Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
The Salt Lake Opera Company Records, 1897-1906
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- Whitney, Horace G.
- Title
- The Salt Lake Opera Company Records
- Dates
- 1897-1906 (inclusive)18971906
- Quantity
- 1 box, (.5 linear ft)
- Collection Number
- UUS_CAINE COLL MSS 30
- Summary
- This collection contains the correspondence received by Horace G. Whitney, the former manager of the Salt Lake Opera Company, from costumers, theatres, actors, and music companies in Utah, Idaho and Wyoming.
- Repository
-
Utah State University, Merrill-Cazier Library, Special Collections and Archives Division
Special Collections & Archives
Merrill-Cazier Library
Utah State University
Logan, UT
84322-3000
Telephone: 4357978248
Fax: 4357972880
scweb@usu.edu - Access Restrictions
-
No restrictions on use, except: not available through interlibrary loan.
- Languages
- English
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
Horace G. Whitney (1858-1921) was music and dramatic critic writing for the Salt Lake Herald and the Deseret News.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
Letters received by Horace G. Whitney (1857-1921), manager of the Salt Lake Opera Company between 1897 and 1906 from costumers, music companies, actors and theatres in Utah, Idaho and Wyoming. The letters reveal the complicated logistics (securing permissions, booking a theatre, agreeing on the division profits, costumes, props, the orchestra, etc.) Of taking an opera on the road at the turn-of-the-century. Roughly half of the letters were written by managers of theatres in Evanston, Rock Springs, Pocatello, Park City, Provo, Ogden and Logan in order to entice Whitney to bring the company to their town. The other large group of letters are from costumers, and the Whitmark Music Company of New York. The letters from Whitmark are especially interesting because of their discussion of copyright issues and the payment of royalties. These letters reveal that Whitney sometimes paid hundreds of dollars less in royalties than other theatres to perform copyrighted plays and music. The third, and smallest group of letters are from actors and discuss their availability for roles in upcoming productions.
Other Descriptive InformationReturn to Top
The Salt Lake Opera Company was organized in 1897 by Heber S. Goddard, Willard E. Weihe, John D. Spencer with Horace G. Whitney as the manager. Goddard, a singer, was something of a celebrity and Whitney and Spencer were well-known locally as members of the Home Dramatic Club. The Company gave its last performance in 1912. The Company performed at the historic Salt Lake Theatre. It also took the show on the road to Pocatello, Logan and other towns throughout the region.
The Company performed thirteen operas in its time. These were: "The Mascot," (February 25, 1897) "Patience," "Chimes of Normandy," "Said Pasha," "The Queen's Lace Handkerchief," "A Trip To Africa," "Madeline," "The Mandarin," Fatitza," "The Wedding Day," "Martha," "The Jolly Musketeers," "The Girl and the Governor," "Robin Hood." The March 8, 1912 performance of "Robin Hood" at the old Salt Lake Theatre was the last performance given by the Company.
For more information see George D. Pyper's book The Romance Of An Old Playhouse.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Restrictions on Use
It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.
Permission to publish material from the The Salt Lake Opera Company Records must be obtained from the Special Collections Manuscript Curator and/or the Special Collections Department Head.
Preferred Citation
Initial Citation: The Salt Lake Opera Company Records USU_CAINE Coll Mss 30, Box [ ]. Special Collections and Archives. Utah State University Merrill-Cazier Library. Logan, Utah.
Following Citations:USU_CAINE Coll Mss 30, USUSCA.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
| Container(s) | Description | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Box | Folder | ||
| 1 | 1 | Opera House Club Rooms and Saloon
Evanston, Wyoming (1 piece)
|
undated |
| 1 | 2 | Grand Hotel and Opera House Company Rock
Springs, Wyoming (2 pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 3 | Union Opera House, Rock Springs, Wyoming (3 pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 4 | Opera House, Pocatello, Idaho (4
piece)
|
undated |
| 1 | 5 | Grand Opera House, Butte, Montana (1
piece)
|
undated |
| 1 | 6 | Provo Opera House, Provo, Utah (12
pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 7 | R.R. Irvine and Sons, Provo, Utah (2
pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 8 | S.S. Jones, Provo, Utah (12
pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 9 | Grand Opera House, Ogden, Utah (15
pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 10 | The Reed, Ogden, Utah (3
piece)
|
undated |
| 1 | 11 | Thatcher Opera House, Logan, Utah (23
pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 12 | Hanks Hotel, Logan, Utah (5 pieces) | undated |
| 1 | 13 | Salt Lake Theatre, Salt Lake City, Utah,
statements (7 pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 14 | ivoli Opera House, San Francisco,
California (45 pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 15 | Arthur W. Tams Music, New York City (20
pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 16 | Inter Mountain Theatrical Circuit, Denver,
Colorado (5 pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 17 | Goldstein and Company Costumers, San
Francisco, California (14 pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 18 | Salt Lake Costuming House, Salt Lake City,
Utah (8 pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 19 | Samuel French, New York City (2
pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 20 | Whitmark Music Library New York City | undated |
| 1 | 21 | Whitmark Music Library New York City | undated |
| 1 | 22 | Whitmark Music Library New York City | undated |
| 1 | 23 | Whitmark Music Library New York City | undated |
| 1 | 24 | T.J. McLaughlin, Park City, Utah (12
pieces)
|
undated |
| 1 | 25 | Schalchi Tour, New York City (1
piece)
|
undated |
| 1 | 26 | Letters from prospective cast members and miscellaneous | undated |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Actors--West (U.S.)--Correspondence.
- Costume designers--West (U.S.)--Correspondence.
- Musicians--West (U.S.)--Correspondence.
- Opera companies--Utah--Salt Lake City--Archives.
- Opera--Production and direction--Utah--Salt Lake City.
- Theaters--West (U.S.)
- Theatrical managers--West (U.S.)--Correspondence.
Personal Names
- Whitney, Horace G. Correspondence.
Corporate Names
- Salt Lake Opera Company Archives.
Family Names
- Whitney, Horace G.
Geographical Names
- Salt Lake City--Utah
Occupations
- Theaters West (U.S.)
Finding aid/Register created by
John L. Powell
2010
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
