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During the nineteenth century, theatre was much like TV today. Performances occurred almost every week and everyone went. The Colonial Theatre in Victoria, BC was a popular venue. Several plays were performed each night and the entertainment went on for hours. “Indian Dramas” were a popular form of theatre, and the “noble savage” was a common subject for North American playwrights. The manner in which these plays, pantomimes, and impromptu monologues reinforced the prejudice of the day is well documented.
The line quoted in this image is from the play Metamora; or, the Last of the Wampanoags. The play is based on the early American-Indian conflict known as King Philip’s War. In it, the main character Metamora, the leader of the Wampanoags, and his wife, are forced to make a last stand against English settlers who have taken over their lands.
Written in 1829, it was one of the earliest plays to explore “the Indian theme” and started a trend which resulted in some 35 romantic plays being written including Pocahontas and Hiawatha. Metamora was so popular that in 25 years Philadelphia had only two theatre season that did not run a production of it.
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