David Belasco
Encyclopedia
David Belasco was an American theatrical producer
, impresario
, director and playwright
.
, England
, during the Gold Rush, he began working in a San Francisco theatre
doing a variety of routine jobs, such as call boy
and script copier.
He eventually was given the opportunity to act and serve as a stage manager, learning the business inside out. A gifted playwright, Belasco went to New York City
in 1882 where he worked as stage manager for the Madison Square Theater, and then the old Lyceum Theatre
while writing plays. By 1895, he was so successful that he set himself up as an independent producer.
During his long creative career, stretching between 1884 and 1930, Belasco either wrote, directed, or produced more than 100 Broadway
plays including Hearts of Oak
, The Heart of Maryland
, and Du Barry, making him the most powerful personality on the New York city theater scene. Although he is perhaps most famous for having adopted the short story "Madame Butterfly" into a play with the same name
and for penning The Girl of the Golden West
for the stage, both of which were adapted as operas by Giacomo Puccini
. More than forty motion pictures have been made from the many plays he authored, including Buster Keaton
's Seven Chances
.
Belasco was informally known in the theatrical community as "the Bishop of Broadway," due to his penchant for dressing in black clothing, which made him resemble a priest. Belasco was mentioned as a contemporary celebrity in Henry Miller
's Tropic of Capricorn. In The Great Gatsby
by F. Scott Fitzgerald
, chapter III, page 45, Nick encounters "The Owl Eyed Man," who says of Gatsby "This fella's a regular Belasco," in reference to his giant library.
Many prominent performers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries sought the opportunity to work with Belasco; among them was a young Mary Pickford
. Pickford appeared in his plays The Warrens of Virginia at the first Belasco Theatre in 1907 and A Good Little Devil in 1913. The two remained in touch after Pickford began working in Hollywood; Belasco appeared with her in the 1914 film adaptation of A Good Little Devil. He is also credited as giving Pickford her stage name.
David Belasco was married to Cecilia Loverich for over fifty years; they had two daughters, Reina and Augusta. He died in 1931 at the age of 77 in New York City
and was interred in the Linden Hills Jewish Cemetery in Queens, New York. Find a Grave
incorrectly lists Belasco as buried in the nearby Linden Hills "Methodist" Cemetery.
Belasco is recognized for bringing a new standard of naturalism
to the American stage. Supposedly he put appropriate scents to set scenes in the ventilation of the theaters, while his sets paid great attention to detail, and sometimes spilled out into the audience area. In one play, for instance, an operational laundromat was built onstage. In The Governor's Lady
, there was a reproduction of a Childs Restaurant kitchen where actors actually cooked and prepared food during the play. He is even said to have purchased a room in a flop-house, cut it out of the building, brought it to his theater, cut out one wall and presented it as the set for a production. Belasco's original scripts were often filled with long, specific descriptions of props and set dressings. Interestingly, though, he has not been noted for producing unusually naturalistic scenarios.
Belasco was further known for his advanced lighting techniques and use of color to evoke mood and setting. He was one of the first directors to eschew the use of footlights in favor of follow spots and realistic lighting. Often, Belasco tailored his lighting configurations to complement the complexions and hair of the actors. In his own theatres, the dressing rooms were equipped with lamps of several colors, allowing the performers to see how their makeup looked under different lighting conditions.
Belasco also embraced existing theatre technology and sought to expand on it. Both of Belasco's New York theatres were built on the cutting edge of their era's technology. When Belasco took over the Republic Theatre he drilled a new basement level to accommodate his machinery; the Stuyvesant Theatre was specially constructed with enormous amounts of flyspace, hydraulics systems and lighting rigs. The basement of the Stuyvesant contained a working machine shop, where Belasco and his team experimented with lighting and other special effects. Many of the innovations developed in the Belasco shop were sold to other producers.
district of Manhattan. Belasco took over management of the theater and completely remodeled it in 1902, only two years after it was constructed as the Theatre Republic by Oscar Hammerstein
(the grandfather of the famous lyricist). He gave up the theater in 1910 and it was renamed the Republic. Under various owners, it went through a tumultuous period as a burlesque
venue, hosted second-run and, eventually, pornographic films and fell into a period of neglect before being rehabilitated and reopened as the New Victory Theatre
in 1995.
The second Belasco Theatre
is located at 111 West 44th Street, between 6th and 7th Avenues, only a few blocks away from the New Victory. It was constructed in 1907 as the Stuyvesant Theatre and renamed after Belasco in 1910. The theater was built to Belasco's wishes, with Tiffany
lighting and ceiling panels, rich woodwork and murals. His business office and private apartment were also housed there. The Belasco is still in operation as a Broadway venue with much of the original decor intact.
Belasco Theatres also existed in several other cities. The Los Angeles Belasco was built in 1926, is located at 1050 S. Hill St downtown and has been used as a church in recent years. The Shubert-Belasco Theatre, purchased by Belasco in September 1905, was located in Washington D.C. Originally built in 1895 as the Lafayette Square Opera House, at 17 Madison Place, across from the White House, the theater was razed in 1962 and replaced by the U.S. Court of Claims building.
