1 00:00:01,280 --> 00:00:04,279 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Missed in History Class, a production 2 00:00:04,360 --> 00:00:13,480 Speaker 1: of I Heart Radio. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:13,520 --> 00:00:17,000 Speaker 1: I'm Holly Fry and I'm Tracy P. Wilson. So we 4 00:00:17,079 --> 00:00:19,360 Speaker 1: have talked a number of times on the show about 5 00:00:19,400 --> 00:00:22,840 Speaker 1: how we collect and manage our topic lists. Uh. And 6 00:00:22,880 --> 00:00:24,720 Speaker 1: there are times, I know, for me, when I come 7 00:00:24,760 --> 00:00:26,920 Speaker 1: across something in the wild and I just scribble it 8 00:00:26,960 --> 00:00:28,640 Speaker 1: down and then I don't have any idea what that 9 00:00:28,720 --> 00:00:31,840 Speaker 1: was about, right, And I think you mentioned a similar 10 00:00:31,880 --> 00:00:36,480 Speaker 1: thing happening recently. Tracy did so. A few days back. 11 00:00:37,040 --> 00:00:40,639 Speaker 1: I was reviewing a notebook that I had recently been 12 00:00:40,720 --> 00:00:42,920 Speaker 1: using to keep my to do lists and my schedules 13 00:00:42,920 --> 00:00:46,519 Speaker 1: in because I kind of do. I'm reticent to call 14 00:00:46,560 --> 00:00:49,920 Speaker 1: it a bullet journal. It's really just like my weird 15 00:00:50,400 --> 00:00:53,960 Speaker 1: if Faulkner kept a bullet journal kind of stream of 16 00:00:54,000 --> 00:00:56,360 Speaker 1: consciousness of like all my to do stuff. So it's 17 00:00:56,360 --> 00:00:59,560 Speaker 1: at least in one place for the important things. Um. 18 00:00:59,600 --> 00:01:01,240 Speaker 1: And then I go back and I review them and 19 00:01:01,280 --> 00:01:03,560 Speaker 1: make sure I've captured anything that needs to get carried 20 00:01:03,600 --> 00:01:05,680 Speaker 1: over into the next one. And I'm a little slow 21 00:01:05,720 --> 00:01:08,360 Speaker 1: to do it with my transfer from one to the next. 22 00:01:08,400 --> 00:01:11,200 Speaker 1: This time but I was looking over this last book 23 00:01:11,280 --> 00:01:14,720 Speaker 1: and in literally in a margin sideways, I had just 24 00:01:14,760 --> 00:01:18,160 Speaker 1: written the word Cisseretta, and I didn't know what it was. 25 00:01:18,840 --> 00:01:22,280 Speaker 1: I couldn't remember where it came from. Uh So I 26 00:01:22,280 --> 00:01:24,440 Speaker 1: looked it up, and I sure, I'm glad I did, 27 00:01:25,480 --> 00:01:27,120 Speaker 1: because it turns out that at some point in the 28 00:01:27,200 --> 00:01:31,720 Speaker 1: last several months I had apparently stumbled across Ciceretta Jones, 29 00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:34,880 Speaker 1: who was a black operatic and popular music singer in 30 00:01:34,880 --> 00:01:38,080 Speaker 1: the early twentieth century, and she was very famous in 31 00:01:38,120 --> 00:01:40,280 Speaker 1: her day, but then she kind of vanished from the 32 00:01:40,280 --> 00:01:43,640 Speaker 1: papers and all press coverage when she retired, and her 33 00:01:43,720 --> 00:01:46,600 Speaker 1: last years were lived in relative obscurity, which meant that 34 00:01:46,640 --> 00:01:49,560 Speaker 1: when she died, nobody really knew very much about it, 35 00:01:49,640 --> 00:01:52,080 Speaker 1: and it didn't get a lot of coverage, and she 36 00:01:52,200 --> 00:01:57,400 Speaker 1: really hadn't been uh as celebrated throughout history as she 37 00:01:57,480 --> 00:01:59,600 Speaker 1: certainly deserves. So she is due for a little bit 38 00:01:59,600 --> 00:02:02,960 Speaker 1: of a ten and that's what we are talking about today. 