Offenbach's Blues: The Sunday Question and the Centennial

When Jacques Offenbach visited the United States in 1876, the country was both celebrating its hundredth anniversary and debating the Sunday question, the role of longstanding Sunday-closing laws in the life of the growing nation. Much to his annoyance, Offenbach was engulfed in the Sunday question...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inNotes (Music Library Association) Vol. 82; no. 1; pp. 7 - 21
Main Author Sestrick, Timothy
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Philadelphia Music Library Association 01.09.2025
Subjects
Anniversaries
Music
Offenbach, Jacques
Opera
Opera houses
Questions
Success
Theater
New York
France
United States > US
New York City New York
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Summary:When Jacques Offenbach visited the United States in 1876, the country was both celebrating its hundredth anniversary and debating the Sunday question, the role of longstanding Sunday-closing laws in the life of the growing nation. Much to his annoyance, Offenbach was engulfed in the Sunday question during his time in New York City and at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, which had been the focus of fierce arguments over hours of operation on the Sabbath. This article explores Offenbach's experience with the Sunday question and related blue laws and examines events at the Offenbach Garden in Philadelphia during and after his time in the country.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
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ISSN:0027-4380
1534-150X
1534-150X
DOI:10.1353/not.2025.a966768