution, in which their father, Jacob Königsbaum, was ruined. When they were young children, Imre and Bolossy began to teach themselves to dance. They continued for years until their father caught them and promptly enrolled them in dance classes. Soon, they were dancing at large venues such as the Hungarian Circus. There the brothers first performed under the name “Kiralfy” instead of their family name of Königsbaum; the boys’ father changed their name to prevent them from being recognized as the sons of a revolutionary. They were never recognized, though over the years, there were a number of close encounters with
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
n police, during many of which their father was nearly arrested. Jacob Königsbaum and their mother, Anna (Rosa) Weisberger, were highly supportive of their sons’ career. They gave up their clothing business to take the brothers on tour through
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
. For many years, the family continued to travel, touring all through both
Eastern
Eastern may refer to:
Transportation
*China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai
*Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways
*Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991
*Eastern Air Li ...
and
Western Europe
Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context.
The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...
, while the three of the four younger siblings went to school and learned dance. The Kiralfy family motto was “All the World’s a Stage.” Eventually, their sisters Haniola, Emile and Katie, as well as their youngest brother Arnold joined Imre and Bolossy in the dance industry. Only their brother Ronald was uninterested in dance.
Early career and education
As teenagers in the 1860s, Bolossy and Imre travelled to
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
, where they were immediately taken with theatrical spectacle. Bolossy believes he first developed his theory of theatre in the city:
Real musical theatre had to be popular theatre, attracting an audience from all segments of society. It had to embody in logical form all aspects of the theatre – music, lyrics, dance and drama – in a production that was usually greater than the sum of its parts. It had to have a meaningful story with a universal theme, and it had to have a hero or heroine with whom the audience could sympathize.
![Victorien Sardou - Dolores](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Victorien_Sardou_-_Dolores.jpg)
Imre and Bolossy both trained at the
Opera Ballet but they refused to become permanent performers. Bolossy reflects on his training in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
:
There is no question that in Paris I acquired my training, not only in the finest Ballet technique from Monsieur Barres, but in the areas of production and management. The presentations at the Theatre Francais taught me dramatic staging. My experience at the Theatre de la Porte-Saint-Martin and at the Chatelet gave me the ability to produce big spectacular numbers. At the Opera I learned the choreography that would help me to plan my lavish musical productions. And it was there that my encounters with the artists proved how exciting and challenging the work of producers and directors could be.
Bolossy Kiralfy was 26 when he retired as a performer and began the second phase of his career where he focused on producing and choreographing. He adapted European productions to the United States. The Kiralfy Brothers had a 13-year-long producing partnership. According to Bolossy Kiralfy, “The American public not only became educated of our large dance extravaganzas, they demanded them in all musical productions.”
When they travelled to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
in May 1869, the Kiralfy Brothers may already have envisioned how to produce their ideas of spectacle on stage. For four years, the family continued to tour as dancers, until eventually being contracted by
Niblo's Garden
Niblo's Garden was a theater on Broadway and Crosby Street, near Prince Street, in SoHo, Manhattan, New York City. It was established in 1823 as "Columbia Garden" which in 1828 gained the name of the ''Sans Souci'' and was later the property of ...
, just after the theatre’s immense success with ''
The Black Crook
''The Black Crook'' is a work of musical theatre first produced in New York City with great success in 1866. Many theatre writers have cautiously identified ''The Black Crook'' as the first popular piece that conforms to the modern notion of a mu ...
''. Their first foray into the production side of theatre came in 1871, with the
pantomime
Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...
''
Humpty Dumpty
Humpty Dumpty is a character in an English nursery rhyme, probably originally a riddle and one of the best known in the English-speaking world. He is typically portrayed as an anthropomorphic egg, though he is not explicitly described as such. ...
'' at the Olympic, in which the “Kiralfy Troupe,” as they had come to be known, were performing. The reviewers of the production praised both the dancing and the scenery greatly, declaring the latter to be “of exceptional beauty”. This “exceptional beauty” would become a common theme in reviews of the Kiralfy Brothers' productions.
''The Black Crook''
![The Black Crook](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7d/The_Black_Crook.jpg)
In August 1873, the brothers first produced their own musical spectacle, a revival of ''
The Black Crook
''The Black Crook'' is a work of musical theatre first produced in New York City with great success in 1866. Many theatre writers have cautiously identified ''The Black Crook'' as the first popular piece that conforms to the modern notion of a mu ...
'' at
Niblo's Garden
Niblo's Garden was a theater on Broadway and Crosby Street, near Prince Street, in SoHo, Manhattan, New York City. It was established in 1823 as "Columbia Garden" which in 1828 gained the name of the ''Sans Souci'' and was later the property of ...
