Edgar Allan Poe Parents Theatre Ad In 1806...
Item # 726847
January 12, 1807
BOSTON GAZETTE, Jan. 12, 1807
* Edgar Allan Poe's father & mother theater ads
* "The Secret" and "Robin Hood" comedy plays
* Eliza Arnold Hopkins Poe & David Poe Jr.
The top of page 3 under "Boston Theatre" is a notice for the performances of "THE SECRET", with Mr. Poe as "Henry Torrid" and "ROBIN HOOD" with Mrs. Poe as "Clorinda" re. the parents of Edgar Allan Poe.
Complete with 4 pages, nice condition.
background: The performance on January 12, 1807, at the Boston Theatre serves as a vital historical anchor for understanding the nomadic, arduous theatrical world that birthed the "master of the macabre," Edgar Allan Poe. By featuring David Poe Jr. as the earnest Henry Torrid in the comedy The Secret and Elizabeth "Eliza" Poe as the vibrant, singing huntress Clorinda in the comic opera Robin Hood, the event captures the family at their professional peak in a city that would, just two years later, witness Edgar’s birth. The significance of this specific night lies in the stark contrast it illustrates between Poe’s parents: Eliza was a celebrated, versatile star whose "sweetly tremulous" voice captivated audiences, while David was a struggling performer often overshadowed by his wife's talent—a dynamic of domestic instability and creative labor that would haunt Edgar’s later psyche. Furthermore, the repertoire of the evening—blending high-stakes secrets with the atmospheric, forest-bound legend of Sherwood—foreshadowed the themes of hidden identities, drama, and intense atmosphere that defined Poe’s literary legacy. As a snapshot of the itinerant actor's life in early America, this playbill represents the fleeting stability of a family that would soon be shattered by abandonment, poverty, and Eliza’s tragic death from tuberculosis, leaving an indelible mark of "the lost Lenore" on the history of American letters.
* Edgar Allan Poe's father & mother theater ads
* "The Secret" and "Robin Hood" comedy plays
* Eliza Arnold Hopkins Poe & David Poe Jr.
The top of page 3 under "Boston Theatre" is a notice for the performances of "THE SECRET", with Mr. Poe as "Henry Torrid" and "ROBIN HOOD" with Mrs. Poe as "Clorinda" re. the parents of Edgar Allan Poe.
Complete with 4 pages, nice condition.
background: The performance on January 12, 1807, at the Boston Theatre serves as a vital historical anchor for understanding the nomadic, arduous theatrical world that birthed the "master of the macabre," Edgar Allan Poe. By featuring David Poe Jr. as the earnest Henry Torrid in the comedy The Secret and Elizabeth "Eliza" Poe as the vibrant, singing huntress Clorinda in the comic opera Robin Hood, the event captures the family at their professional peak in a city that would, just two years later, witness Edgar’s birth. The significance of this specific night lies in the stark contrast it illustrates between Poe’s parents: Eliza was a celebrated, versatile star whose "sweetly tremulous" voice captivated audiences, while David was a struggling performer often overshadowed by his wife's talent—a dynamic of domestic instability and creative labor that would haunt Edgar’s later psyche. Furthermore, the repertoire of the evening—blending high-stakes secrets with the atmospheric, forest-bound legend of Sherwood—foreshadowed the themes of hidden identities, drama, and intense atmosphere that defined Poe’s literary legacy. As a snapshot of the itinerant actor's life in early America, this playbill represents the fleeting stability of a family that would soon be shattered by abandonment, poverty, and Eliza’s tragic death from tuberculosis, leaving an indelible mark of "the lost Lenore" on the history of American letters.
Category: Pre-Civil War
