African Grove: Background

In 1816, retired West Indian steamship steward William Brown bought a house on Thomas Street, where he hosted a variety of performances on Sunday afternoons specifically for African American audiences. In 1821, Brown moved to a new house on the corner of Mercer and Bleecker and converted the second floor into a 300-seat theater which he named The African Grove Theater.

Founded six years before the state of New York abolished slavery, The African Grove was an important space for expression of Black talent and creativity in New York City. The theater moved various times and the venues hosted diverse performances including ballets, musical medleys, comedies, Shakespearean performances, and even an original play written by Brown himself, The Drama of King Shotaway.

In 1823, the theater was shut down by police, partly due to the rowdiness of the white crowds, though some sources claim financial instability was an additional reason for closure. There is no record of activity for the African Grove Theater after 1823.

African Grove: Legacy

According to theater historian Marvin McAllister, The African Grove Theatre “cultivated an inclusive, intercultural, multicultural, and triracial national imaginary. Confronted with the ‘twoness’ of being both American and ‘Negro’ in the United States, [William] Brown demonstrated that African Americans did not have to privilege one cultural identity at the expense of the other.”

With the first integrated acting company and audiences composed of all races, the African Grove was a radical alternative to other American theaters of its time. For Brown and his collaborators, the theater was a space of possibility and becoming. Through the incorporation of Shakespearean performances, popular songs, original texts, and folk favorites, it demonstrated the range of Black subjectivities and creative expression while offering  the possibility of a truly populist and popular national theater.

Ira Aldridge (1807-1867)

Ira Aldridge was one of the most distinguished and celebrated actors of his time. He is most commonly recognized as a preeminent Shakespearean tragedian, playing the likes of Othello, King Lear, and Richard III. Aldridge made his professional debut at the African Grove Theater in 1822, performing the part of Rolla in the play Pizarro alongside William Brown and James Hewlett. As the African Grove and Aldridge himself faced the brutality of rival white theater companies and disruptive audiences and mobs, he emigrated to England in hopes of finding better opportunities. Despite the scrutiny he encountered in the United States, Aldridge reached a considerable level of success overseas—later finding acclaim in France, Germany, Poland, and Russia—and became the first African American actor to establish himself professionally in Europe. Throughout his career, Aldridge took an active stance against slavery, pursuing roles based in abolitionist rhetoric and passionately speaking to audiences about racial injustice. In 1867, during what would be his final tour of Europe, Aldridge passed away in Poland.

Transformation

As part of NYU Skirball’s 20th Anniversary Season, this exhibit is this first in a series documenting the history of New York City’s vibrant “Downtown” performance scenes. We are particularly grateful to Michael Dinwiddie and Keith Miller for distilling this selection on the African Grove Theater and Ira Aldridge from a larger exhibition, Transformation! African American Theater 1821-1921 and Beyond, which was shown at The Gallatin Galleries in 2022. Learn more about the original exhibit here.

10. Ira Aldridge as Othello
Ira Aldridge as Othello by Henry Perronet Briggs, c. 1830
13. Ira Aldridge as Othello color
Ira Aldridge as Othello
05. Hewlett, James as Richard the third
James Hewlett as Richard III
11. Mr. Ira Aldridge as Aaron
Ira Aldridge as Aaron
02. African Grove Playbill_ Tom and Jerry
African Grove Playbill, "Tom and Jerry"
04. African Grove Playbil_ Macbeth
African Grove Playbill, "Macbeth"