. They added musical numbers, improved the costumes (beyond exposing the legs of the actresses), and strengthened the dance numbers. According to Bolossy Kiralfy, their revival was an immense success, playing over one hundred performances before going on tour and breaking
Niblo's Garden
Niblo's Garden was a theater on Broadway and Crosby Street, near Prince Street, in SoHo, Manhattan, New York City. It was established in 1823 as "Columbia Garden" which in 1828 gained the name of the ''Sans Souci'' and was later the property of ...
's record number of performances of a revival. Their production, featuring actors such as
George Atkins, E.K. Collier, and W. Martin, as well as the Kiralfy sisters’ dancing talents, was later revived from November 1874 to January 1875. With this production, the brothers achieved their goal of making popular theatre, and they made a strong effort to elevate ''The Black Crook'' into a slightly higher class of theatre.
''The Deluge, or Paradise Lost''
The next year, they imported the French spectacle ''The Deluge'' to
Niblo's Garden
Niblo's Garden was a theater on Broadway and Crosby Street, near Prince Street, in SoHo, Manhattan, New York City. It was established in 1823 as "Columbia Garden" which in 1828 gained the name of the ''Sans Souci'' and was later the property of ...
, and were noted for producing rain on stage. ''The Deluge'', otherwise known as ''Paradise Lost,'' opened
Niblo's Garden
Niblo's Garden was a theater on Broadway and Crosby Street, near Prince Street, in SoHo, Manhattan, New York City. It was established in 1823 as "Columbia Garden" which in 1828 gained the name of the ''Sans Souci'' and was later the property of ...
's 1874–1875 season, on September 4, 1874. This production was called a “delectability” by the historian George Odell. Its players included actresses Julia Seamen, Lillie McDonald and Katie New, as well as the Kiralfy Sisters as dancers. ''The Deluge'' ran until November 14, 1874 and a competing theater company,
Bryant's Minstrels, opened their own ''The Deluge'' on the same day. Odell said it brought “a veritable flood-tide of success”. When one of the many revivals of the Kiralfy Brothers’ production was brought to the
Walnut Street Theatre
The Walnut Street Theatre, founded in 1809 at 825 Walnut Street, on the corner of S. 9th Street in the Washington Square West neighborhood of Philadelphia, is the oldest operating theatre in the United States. The venue is operated by the Walnu ...
in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
in April 1879, reviewers praised the ballet and scenery, while essentially ignoring the acting. One reviewer comments that the sets of “Pandemonium,
the Garden of Eden
In Abrahamic religions, the Garden of Eden ( he, גַּן־עֵדֶן, ) or Garden of God (, and גַן־אֱלֹהִים ''gan-Elohim''), also called the Terrestrial Paradise, is the biblical paradise described in Genesis 2-3 and Ezekiel 28 an ...
, and the Temple of Enoch were wonderful to behold, and were master-pieces of scenic painting,” and goes on to note that, because the piece was under the direction of the Kiralfys, it would “undoubtedly draw full houses”. ''The Deluge'' is a perfect example of the Kiralfys’ mastery of the key concepts of
burlesque; the plot was weak but the gorgeous set, astonishing special effects, and beautiful girls served well to cover this up.
''Around the World in Eighty Days''
![Around the World in 80 days](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Around_the_World_in_80_days.jpg)
On August 28, 1875, the Kiralfy Brothers put up, “in spectacular style,” ''
Around the World in Eighty Days'' at the New York
Academy of Music. According to Bolossy Kiralfy, their goal with the production was to “convert American theatre audiences into enthusiasts for the French style of musical spectacle” which so inspired the brothers. ''Around the World in Eighty Days'' based on the
Jules Verne novel and adapted for the stage by Michael d’Ennery, was another Parisian import. To mount the show in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
, the brothers re-created the scenery and costumes from the
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
production as precisely as possible, and hired all the cast and crew members, except for the principal speaking roles, from the
Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin
The Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin is a venerable theatre and opera house at 18, Boulevard Saint-Martin in the 10th arrondissement of Paris.
History
It was first built very rapidly in 1781 under the direction of (1726–1810) to house th ...
, where the original production was performed. In terms of special effects, the brothers rented an elephant for $150 per week, brought a steam engine from Europe to run automation, and created a new stage deck for the Academy of Music to accommodate for a sinking steam ship. Audiences loved the depictions of foreign attractions such as the
Suez Canal,
Calcutta
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...
, and the
Taj Mahal
The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...
. The Kiralfys were immediately praised for their use of pastel backgrounds which please the eye but do not distract from performance. They were also some of the first American producers to utilize realistic set design. For example, their trees looked like actual trees and not theatrical renditions of trees. They convinced Jules Verne to add a bit about a hot air balloon to the already-extensive adventures of
Phileas Fogg
Phileas Fogg () is the protagonist in the 1872 Jules Verne novel ''Around the World in Eighty Days''. Inspirations for the character were the American entrepreneur George Francis Train and American writer and adventurer William Perry Fogg.
