James Adams Floating Theater
Prompted by Svetlana’s Paul Robeson post. I posted a video of Robeson singing Ol’ Man River in the 1936 film “Show Boat” on Clark’s Picks, yesterday. This got me thinking about the origin of “Show Boat,” which is a local story, not about the Mississippi River, but here, on the Chesapeake Bay.
In 1925, novelist Edna Ferber spent four days aboard the James Adams Floating Theater, which was a 128 foot long barge with a 522 750-800 (?) seat theater built on it. Theatrical entrepreneur, James Adams had his floating theater built in South North Carolina in 1918 and took it, using a pair of small tugboats, on tour up and down the Chesapeake Bay each summer, with a repertory theater company on board. Ferber collected enough character and atmospheric information during her four day visit to write a novel entitled “Show Boat,” about a fictional version of the James Adams, which was published in 1926.
Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein took Ferber’s book, moved the setting to the Mississippi River and created a Broadway musical that opened in 1927. Paul Robeson played the part of Joe, one of the two sets of romantic leads in the play and in the 1936 film version.
The James Adams used to tie up at the town dock at the end of High Street in Chestertown, walking distance from my house. There is an interesting and informative book, by C. Richard Gillespie The James Adams Floating Theater, which has many original black and white photographs, including the one above, tells the story of the theater and details Edna Ferber’s visit.
Another fictional version of the Floating Theater figures prominently in John Barth’s novel “The Floating Opera,” in which the protagonist, a local Cambridge, MD lawyer, down the bay a few miles from here, decides to commit suicide by blowing up the theater with gas from it’s kitchen range, located down in the bilges, but changes his mind a the last minute. It is a classic Barth novel in which high drama, colorful characters and the Eastern Shore interact for several hundred pages and, in the end, nothing happens.
There have been several attempts to revive the floating theater, thwarted by the trouble and expense of meeting current Coast Guard, State and local safety standards for a theater on the water. The latest attempt, by Chesapeake Bay Floating Theatre, Inc is expected to open soon at the Indian Head Center For The Arts in southern Maryland.
Strikethroughs and corrections couresy of new information provided by Duane Mann of the James Adams Floating Theater Project. The Floating Theater Project is still in the early stages of planning, apparrantly. I will post updates on this blog, occasionally as the project progresses. I have replaced the originally posted photo with one from the Floating Theater Project website, which I encourage you to visit.
March 10, 2008 at 10:22 pm
[...] grace wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptIn 1925, novelist Edna Ferber spent four days aboard the James Adams Floating Theater, which was a 128 foot long barge with a 522 seat theater built on it. Theatrical entrepreneur, James Adams had his floating theater built in South … [...]
March 10, 2008 at 11:06 pm
[...] unknown just wrote an article aboutHere’s a preview of it: [...]
March 11, 2008 at 11:24 am
Who the heck is grace?
March 11, 2008 at 4:30 pm
Hi, Rotus!
Thank you for one more great article about Paul Robeson and the “Show Boat”, and thank you for the link to our article. But Kyle wants to know: Why our Technocaty rating is dropping when you link to us? Oh, please, continue – don’t take him wrong! He’s just confused
.
And by the way why they call you Grace now?
Best wishes,
Svet and Kyle
April 21, 2008 at 7:59 pm
I am the great great grandniece of James adams and Beaula Hunter. I have old clippings and pictures of the showboat. I also have a miniature of the boat that was made by one of the actors that was on the boat. It was really fun to hear all the old stories that the family told. Annette Kelly
May 27, 2008 at 11:38 am
Our homeschool group is doing research on the James Adams Showboat from Washington, NC. I would love to get in touch with Mrs. Annette Kelly to gain her insight into the history of the Showboat. Any other research sites would be greatly appreciated.
May 27, 2008 at 1:56 pm
Perhaps Ms. Kelly will stop back here. I don’t have her contact information, unfortunately.
June 21, 2008 at 12:45 pm
I am researching the James Adams Floating Theater for the Pamlico Playhouse, Inc. – a 501 non profit group – to gather information to use for publicity. We are planning a production of “The Last Showboat” written by playwright Stuart Aronson at the newly restored Washington Turnage Theater in Washington, NC (were the boat was built) showing November 21, 22 & 23, 2008. This historical play is based upon Edna Ferber’s stay aboard the floating theater and allows us to travel back in time to experience what it must have been like as she became acquainted with the life of the cast, the crew and of the boat itself. Any information about the Adams Theater, any photos that we might use, and any publicity ideas would be greatly appreciated. Would love to speak with Annette Kelly! We welcome any questions or thoughts – please contact via email at pamlicoplayhouse@yahoo.com
June 29, 2008 at 3:38 pm
my father, melford seymour’s,(deseased)adopted mother nina van bach howard bought the james adams floating theater and later changed its name to the original floating theater. my mother, rachel seymour was a member of the cast of the ’showboat for nearly 10 years, selling tickets, acting and dancing. her stage name was rochelle jewell.she has shared so many stories with me about her life on ‘the boat’. i so wish i had written them all down because at age 94(she will be 95 on july 12) her memories are fading. she was interviewed at length by richard gillispe for his book about the floating theater and i had the opportunity to meet him at a presentation he made at the calvert museum in solomon’s island. i dont know of any other living members of ‘the boat’. what a wonderful time it must have been……………..
July 29, 2008 at 12:52 pm
I work with the Chesapeake Bay Floating Theatre, we are working to build a replica of the James Adams. Once built, we will be taking the floating theatre to many of the original ports visited. For more information you can check out our recently updated website at http://www.floatingtheatre.org.
If you can provide stories or artifacts please contact us. We are creating exhibits to interpret the James Adams itself, Repertory Theatre, the novel, play and films of Showboat, etc. We hope to include oral histories from surviving audience and employees.
I am particularly interested in Ms. Kelly’s reference to the miniature created by one of the actors.
February 28, 2009 at 3:12 pm
Is there a relationship between the “James Adams Floating Theater” and the Ohio and Green River “Melville Floating Theatre” that the Banker-Melville family sold to Charles and Maude Adams that was renamed the “Adams Showboat”?
February 28, 2009 at 3:36 pm
I have never hear of the “Melville Floating Theatre” before. Do you have any background information, when and where it was built and operated and by whom? Would this be Maude Adams the Broadway and film star who played Peter Pan?