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I25TH BIRTHDA YSALUTE TO BAM%u2022 swawamawgiga %u25a0 H iIn the arts.In life.6/wvY iseverything!A&SSALUTES BAM ON 125 YEARS OF STIRRING THE ARTISTIC SPIRIT OF NEW YORK.Continued From Preceding PageAcademy%u2019s place as the progenitor ofAmerican culture. The first was that,without exception, much of the musicalKoM Hio cfao o uroc fnrpicrn To u t u v w . v %u201c ~~'0 ~ %u25a0 ' %u2014%u25a0 %u2014 <_%u00bbthis point, the reliance on the Italians andother Europeans to provide the most professional musical evenings was great.Given this and the strong nationalisticsentiments that were beginning toreverberate throughout the states at thistime, the second and major incident of theevening led to a riotous uproar. It was thesurprise announcement by S.B. Chittenden,one of the founders, that being true to theirlimited intellectual resources as %u201creligious%u201dmen, the Board would not allow theatricalperformances in the hall. The unexpecteddecision touched off a fire-storm of protestand controversy.The theatre, unlike opera and music, waswhere Americans knew they could go toclaim their own. Already, the legendaryHackett and Edwin Forrest, the first men toapply and be refused by the Academy for adramatic presentation, were being compared with the best British Shakespeareanactors of their day.LATER, HE PERFORMEDIt is said, that later, when Hackett didperform at the Academy, he had peopleliterally rolling in the aisles with his interpretation of the Bard%u2019s Falstaff. But theshort-sightedness and duplicity of the Boardof Directors (the Academy was advertisedas being outfitted for drama), if not derailed, might have led to a further decline forthe legitimate theatre. Its place wasalready being challenged by the minstrelshow craze that swept the country foralmost 20 years. The madness for minstrelshows created an explosion of new theatreopenings, facilities expressly fitted forminstrelsy. Broadway, in fact, began as achain of minstrel houses built almostsimultaneously. The demand was so greatthat the %u201cKnights of the Burnt Cork,%u201d asminstrel players were known, began tousurp the billing at even the best legitimatehouses.Add Chittenden%u2019s conservative views, andone wonders how legitimate theatre couldhave survived if not for the people.Martha McGowan, in her %u201cGrowing Up inBrooklyn,%u201d 1983, describes the reaction toChittenden: %u201cHis words stirred up a stormof protest. The public and the press, led bythe Brooklyn Eagle, demanded to know howthe inspired words of Shakespeare could impair the moral condition of the publicmind.%u201dHis words stirred up a stormo f protest. The public andthe press, led by the Eagle, demanded to know how theinspired words o f Shakespeare could impair the moralcondition o f the public mind.Thanks to continuing public pressure, Edwin Booth%u2019s farewell appearance as Hamlettook place at the old BAM in 1891. The incomparable John Drew in August Daly%u2019sCompany of Comedians, the immortalJoseph Jefferson as %u201cRip Van Winkle,%u201dHackett as Falstaff, David Belasco, alleventually played the Academy%u2019s boards.As much as anything else, the BrooklynAcademy%u2019s opening served as a catalyst forfurther development of an entertainmentdistrict in Brooklyn. Once people began toget a taste of theatre, opera and music,they flocked to BAM and, for the most part,filled its 2300 seats regularly.With the theatre-going habit secured,theatre, circus and equestrian managersswarmed into Brooklyn and the result was aboom in the construction of theatres, amphitheatres and gardens. So much so, that by1910, almost 20 theatres existed up anddown Fulton St. between Clinton and Flatbush.As in the natural progression of any socieContinued on Following PageNatWest USAWe're making banking better every day!Nat West USA wishesThe Brooklyn Academy ofMusicA Very Happy125th AnniversaryZ T \\ Nationaln _ v \\ W estm insterVa'w Bank USAOver 150 Offices throughout Long Island, New York City and WestchesterA fk o U /o c tm in c to rBank GroupMember FDIC(718) 643-2770Whatever yourbanking needs,we have a betteranswer at% T .WAT T T O Ain at w e s t u d aPage 18, TH E P H O EN IX, June 12, 1986