39 00:02:03,120 --> 00:02:07,120 Speaker 1: Matilda Ceceretta Joiner was born January five, eighteen sixty eight, 40 00:02:07,160 --> 00:02:12,120 Speaker 1: in Portsmouth, Virginia. We don't have any recording or anything 41 00:02:12,120 --> 00:02:14,320 Speaker 1: of how she said her own name I've heard people 42 00:02:14,320 --> 00:02:18,320 Speaker 1: say it's Ceceretta and Cecyretta. We're just gonna stick with 43 00:02:18,360 --> 00:02:21,800 Speaker 1: Ceceretta for the sake of consistency. The date of that 44 00:02:21,880 --> 00:02:24,840 Speaker 1: also has some question marks, because some records have eighteen 45 00:02:24,880 --> 00:02:27,320 Speaker 1: sixty nine rather than eighteen sixty eight is the birth 46 00:02:27,440 --> 00:02:31,760 Speaker 1: yere Ceceretta was born into a religious family. Her father, 47 00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:35,679 Speaker 1: Jeremiah Malachi Joiner, who went by Jerry, had been enslaved 48 00:02:35,720 --> 00:02:38,560 Speaker 1: at birth but was a freeman when Ceceretta was born. 49 00:02:39,200 --> 00:02:41,640 Speaker 1: He worked as a carpenter and as a minister at 50 00:02:41,639 --> 00:02:45,560 Speaker 1: the African Methodist Church. Her mother, Henrietta, worked as a 51 00:02:45,600 --> 00:02:49,679 Speaker 1: washerwoman and also saying in the church choir. Ceceretta went 52 00:02:49,720 --> 00:02:53,120 Speaker 1: by both Matilda and Cissy with her family. Yeah, we'll 53 00:02:53,160 --> 00:02:56,040 Speaker 1: talk about her name a little bit more, uh, in 54 00:02:56,280 --> 00:02:58,240 Speaker 1: just a bit, and we should also mention like it's 55 00:02:58,240 --> 00:03:00,720 Speaker 1: worth noting that she was more just a few years 56 00:03:00,760 --> 00:03:03,040 Speaker 1: after the Civil War ended, so like at a time 57 00:03:03,040 --> 00:03:07,919 Speaker 1: when the country was really going through significant change. Jerry 58 00:03:08,000 --> 00:03:11,359 Speaker 1: and Henrietta had two more children in addition to Cicceretta, 59 00:03:11,400 --> 00:03:13,320 Speaker 1: but both of them died when they were still young. 60 00:03:14,320 --> 00:03:17,520 Speaker 1: In eighteen seventy six, After the loss of Ciceretta's brother, 61 00:03:18,040 --> 00:03:21,680 Speaker 1: the family moved to Providence, Rhode Island. Jerry had been 62 00:03:21,720 --> 00:03:24,480 Speaker 1: offered a position at a church in Providence, and he 63 00:03:24,560 --> 00:03:27,200 Speaker 1: saw this as an opportunity for a better life in 64 00:03:27,240 --> 00:03:30,919 Speaker 1: this other state. Cceretta was enrolled once they moved at 65 00:03:31,000 --> 00:03:34,600 Speaker 1: Meeting Street Primary School, which was integrated as we're all 66 00:03:34,680 --> 00:03:38,160 Speaker 1: Rhode Island schools, following the passing of a statute by 67 00:03:38,200 --> 00:03:41,840 Speaker 1: the Rhode Island General Assembly on March seventh, eighteen sixty six, 68 00:03:42,240 --> 00:03:45,200 Speaker 1: that had stated that quote no distinction be made on 69 00:03:45,280 --> 00:03:48,600 Speaker 1: account of the race or color of the applicant. So 70 00:03:48,680 --> 00:03:51,160 Speaker 1: it seems like at this point the Joiners were really 71 00:03:51,200 --> 00:03:55,160 Speaker 1: settling into a stable community that had better opportunities than 72 00:03:55,160 --> 00:03:58,240 