Spectacles of Reform: Theater and Activism in Nineteenth-Century America

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments It has been a pleasure and privilege to work with LeAnn Fields as well as Alexa Ducsay, Scott Ham, and everyone else at the University of Michigan Press. I have deeply appreciated LeAnn’s advice and expertise, and this is a better book because of her. Insightful comments and provocative suggestions offered by the anonymous readers of my manuscript helped me considerably during the final stage of writing; I sincerely thank them as well. While a doctoral student at City University of New York’s Graduate Center, four mentors worked patiently and tirelessly with me as I developed many of the ideas that lie at the heart of this project. Marvin Carlson offered countless hours of conversation, inspiration, and support. I am tremendously grateful for his influence and direction. Daniel Gerould initially sparked my interest in nineteenth-­ century melodrama, and his vast knowledge about the subject, as well as his enthusiasm about my own scholarly interventions, was invaluable . The guidance and attention provided by Judith Milhous has benefited me immensely over the years, and I will always endeavor to emulate both her meticulous approach to historiography and her commitment to her students . Heather S. Nathans at the University of Maryland has played a central role in my development as an academic professional since the day we met; her generous advice, probing questions, and unflagging encouragement have left an indelible mark on this book and on me personally. I am also indebted to teacher-­ scholars at the City University of New York, Columbia University, and the New School for Social Research who, very early on, urged me to explore some of the theoretical and methodological strategies I employ in this book: Courtney Bender, Oz Frankel, Alison Griffiths, David Jaffee, James De Jongh, Kevin Murphy, David Savran, Pamela Sheingorn, Alisa Solomon, and Maurya Wickstrom. viii Acknowledgments Prior to beginning doctoral work, I was lucky to meet teachers who became long-­ term mentors. Two warrant special mention. Louis Scheeder profoundly impacted me as an undergraduate and compelled me to pursue a teaching career; he has remained a positive force in my life, to my great fortune. Tobie S. Stein has advised and guided me for more than a decade and continues to serve as a model in my ongoing attempts to be the best teacher-­ scholar I can be. I am grateful to them both. Brief but pivotal conversations at conferences, archives, and other venues shaped my conception of and commitment to this project in crucial ways. For galvanizing and challenging me, I thank Thomas Augst, Georgia Barnhill, Robin Bernstein, Charlotte Canning, Ric Caric, Mark Carnes, Jonathan Chambers , James M. Cherry, Joanna Cohen, Mark Cosdon, Esra Çizmeci, Chrystyna Dail, Tracy C. Davis, Paul Erickson, John W. Frick, Vincent Golden, Ezra Greenspan, Jonathan Gross, Lauren Hewes, Megan Sanborn Jones, Baz Kershaw , Jaclyn Penny, Sally Pierce, Peter P. Reed, Rebecca Schneider, Mike Sell, Jason Shaffer, Samuel Shanks, and Laura Wasowicz, among many others. I also treasure the exchanges I have had with colleagues in the American Theatre and Drama Society (ATDS), a professional organization that for many years has served as my intellectual home. Professors and students at Brooklyn College, where I have taught since 2006, have provided me with important support, both moral and practical. The enthusiasm of the Department of Theater’s faculty and staff has been sincere and steadfast. Jeanette Aultz, Rose Burnett Bonczek, Thomas Bullard, Robert I. Cohen, Mary Beth Easley, Michael Hairston, Deborah Hertzberg, Christopher Hoyt, Kip Marsh, Ruth Picans, Helen E. Richardson, Jaclyn Smerling, Teresa Snider-­ Stein, Tobie S. Stein, Jeff Stiefel, Laura Tesman, Lynn M. Thomson, and Judylee Vivier: your dedication, wisdom, and talent inspire me every day, and your faith in me has been instrumental to my completing this book. I have benefited immeasurably from the creativity and energy of students in our MA and MFA in Theater programs, especially Michael Anderson, Charles Bales, Erica Bates, Shane Breaux, Elizabeth Coen, Neal Freeman, Siobhan Glennon, Barry Honold, Andrew Kircher, Allison Lyman, Michael Maiella, Liz Ostler, and Will Shuler. Their generosity of heart and time allowed me to focus more attention on this project than I would have been able to otherwise. Outside of my department , the community of Noor Alam, Andrew Arlig, Caroline Arnold, Carolina Bank Muñoz, Brett Branco, Samir Chopra, Tri Datta, James Davis, Christopher Acknowledgments ix Ebert, Joseph Entin, Louis Fishman, Mobina Hashmi, Michael Meagher, Stephanie Jensen-­ Moulton, Danielle Kellogg, Ted Levine...