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THE FAMED SHAKESPEAREAN ACTOR
465
●
(THEATER.)
Ira Aldridge! . . . “Der Kaufmann von Venedig” (“The
Merchant of Venice.”)
Letterpress playbill, 10x15
1
/
4
inches, faint creases where folded;
scattered foxing, marginal nicks.
[Zagreb], 10 November 1853
[5,000/7,500]
Born in New York City in 1807, Aldridge began his illustrious acting career as a teenager as Rolla
in Sheridan’s Pizarro with an all-black cast. Aware of the limited opportunities for African-American
actors, he chose to further his studies in Scotland. At age 19 he made his London debut at the
Royalty Theater playing Othello. Aldridge maintained a steady and widely celebrated career through-
out Europe. After his post-show complimentary performances of Negro folk songs, Aldridge addressed
his captive audience on subjects of emancipation and the abolition of slavery both in the British
colonies and the United States. The text of this broadside indicates that Aldridge planned to treat his
audience to a number of Negro folk songs including, “Dear Heart, What a Terrible Life I’m Led,”
“Oppossum up in a Gum Tree,” and “Negro Boy.” Despite his intention to return home at the con-
clusion of the Civil War, Aldridge died in Poland in 1867 and was thus, unable to achieve paralleled
recognition and success in America.