Theatrical producer
A theatrical producer is the person ultimately responsible for overseeing all aspects of mounting a theatre production. The independent producer will usually be the originator and finder of the script and starts the whole process...
, impresario
Impresario
An impresario is a person who organizes and often finances concerts, plays or operas; analogous to a film producer in filmmaking, television production and an angel investor in business...
, director and playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
.
Biography
Born in San Francisco, California, where his Sephardic Jewish parents had moved from LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, during the Gold Rush, he began working in a San Francisco theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
doing a variety of routine jobs, such as call boy
Call boy (theatre)
Call boy is the job title of a stagehand in the theatre. They are hired by either the director, producer or stage crew chief...
and script copier.
He eventually was given the opportunity to act and serve as a stage manager, learning the business inside out. A gifted playwright, Belasco went to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1882 where he worked as stage manager for the Madison Square Theater, and then the old Lyceum Theatre
Lyceum Theatre (New York, 1885-1902)
The Lyceum Theatre operated on Manhattan’s Fourth Avenue between 23rd and 24th Streets, from 1885 to 1902, when it was torn down to make way for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Tower and replaced by the Lyceum Theatre on 45th Street...
while writing plays. By 1895, he was so successful that he set himself up as an independent producer.
During his long creative career, stretching between 1884 and 1930, Belasco either wrote, directed, or produced more than 100 Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
plays including Hearts of Oak
Hearts of Oak (play)
Hearts of Oak is an 1879 play by Americans James Herne and David Belasco. The play is a melodrama concerning a woman who marries her guardian out of gratitude, even though she loves another man. It was extraordinarily successful on tour, starring Belasco, and earning a fortune for him...
, The Heart of Maryland
The Heart of Maryland (play)
The Heart of Maryland was a theatrical play written, produced and directed by David Belasco. The four-act melodrama set in the American Civil War opened at the Herald Square Theatre in New York on October 22, 1895 and ran for 240 performances. Mrs. Leslie Carter originated the role of Maryland...
, and Du Barry, making him the most powerful personality on the New York city theater scene. Although he is perhaps most famous for having adopted the short story "Madame Butterfly" into a play with the same name
Madame Butterfly (play)
Madame Butterfly: A Tragedy of Japan is a play in one act by David Belasco adapted from John Luther Long's 1898 short story "Madame Butterfly". It premiered on March 20, 1900 at the at the Herald Square Theatre in New York City as an "after piece" to Belasco's Naughty Anthony and became one of...
and for penning The Girl of the Golden West
The Girl of the Golden West (play)
The Girl of the Golden West is a theatrical play written, produced and directed by David Belasco and later made into an opera, La fanciulla del West, by Puccini. The four-act melodrama set in the California Gold Rush opened at the Belasco Theatre in New York on November 14, 1905 and ran for 224...
for the stage, both of which were adapted as operas by Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was an Italian composer whose operas, including La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot, are among the most frequently performed in the standard repertoire...
. More than forty motion pictures have been made from the many plays he authored, including Buster Keaton
Buster Keaton
Joseph Frank "Buster" Keaton was an American comic actor, filmmaker, producer and writer. He was best known for his silent films, in which his trademark was physical comedy with a consistently stoic, deadpan expression, earning him the nickname "The Great Stone Face".Keaton was recognized as the...
's Seven Chances
Seven Chances
Seven Chances is a 1925 American comedy silent film directed by and starring Buster Keaton, based on a play written by Roi Cooper Megrue, produced in 1916 by David Belasco. Additional casts members include T. Roy Barnes, Snitz Edwards, Ruth Dwyer, and others. The film also stars Jean Arthur, a...
.
Belasco was informally known in the theatrical community as "the Bishop of Broadway," due to his penchant for dressing in black clothing, which made him resemble a priest. Belasco was mentioned as a contemporary celebrity in Henry Miller
Henry Miller
Henry Valentine Miller was an American novelist and painter. He was known for breaking with existing literary forms and developing a new sort of 'novel' that is a mixture of novel, autobiography, social criticism, philosophical reflection, surrealist free association, and mysticism, one that is...
's Tropic of Capricorn. In The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby is a novel by the American author F. Scott Fitzgerald. First published in1925, it is set on Long Island's North Shore and in New York City from spring to autumn of 1922....
by F. Scott Fitzgerald
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald was an American author of novels and short stories, whose works are the paradigm writings of the Jazz Age, a term he coined himself. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. Fitzgerald is considered a member of the "Lost...
, chapter III, page 45, Nick encounters "The Owl Eyed Man," who says of Gatsby "This fella's a regular Belasco," in reference to his giant library.
Many prominent performers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries sought the opportunity to work with Belasco; among them was a young Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born motion picture actress, co-founder of the film studio United Artists and one of the original 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
. Pickford appeared in his plays The Warrens of Virginia at the first Belasco Theatre in 1907 and A Good Little Devil in 1913. The two remained in touch after Pickford began working in Hollywood; Belasco appeared with her in the 1914 film adaptation of A Good Little Devil. He is also credited as giving Pickford her stage name.