Speaker 1: they had had back in Virginia, but things were strained 73 00:03:58,320 --> 00:04:01,920 Speaker 1: at home. We don't really know the specifics of the situation, 74 00:04:02,080 --> 00:04:05,680 Speaker 1: but by eighteen seventy eight, Cinceretta's parents were living separately 75 00:04:05,920 --> 00:04:09,480 Speaker 1: and she was living with her mother. The Joiners formally 76 00:04:09,560 --> 00:04:13,120 Speaker 1: divorced more than a decade later, in eighty nine. Court 77 00:04:13,160 --> 00:04:17,920 Speaker 1: records indicate that Jerry had accused his wife of adultery. 78 00:04:18,000 --> 00:04:20,960 Speaker 1: It's not really clear how much involvement Jerry had in 79 00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:25,120 Speaker 1: Cincceretta's life after the Joiners separated. But while the loss 80 00:04:25,160 --> 00:04:28,800 Speaker 1: of siblings and moving in this tumultuous family life for 81 00:04:28,920 --> 00:04:31,719 Speaker 1: part of her early years, there was one thing that 82 00:04:31,839 --> 00:04:34,520 Speaker 1: had been consistent for just about as long as she 83 00:04:34,560 --> 00:04:38,480 Speaker 1: could make noise, and that was that Cisterretta saying she 84 00:04:38,720 --> 00:04:42,320 Speaker 1: loved to sing. She would later say to a reporter, quote, 85 00:04:42,440 --> 00:04:44,599 Speaker 1: when I was a little girl, just a wee slip 86 00:04:44,600 --> 00:04:47,359 Speaker 1: of a tad, I used to go about singing. I 87 00:04:47,400 --> 00:04:49,360 Speaker 1: guess I must have been a bit of a nuisance then, 88 00:04:49,480 --> 00:04:52,880 Speaker 1: for my mouth was open all the time. In addition 89 00:04:52,960 --> 00:04:55,960 Speaker 1: to just singing on her own whenever she could, she's 90 00:04:55,960 --> 00:04:58,600 Speaker 1: saying at school, she's saying in church, she's saying at 91 00:04:58,600 --> 00:05:02,320 Speaker 1: events for school and church, everyone could hear that she 92 00:05:02,400 --> 00:05:05,640 Speaker 1: had a really exceptional voice, even when she was a child. 93 00:05:06,360 --> 00:05:09,880 Speaker 1: She described being nervous about performing initially when she was young, 94 00:05:10,000 --> 00:05:12,800 Speaker 1: but then, as she put it, quote, timidity was soon 95 00:05:12,839 --> 00:05:17,960 Speaker 1: replaced by competence. And somewhere along the line, someone talked 96 00:05:18,000 --> 00:05:21,160 Speaker 1: to Henrietta about how beneficial it would be for Cincceretta 97 00:05:21,240 --> 00:05:24,080 Speaker 1: to get formal training for her natural talent. There's a 98 00:05:24,120 --> 00:05:26,560 Speaker 1: story that she told later in life that someone at 99 00:05:26,640 --> 00:05:29,360 Speaker 1: church was like, your little girl just hit a high seat. 100 00:05:29,400 --> 00:05:34,679 Speaker 1: Please find her a school. And so in three, fifteen 101 00:05:34,720 --> 00:05:38,800 Speaker 1: year old Cinceretta started taking lessons at the Providence Academy 102 00:05:38,839 --> 00:05:41,920 Speaker 1: of Music. It is a little unclear how these lessons 103 00:05:41,920 --> 00:05:45,480 Speaker 1: were paid for. Henrietta would have had a very hard 104 00:05:45,480 --> 00:05:49,120 Speaker 1: time covering this cost, but the as a consequence, there's 105 00:05:49,160 --> 00:05:51,880 Speaker 1: been some speculation about whether someone from the community may 106 00:05:51,880 --> 00:05:55,359 Speaker 1: have helped out with money, or even perhaps people in 107 