Abstract
On the opening night of America, Imre Kiralfy's spectacle at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893, Christopher Columbus fell overboard just as the rocking Santa Maria was within sight of land. His mishap delayed the entrance of the corseted, twirling, bouncing, can-canning corps de ballet in their splashy Indian Maiden costumes complete with feather headdresses and pink silk tights. However, despite such mishaps and incongruities, America was to make more money at the box office than any other single attraction presented in conjunction with the Exposition. Actually, Kiralfy's patriotic endeavor as a part of the Columbus anniversary celebrations had two manifestations: first Columbus, and the Discovery of America for the Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1892 and 1893, and then America at the Auditorium Theatre in Chicago during the 1893 Exposition. These productions represent important examples of a nearly forgotten theatrical form, the stage-spectacle, and invite examination as well-documented representations of the work of the producer, choreographer, director, and dancer Imre Kiralfy.
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