David Belasco was married to Cecilia Loverich for over fifty years; they had two daughters, Reina and Augusta. He died in 1931 at the age of 77 in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and was interred in the Linden Hills Jewish Cemetery in Queens, New York. Find a Grave
Find A Grave
Find a Grave is a commercial website providing free access and input to an online database of cemetery records. It was founded in 1998 as a DBA and incorporated in 2000.-History:...
incorrectly lists Belasco as buried in the nearby Linden Hills "Methodist" Cemetery.
Influence on American theatre
Naturalism (theatre)
Naturalism is a movement in European drama and theatre that developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It refers to theatre that attempts to create a perfect illusion of reality through a range of dramatic and theatrical strategies: detailed, three-dimensional settings Naturalism is a...
to the American stage. Supposedly he put appropriate scents to set scenes in the ventilation of the theaters, while his sets paid great attention to detail, and sometimes spilled out into the audience area. In one play, for instance, an operational laundromat was built onstage. In The Governor's Lady
The Governor's Lady
The Governor's Lady was a theatrical play written by Alice Bradley, directed by David Belasco and produced by Belasco and his son-in-law David Elliott. It opened at the Republic Theatre in New York in September, 1912, and starred Emma Dunn, Emmett Corrigan, Gladys Hanson and Milton Sills. The...
, there was a reproduction of a Childs Restaurant kitchen where actors actually cooked and prepared food during the play. He is even said to have purchased a room in a flop-house, cut it out of the building, brought it to his theater, cut out one wall and presented it as the set for a production. Belasco's original scripts were often filled with long, specific descriptions of props and set dressings. Interestingly, though, he has not been noted for producing unusually naturalistic scenarios.
Belasco was further known for his advanced lighting techniques and use of color to evoke mood and setting. He was one of the first directors to eschew the use of footlights in favor of follow spots and realistic lighting. Often, Belasco tailored his lighting configurations to complement the complexions and hair of the actors. In his own theatres, the dressing rooms were equipped with lamps of several colors, allowing the performers to see how their makeup looked under different lighting conditions.
Belasco also embraced existing theatre technology and sought to expand on it. Both of Belasco's New York theatres were built on the cutting edge of their era's technology. When Belasco took over the Republic Theatre he drilled a new basement level to accommodate his machinery; the Stuyvesant Theatre was specially constructed with enormous amounts of flyspace, hydraulics systems and lighting rigs. The basement of the Stuyvesant contained a working machine shop, where Belasco and his team experimented with lighting and other special effects. Many of the innovations developed in the Belasco shop were sold to other producers.
Theatres
The first Belasco Theatre in New York was located at 229 West 42nd Street, between 7th and 8th Avenues, in the Times SquareTimes Square
Times Square is a major commercial intersection in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue and stretching from West 42nd to West 47th Streets...
district of Manhattan. Belasco took over management of the theater and completely remodeled it in 1902, only two years after it was constructed as the Theatre Republic by Oscar Hammerstein
Oscar Hammerstein I
Oscar Hammerstein I was a businessman, theater impresario and composer in New York City. His passion for opera led him to open several opera houses, and he rekindled opera's popularity in America...
(the grandfather of the famous lyricist). He gave up the theater in 1910 and it was renamed the Republic. Under various owners, it went through a tumultuous period as a burlesque
Burlesque
Burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects...
venue, hosted second-run and, eventually, pornographic films and fell into a period of neglect before being rehabilitated and reopened as the New Victory Theatre
New Victory Theatre
The New Victory Theater is an Off-Broadway theater located at 209 West 42nd Street, between 7th and 8th Avenues, in Midtown Manhattan. The New Victory is New York's first and only theater for children and family audiences...
in 1995.
The second Belasco Theatre
Belasco Theatre
The Belasco Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 111 West 44th Street in midtown-Manhattan.-History:Designed by architect George Keister for impresario David Belasco, the interior featured Tiffany lighting and ceiling panels, rich woodwork and expansive murals by American artist...
is located at 111 West 44th Street, between 6th and 7th Avenues, only a few blocks away from the New Victory. It was constructed in 1907 as the Stuyvesant Theatre and renamed after Belasco in 1910. The theater was built to Belasco's wishes, with Tiffany
Tiffany glass
Tiffany glass refers to the many and varied types of glass developed and produced from 1878 to 1933 at the Tiffany Studios, by Louis Comfort Tiffany....
lighting and ceiling panels, rich woodwork and murals. His business office and private apartment were also housed there. The Belasco is still in operation as a Broadway venue with much of the original decor intact.
Belasco Theatres also existed in several other cities. The Los Angeles Belasco was built in 1926, is located at 1050 S. Hill St downtown and has been used as a church in recent years. The Shubert-Belasco Theatre, purchased by Belasco in September 1905, was located in Washington D.C. Originally built in 1895 as the Lafayette Square Opera House, at 17 Madison Place, across from the White House, the theater was razed in 1962 and replaced by the U.S. Court of Claims building.