00:05:55,440 --> 00:05:58,560 Speaker 1: church kind of contributed into a fund, or if there 108 00:05:58,600 --> 00:06:01,000 Speaker 1: was just some other arrangement at this school, but we 109 00:06:01,040 --> 00:06:03,720 Speaker 1: really don't know. In addition to the start of her 110 00:06:03,760 --> 00:06:08,040 Speaker 1: formal training, Ceceretta also had another major life change at fifteen, 111 00:06:08,120 --> 00:06:11,719 Speaker 1: when she rather suddenly married a hotel porter who worked 112 00:06:11,720 --> 00:06:15,320 Speaker 1: at the narragans At Hotel. His name was David Richard Jones. 113 00:06:16,080 --> 00:06:19,000 Speaker 1: Ceceretta actually lied on her marriage license. She said that 114 00:06:19,040 --> 00:06:22,360 Speaker 1: she was eighteen and her new husband was twenty one. 115 00:06:22,720 --> 00:06:25,440 Speaker 1: Seven months into the marriage, the Joneses had a child 116 00:06:25,640 --> 00:06:29,240 Speaker 1: that was a daughter that they named Mabel Adelina and Ceceretta, 117 00:06:29,279 --> 00:06:32,800 Speaker 1: though did not give up her singing lessons. David, who 118 00:06:32,880 --> 00:06:36,359 Speaker 1: had worked his way up from that porter position to 119 00:06:36,440 --> 00:06:39,080 Speaker 1: a waiter position at the hotel, continued to work to 120 00:06:39,120 --> 00:06:42,840 Speaker 1: support them, and Henrietta assisted with childcare so they can 121 00:06:42,880 --> 00:06:45,600 Speaker 1: make this whole thing work, and they all lived together 122 00:06:45,680 --> 00:06:49,520 Speaker 1: at Henrietta's house. Not only was c Seretta studying, she 123 00:06:49,640 --> 00:06:53,560 Speaker 1: was also performing regularly at church concerts as well as 124 00:06:53,560 --> 00:06:57,039 Speaker 1: in small secular performances. Sometimes her name was listed for 125 00:06:57,080 --> 00:07:00,520 Speaker 1: these as Mrs Richard Jones. And one thing to note 126 00:07:00,520 --> 00:07:05,000 Speaker 1: about names here, we've been referring to the singer as Cinceretta, 127 00:07:05,080 --> 00:07:07,120 Speaker 1: but for the early part of her career she used 128 00:07:07,120 --> 00:07:10,480 Speaker 1: her first name Matilda, as well as Mrs Richard Jones 129 00:07:10,680 --> 00:07:13,600 Speaker 1: or Matilda S. Jones. We're using the name that she 130 00:07:13,680 --> 00:07:16,280 Speaker 1: became famous for, just to keep things kind of consistent, 131 00:07:16,480 --> 00:07:19,240 Speaker 1: because there are a number of different ways she was billed, 132 00:07:19,920 --> 00:07:22,400 Speaker 1: one of which is really famous but also pretty gross, 133 00:07:22,480 --> 00:07:24,400 Speaker 1: and we will get to that and just a bit 134 00:07:25,080 --> 00:07:28,560 Speaker 1: when she herself made this switch. So she appeared in 135 00:07:29,320 --> 00:07:34,000 Speaker 1: five at the Providence Armory Hall alongside established singer Flora Batson, 136 00:07:34,880 --> 00:07:38,400 Speaker 1: and Batson really offered a glimpse of possibility to cis Seretta. 137 00:07:38,520 --> 00:07:42,480 Speaker 1: Regarding her potential career. Flora at this point was breaking 138 00:07:42,480 --> 00:07:45,520 Speaker 1: the color barrier and performing in front of white audiences, 139 00:07:45,560 --> 00:07:49,960 Speaker 1: singing classical music and not the expected, jokey and often 140 00:07:50,040 --> 00:07:54,040 Speaker 1: demeaning minstrel material that had been the only avenue available 141 00:07:54,080 --> 00:07:57,880 Speaker 1: for black performers for a long time. And this also 142 00:07:57,960 --> 00:08:00,800 Speaker 1: offered Ceceretta a look at the possibility of having a 143 00:08:00,880 --> 00:08:03,720 Speaker 1: real career in music at a time when a lot 144 00:08:03,760 --> 00:08:06,320 Speaker 1: of black women were really only able to find employment 145 00:08:06,440 --> 00:08:10,080 Speaker 1: as domestic workers or just doing things like taking in laundry. 