Vintage 1900 Weber & Fields Music Hall Program Lillian Russell, Bessie Clayton

Lillian Russell, Bessie Clayton, DeWolf Hopper, Fay Templeton, Joseph Weber and Lou Fields Program for Fiddle-Dee-Dee. This piece is set in Paris at the time of the Exposition Universelle of 1900. The hero, played by DeWolf Hopper, is described as "an athletic young American, with nothing but money and nothing to do but spend it." Norman Hapgood provides some further description of Fiddle-Dee-Dee, and Weber and Fields, in his book The Stage in America. Featuring Bessie Clayton, "La Danse d'Afrique." Bessie Clayton, a regular at Weber and Fields, was apparently trained in ballet, and one article describes her as an Amercian Genée. According to someone knowledgeable in the field, she was also the mother of toetap dancing. In 1900, when Joe Weber and Lew Fields were operating their Broadway Music Hall, burlesque still held its traditional meaning. A typical show included songs, chorus girls, and several loosely connected scenes and skits. Weber and Fields specialized in burlesques of contemporary Broadway theatre. The oversized fourteen page program measures 8 1/8" X 10 1/4" inches and includes full production credits, cast list, incidental musical numbers and wonderful vintage advertising