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Theatrical ad includes Edgar Allan Poe's mother...
Theatrical ad includes Edgar Allan Poe's mother...
Item # 721767
May 11, 1809
BOSTON GAZETTE, May 11, 1809
* Edgar Allan Poe's mother theater ad
A curious literary item here as the top of page 3 has an advertisement for the "Boston Theatre" for the performance of: "FALSE DELICACY", a theatrical performance, with a song sung by "Mrs. Poe". (see image) She was the mother of Edgar Allan Poe. This ad is lightly inked.
News of the day and other interesting advertisements. Four pages, nice condition.
AI notes: In 1809, during the Boston Theatre’s production of Richard Cumberland’s sentimental comedy False Delicacy, actress and singer Eliza Arnold Hopkins Poe—mother of Edgar Allan Poe—was featured in one of her most noted early-American stage performances. Known for her light soprano voice and poised stage presence, Eliza often sang musical interludes or “entertainments” between acts, a common practice in early U.S. theatre. Contemporary playbills from the Boston Theatre that year list her as performing a song as part of the evening’s program, enhancing the production’s appeal at a time when her reputation as one of the city’s finest young performers was rising. Her participation in False Delicacy helped solidify her standing as a versatile actress capable of both comedic roles and musical performance, just months before the birth of her son Edgar in Boston in 1809.
Category: Pre-Civil War
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