...
and his companions so that the Kiralfys could put a real
helium
Helium (from el, ἥλιος, helios, lit=sun) is a chemical element with the symbol He and atomic number 2. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, inert, monatomic gas and the first in the noble gas group in the periodic table. ...
balloon onstage to be operated by wires. Aside from adding special effects, few changes were made to the Paris production. They added the ''Around the World Waltz'' and a curtain for scene changes that was in the shape of a fan. The Kiralfy production was larger than the Paris production, having a cast of 35 principal actors, a ballet corps, and over 200 ensemble members.
''Around the World in Eighty Days'' opened at the Academy of Music, after a legal challenge due to another New York troupe trying to mount the same Paris production, and it was a major hit. The special effects and exciting story attracted large audiences consistently. It became so popular that the
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...
attended a performance. President
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...
, who attended a performance on September 17, 1875 with Secretary
George M. Robeson
George Maxwell Robeson (March 16, 1829 – September 27, 1897) was an American politician and lawyer from New Jersey. A brigadier general in the New Jersey Militia during the American Civil War, he served as Secretary of the Navy, appointed by Pr ...
, General
Orville E. Babcock
Orville Elias Babcock (December 25, 1835 – June 2, 1884) was an American engineer and general in the Union Army during the Civil War. An aide to General Ulysses S. Grant during and after the war, he was President Grant's military private secret ...
, and former-Attorney General
George Henry Williams
George Henry Williams (March 26, 1823April 4, 1910) was an American judge and politician. He served as chief justice of the Oregon Supreme Court, was the 32nd Attorney General of the United States, and was elected Oregon's U.S. senator, and serv ...
, “seemed to be much pleased with the brilliant spectacle”. After the production closed in October at the Academy of Music, it went on tour to the outer boroughs for two weeks, until it reached the
Brooklyn Academy of Music, during Christmas week in 1875. Yet, like ''The Deluge'', this Kiralfy Brothers production did not end here.
The first of a long line of expansive revivals of ''Around the World in Eighty Days'' opened again at Niblo's Garden on January 22, 1877. It was presented at Niblo's Garden nine times, together with a series of very successful tours and revivals between 1881 and 1892 throughout New York City and the United States. Some of the houses for ''Around the World'' included
Haverly’s Theatre in Brooklyn, the
Novelty Theatre
The Novelty Theatre (later renamed the Great Queen Street Theatre from 1900 to 1907, and the Kingsway Theatre from 1907 to 1941) was a London theatre. It opened in 1882 in Great Queen Street and was accessed off Little Queen Street until 1905, ...
in Brooklyn, and the
Grand Opera House, the
Windsor Theatre
The 48th Street Theatre was a Broadway theatre at 157 West 48th Street in Manhattan. It was built by longtime Broadway producer William A. Brady and designed by architect William Albert Swasey. The venue was also called the Equity 48th Stree ...
, and the
Amphion Academy. For the audience and the producers, much of the appeal in such frequent productions lay in the fluidity of the plot, which allowed many opportunities for additions to the story, scenery and dance. The fantastic situations
Phileas Fogg
Phileas Fogg () is the protagonist in the 1872 Jules Verne novel ''Around the World in Eighty Days''. Inspirations for the character were the American entrepreneur George Francis Train and American writer and adventurer William Perry Fogg.
...
and company get into on their trip around the world, allow for inserts and interpretation. Due to their success with this work, the brothers bought a property at 39
Washington Square, which they used for offices and residence until 1921.
''Excelsior''
![Kiralfy's Excelsior](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a3/Kiralfy%27s_Excelsior.jpg)
When the electric lightbulb was commercialized around 1880, the Kiralfy brothers took full advantage. They quickly put a production of ''Excelsior'' into the works with plans to be lit electrically for special effects scenes. The spectacle was presented at Niblo's Garden in 1883. There was still use of gas-lighting and they were not the first ones to employ electric lighting (they, themselves, had previously used electric light in their revival of ''The Black Crook'') but they were the first and only production to be lit under the personal direction of
Thomas Edison
Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventi ...
. In their production, the invention of incandescent light was celebrated along with the invention of the
telegraph
Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas p ...
as incorporated in a dance of telegraph messengers. Not a word was spoken in the production and ''Excelsior'' is widely regarded as the Kiralfys’ most important work which showcased the Kiralfys’ expertise in dance and spectacle.
Fallout and separate careers
The Kiralfy Brothers had a 13-year long producing partnership. In 1887, Imre and Bolossy Kiralfy had a falling out and the firm disbanded, driving Bolossy and Imre to produce outdoor spectacles. Neither publicly addressed the split, although, Bolossy intimated that his brother was making business deals behind his back. Upon their split, Bolossy continued to work in fantasy and fable whereas Imre pressed on with progressive era productions filled with science, technology, and machinery.
