Introduction to Special Issue on the New York Hippodrome

Abstract

The introduction to this issue provides an overview of the New York Hippodrome's construction, the historical references and symbolic resonances of its exterior and interior theatrical space, and the human and animal performers who contributed to its overall importance in the opening season and beyond. First, we discuss how Thompson and Dundy drew on the vibrant transatlantic theatrical networks of the era to conceptualise the New York Hippodrome as a theatrical space, while at the same time highlighting the uniquely American quality of their venture. This played out in periodical coverage of the venue's construction, where the celebrations of oversized scale and backstage technological innovation took on a nationalistic tone. The boosterism had local resonance as well, since New York City was undergoing a building boom at that time, staking its claim as a world-class city representative of the whole nation. The venue's architecture, interior design, and onstage performances work together in ways that recent scholarship has identified as racialising: we suggest that this overall racialised aesthetic creates a transportive experience where audience members feel part of an exoticised space. We conclude by considering how performing animals develop all these overarching concerns, calling upon local, national, and international resonances in popular performance.