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Bryant's Minstrels was a blackface minstrel troupe that performed in the mid-19th century, primarily in New York City. The troupe was led by the O'Neill brothers from upstate New York, who took the stage name Bryant.〔Mahar 38.〕 ==History== The eldest brother Jerry, a veteran of the Ethiopian Serenaders, Campbell's Minstrels, E.P. Christy's Minstrels and other troupes, sang and played tambourine and bones. Dan Bryant, who had toured with Losee's Minstrels, the Sable Harmonists and Campbell's Minstrels, sang and played banjo. Neil (Cornelius) Bryant played accordion and flutina. Other members, including English-born fiddler Phil Isaacs, rounded out the original roster.〔Rice 58〕 All of the minstrels danced and acted in comedy segments, which were often improvised.〔Nathan 228.〕〔Nathan 229.〕 Bryant's Minstrels first performed on 23 February 1857 at Mechanics' Hall on Broadway.〔Nathan 227.〕 The Bryants each brought with them the acts and songs they had learned and perfected while playing in other troupes. These older, proven pieces created a nostalgic format of primarily plantation-themed material that seemed to ignore contemporary discussion over abolition. Songs on the bill included Stephen Foster's "Gentle Annie" and the Christy Minstrels' "See, Sir, See" and "Down in Alabama".〔 The Bryants proved a hit with audiences and critics alike. One reviewer wrote that "it is gratifying to find that we have yet among us those who will not suffer the original type of negro eccentricity to die out altogether. The connecting link . . . are () the Bryant's Minstrels . . . and it is therefore to be hoped for that they will continue as they have begun, and stick to the 'old style' entertainment."〔26 December 1857 ''Clipper''. Quoted in Mahar 38.〕 Over the next few months, they became one of New York's more popular acts. ''The Clipper'' wrote on 20 June that "The different bands of Minstrels, in this city, have experienced a wonderful falling off in patronage since the advent among us of the 'Bryants.'"〔20 June 1857 and 15 August 1857 ''Clipper''. Quoted in Nathan 227.〕 Another review spoke of "a combination of comical talent . . . never before witnessed in Ethiopian Minstrelsy . . . ."〔12 September 1857 ''Clipper''. Quoted in Nathan 227.〕 Even a nationwide economic downturn in 1858 did not hurt their revenues. The Mechanics' Hall remained their primary venue until May 1866.〔 Over the troupe's life, members came and went. In October or November 1858, Dan Emmett joined as primary songwriter for what would prove the most prolific period of his career. He also performed fiddle, banjo, drum, fife, and vocals.〔Nathan 230–1.〕 The song "Dixie", usually attributed to him, was first performed on stage by the Bryants during an 1859 concert.〔Nathan 245.〕 The final act of most minstrel shows of the time were blackface burlesques of mainstream theater, but "Dixie" and songs like it prompted an industry-wide revival of plantation-related material. Emmett's songs proliferated among rival companies. Emmett's influence also helped mature the walkaround from a simple dance to a complete song-and-dance routine.〔Nathan 235.〕 Next to Christy's Minstrels, the Bryants were the longest-lasting minstrel troupe to have formed before the Civil War.〔 Jerry Bryant died in 1861, but during the war, Bryant's Minstrels carried on, populating their shows with pro-Union songs such as "One Country and One Flag" and "Raw Recruits", as well as Irish characterizations and songs such as "Finigan's Wake" and "Lanigan's Ball".〔Irish songs.〕 Dan Emmett left the troupe in July 1866, although he occasionally composed music for the Bryant's even after his departure. Mechanics' Hall burned that same year and Bryant's Minstrels left New York for a road trip to San Francisco.〔Rice 88〕 On their return to New York in 1868, they took over the theater in Tammany Hall on East 14th Street and later moved into their own "Opera House" on 23rd Street.〔New York Times. April 12, 1875〕 The late 1860s and 1870s saw minstrel production grow increasingly elaborate and expensive and troupe sizes enlarge.〔Saxton 76.〕 The Bryants stuck with their traditional formula and their popularity waned as a result.〔 Adding the African American dwarf Thomas Dilward to their ranks in the late 1860s (under the stage name "Japanese Tommy") did little to stem the tide.〔Toll 198.〕 Dan Bryant died in his New York City home in 1875, but the troupe carried on for seven more years under the management of his surviving brother Neil.〔New York Times. April 12, 1875.〕〔Rice 106〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Bryant's Minstrels」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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