![The Barnum and Bailey Greatest Show on Earth…Imre Kiralfy's Columbus](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/The_Barnum_and_Bailey_Greatest_Show_on_Earth%E2%80%A6Imre_Kiralfy%27s_Columbus.jpg)
Imre Kiralfy after the split
![Empress Hall, Fulham 1937](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/Empress_Hall%2C_Fulham_1937.jpg)
Imre Kiralfy’s ''The Fall of Rome'' was produced on
Staten Island with 2,000 performers, a grand number at the time. In 1892, to mark the 400th anniversary of Columbus' "founding" of America, he produced ''Columbus and the Discovery of America'' at the
Madison Square Garden Theatre. It was later featured at the
Auditorium Theatre
The Auditorium Theatre is a music and performance venue located inside the Auditorium Building at 50 Ida B. Wells Drive in Chicago, Illinois. Inspired by the Richardsonian Romanesque Style of architect Henry Hobson Richardson, the building was ...
at the Chicago
World’s Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair, hel ...
. Imre Kiralfy also premiered his show ''America'' at the Chicago World’s Fair which was picked up by the
Metropolitan Opera House in 1893. ''
Life magazine'' in quoted as response to the production “Kiralfy out-Kiralfy’s himself” Imre Kiralfy then moved to England where he created even larger spectacles. The twenty-four acre
Earl's Court Exhibition Centre grounds were rebuilt in 1894 by Imre Kiralfy in a Mughal Indian style. ''The Empire of India Exhibition'' opened the site in 1895, and was the first of a series of annual exhibitions there, which drew heavily on the abundance of transport links in the area to attract a mass audience. Highlights of the site included the two-storey Empress Hall, built for Kiralfy in
Fulham which could seat 6,000 viewers for his spectaculars, and the 300-feet high
Great Wheel whose forty carriages could each accommodate thirty people. Imre Kiralfy became a British citizen in 1901. The renowned producer died on April 27, 1919 at age 74 in
Brighton,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. He is buried in the family mausoleum in
Green-Wood Cemetery
Green-Wood Cemetery is a cemetery in the western portion of Brooklyn, New York City. The cemetery is located between South Slope/ Greenwood Heights, Park Slope, Windsor Terrace, Borough Park, Kensington, and Sunset Park, and lies several blo ...
, New York, but there is also family mausoleum at
Kensal Green Cemetery
Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of Queens Park in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, it was founded by the barrister George Frederick ...
in London.
![Kensal green](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/Kensal_Green.jpg)
Bolossy Kiralfy after the split
![Mathias Sandorf](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0a/Mathias_Sandorf.jpg)
During his time alone, Blossy Kiralfy focused a lot on outdoor theatre. In
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
he created ''Venice in London'', which included a lake and water canals. A few years later, in
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...
, he produced ''Carnival in Venice''. According to Bolossy, this production in Portland required “a huge open air theatre with a particularly broad canal connected to a lake. The four hundred foot stage was the largest ever constructed in the Northwest and allowed me to put two hundred performers in action in one scene. I could still hide myself and cruise the show in a gondola to evaluate the performance.”
In 1888, Bolossy returned from his trip to Europe and brought two new spectacles to America, ''
Mathias Sandorf
''Mathias Sandorf'' is an 1885 adventure book by French writer Jules Verne. It was first serialized in ''Le Temps'' in 1885, and it was Verne's epic Mediterranean adventure. It employs many of the devices that had served well in his earlier novel ...
'' and ''Antiope''. ''Mathias Sandorf'' is a play by
Jules Verne. Bolossy purchased the play itself along with the scenery, costumes and effects used in the original production. Kiralfy had several interviews with Jules Verne and
William Busnach to improve certain scenes and adapt them for American audiences. Kiralfy also introduced two new ballets in this production; one of them is called ''America'' and required 120 performers; the other one is called ''The Fete of Storks'' and required no less than 200 performers. In this production, Kiralfy included performers like the James troupe of eccentric games, and Alexandrov Brothers, the famous Russian musical clowns.
The other production that Kiralfy brought was the new ballet ''Antiope'' which opened at London first. Kiralfy promised this ballet to be more brilliant and effective than the ''Excelsior'', which was claimed to be best ballet of the time. The production featured 350 magnificent costumes designed by
Wilhelm
Wilhelm may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* William Charles John Pitcher, costume designer known professionally as "Wilhelm"
* Wilhelm (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname
Other uses
* Mount ...
}. Kiralfy introduced some novel features in this production, one of which was an eccentric boat moving about on real water.
Bolossy Kiralfy died in 1932 at the age of 84 in New York City.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kiralfy Brothers
Burlesque performers
Sibling duos
Theatre managers and producers
Hungarian Jews
History of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
Burials at Kensal Green Cemetery