Abbey Theatre's First American Performances were at Plymouth Theatre in Boston, September 23, 1911

The debut of Ireland's renowned Abbey Theatre took place on September 23, 1911 at the Plymouth Theatre in Boston, with three plays, "The Shadow of the Glen" by J. M. Synge,"Birthright" by T. C. Murray and "Hyacinth Halvey" by Lady Gregory.

The theatre group was embarking on a six-month North American tour to promote the new Irish National Theatre of William B. Yeats, Lady Gregory and others.

The Boston Evening Transcript framed the historic occasion this way, "Mr. Yeats, Lady Gregory and the players of the Irish National Theatre will land in Boston for their first visit to America, for their first outside the British Isles, for their first lengthy absence in the season from their own house in Dublin....at the opening of the new Plymouth Theatre, they will act for the first time on this side of thr Atlantic."

"Yeats, the Irish poet and dramatist, and Lenox Robinson, manager of the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, and the author of several comedies in the company's repertory, conducted the rehearsal," wrote the Transcript.

In an interview with The Boston Globe, Yeats said, "Ireland has a traditional literature of songs and proverbs, and the speech of western Ireland in particular, is powerful, humorous and sometimes exceedingly beautiful. It is filled with all manner of traditional phrases and metaphors.

"Out of this folk lore Lady Gregory and the late John Synge have created comedies and tragedies which give the impression of reality, for the speech or their characters is indeed the speech of living people. This speech is not generally considered difficult to understand. The idiom is, to be sure, that of the Gaelic, but the vocabulary itself is practically Elizabethan English. It is, in brief, classical English, the language of people who speak in English, but think In Irish.

"Until we began to write plays in this Irish dialect, it seemed fitted only for cheap comic effects. Our playwrights, however, have proved that it ia a noble speech, full of dignity."

It was also the first productions for the newly opened Plymouth Theatre on Eliot Street (today Stuart Street) off of Tremont Street, the area that is now in Boston's theater district. A number of other plays were on stage when the Abbey landed in Boston, including "The Bohemian Girl," by Irish playwright Michael William Balfe at the Majestic Theatre, "Houdini the Jailbreaker" at B.F. Keith's Theatre and the "All-Star Vaudeville" review at Loew's Orpheum.

Read more about Yeats' visit to Boston, and check out the W.B. Yeats collection at John J. Burns Library at Boston College.

Comments

The Boston Celtics : The Story Behind Their Irish Green Theme

Bill Russell played for the Boston Celtics from 1956 to 1959 (This story was updated in March 2024) Many people wonder why the Boston Celtics wear shamrocks on their green uniforms and have a giant leprechaun smoking a cigar as their team logo. And why is the team mascot a guy named Lucky who looks like he stepped out of a box of Lucky Charms? According to the Boston Celtic’s official web site, the name came about in 1946 when owner Walter Brown started the team. He and his public relations guy, Howie McHugh, were throwing out potential nicknames, including the Whirlwinds, Unicorns and Olympics. It was Brown who had the epiphany, saying, “Wait, I’ve got it – the Celtics. The name has a great basketball tradition from the old Original Celtics in New York (1920s). And Boston is full of Irishman. We’ll put them in green uniforms and call them the Boston Celtics.” Red Auerbach , the now legendary coach of the early Celtics, then commissioned his brother Zang, a graphic d...

Boston Mayors of Irish Descent, 1885-2021

(Originally published in 2013, this post was updated in 2021) Here are the Mayors of Boston Claiming Irish Heritage: Hugh O’Brien 1885–88 Patrick Collins 1902–05 John F. Fitzgerald 1906–07, 1910–13 James M. Curley 1914–17, 1922–25, 1930–33, 1946–49 Frederick W. Mansfield 1934–37 Maurice Tobin 1938–41, 1941-44 John Kerrigan 1945 John B. Hynes 1950–59 John Collins 1960–68 Kevin H. White 1968–83 Raymond L. Flynn 1984–93 Martin J. Walsh 2014- 2021 The lineage of Boston mayors with Irish ancestry dates back to 1885, when Irish immigrant Hugh O'Brien of County Cork assumed office and became the first Irish-born mayor elected in Boston, serving four one-year terms (1885-88). O'Brien was followed by Irish-born Patrick Collins (1902-05), also of County Cork, who died in office in 1905. He was replaced by John F. Fitzgerald, who became the first American-born mayor of Irish descent, serving two terms. A noteworthy...

Visit these Public Memorials to John Boyle O'Reilly throughout Massachusetts

Born 180 years ago on June 28, 1844, John Boyle O’Reilly helped shape the history or Ireland and America in the late 19th century in powerful ways. Today, O'Reilly’s stature as a seminal figure in Irish and Irish-American history is particularly evident in his beloved birthplace of Dowth, County Meath; in Freemantle, Australia where he was imprisoned; and indeed, throughout the Irish Diaspora. O'REILLY LANDMARKS IN MASSACHUSETTS O’Reilly remains popular in Boston, New Bedford, Hull and Springfield where there is a selection of memorials and plaques, parks and city squares, library collections and Irish organizations honoring O’Reilly’s memory. In Boston, the John Boyle O’Reilly Memorial at the corner of Boylston Street and The Fens, not far from Fenway Park, was unveiled in 1896 by famed Concord sculptor Daniel French. The Memorial is part of Boston’s Irish Heritage Trail. In Charlestown, O’Reilly lived at 34 Winthrop Street, where there is a plaque in his honor. In 1988 t...

Irish Boston History & Heritage

Search This Blog