Crosby's Opera House: Symbol of Chicago's Cultural Awakening - Hardcover

Cropsey, Eugene H.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1611471818 ISBN 13: 9781611471816

Publisher: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2000

Synopsis

This book chronicles the existence of the cityOs first great opera house. It is also the story of Albert and Uranus Crosby, who migrated from Cape Cod to Chicago, where they made their fortunes and later sacrificed it all in their efforts to bring a new cultural enlightenment to their adopted city. The advent of CrosbyOs Opera House and the labors of its founders caused a cultural awakening so profound that it unquestionably set the stage for ChicagoOs later becoming one of AmericaOs great cultural centers.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

Critical Acclaim for Crosby's Opera House

"Through his evocative prose and wide-ranging research, E. H. Cropsey has recreated one of the most fascinating yet overlooked periods in the cultural evolvement of the Midwest: the rise and fall of Crosby's Opera House, the majestic Chicago theater that once threatened the supremacy of New York City's operatic palaces. The mercurial story of the theater and its founder, industrialist-entrepreneur Uranus Crosby (the 'Beau Brummel' of Chicago, as he was once described) is interwoven with the history of Reconstruction-era Chicago--an era which Cropsey captures in a book that reads like a well-crafted novel." JAMES A. DRAKE, Award-Winning Author and Music Biographer

"As a descendant of Albert Crosby, Cropsey has produced a scholarly work, drawn lovingly and compassionately, but with the wrinkles painted in for all to see. The book is crisply written, with a fine sense of style. Descriptions are vivid, particularly the cha! pter dealing with the great Chicago fire. We are there, we can smell the smoke, hear the crackle of the flames, see the desperation in the streets. Anecdotes abound throughout and quotations from contemporary newspaper reviews give each chapter an air of immediacy. Cropsey has given us a book that clearly fills a void in the available literature." VICTOR RANGEL-RIBEIRO, Noted Author and Musicologist

About the Author:

Eugene H. Cropsey is a great-great-grandson of Albert Crosby, owner of Crosby's Opera House. He was for many years an administrator and adjunct professor of economics at The University of Tampa. He received his B.S. from Trinity University (Texas) and his M.A. from the University of South Florida. Now retired, he is a freelance writer, continuing to pursue his life-long interest in opera and the history of opera. He and his wife live in Tampa, Florida, and can be contacted at ecropsey@gte.net.

About this edition

• Publisher: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 1611471818
• ISBN 13: 9781611471816
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 452