146 00:08:10,560 --> 00:08:13,400 Speaker 1: In December of eighty five, she got the chance to 147 00:08:13,440 --> 00:08:17,520 Speaker 1: perform with another black singer who similarly was expanding her 148 00:08:17,560 --> 00:08:21,960 Speaker 1: career beyond what was expected, and that was Marie Selka. 149 00:08:22,160 --> 00:08:24,920 Speaker 1: Selca was famous and being built in a concert with 150 00:08:24,960 --> 00:08:27,920 Speaker 1: her was a really big deal, and eventually the three 151 00:08:27,960 --> 00:08:32,240 Speaker 1: singers Bats and Silica and Jones would be constantly compared 152 00:08:32,280 --> 00:08:35,800 Speaker 1: to one another in the press. But just as Ceceretta 153 00:08:35,960 --> 00:08:39,800 Speaker 1: was really getting some acclaim and some name recognition, her 154 00:08:39,920 --> 00:08:43,680 Speaker 1: daughter Mabel got sick and Mabel did not recover. She 155 00:08:43,840 --> 00:08:47,040 Speaker 1: died in February eight eighty six at the age of two, 156 00:08:47,520 --> 00:08:50,480 Speaker 1: and the cause of death was listed as pharyngitis and croup. 157 00:08:51,400 --> 00:08:54,880 Speaker 1: For several months, Cisaretta stopped all performing and grieved, but 158 00:08:55,120 --> 00:08:58,080 Speaker 1: by late spring she was ready to sing again, and 159 00:08:58,120 --> 00:09:00,520 Speaker 1: at that point she started to once again perform in 160 00:09:00,640 --> 00:09:04,319 Speaker 1: concerts around Providence. In the fall of that year, there 161 00:09:04,360 --> 00:09:07,360 Speaker 1: was more training, although the particulars around that are a 162 00:09:07,360 --> 00:09:11,120 Speaker 1: little bit unclear. We know that Cecaretta traveled to Boston, 163 00:09:11,559 --> 00:09:14,040 Speaker 1: according to an article from the time, it was to 164 00:09:14,200 --> 00:09:18,040 Speaker 1: study at the Boston Conservatory of Music, but other write 165 00:09:18,080 --> 00:09:20,320 Speaker 1: ups that were published after the facts say that she 166 00:09:20,440 --> 00:09:23,840 Speaker 1: was trained at the New England Conservatory of Music. There's 167 00:09:23,920 --> 00:09:27,520 Speaker 1: really no corroborating evidence for either version of this story, 168 00:09:27,600 --> 00:09:30,360 Speaker 1: though she doesn't appear in the records of the New 169 00:09:30,360 --> 00:09:35,240 Speaker 1: England Conservatory and the Boston conservatories records have not survived 170 00:09:35,280 --> 00:09:37,679 Speaker 1: to be checked. Yeah, so we don't know. Because this 171 00:09:37,920 --> 00:09:40,440 Speaker 1: it is possible that she could have studied at the 172 00:09:40,440 --> 00:09:43,720 Speaker 1: New England Conservatory and just not been noted as a student, 173 00:09:43,800 --> 00:09:46,280 Speaker 1: like as a a side deal with one of the teachers. 174 00:09:46,320 --> 00:09:48,800 Speaker 1: We just have no idea what happened there. But by 175 00:09:48,800 --> 00:09:51,360 Speaker 1: the end of eighteen eighty six, Jones had completed her 176 00:09:51,360 --> 00:09:54,000 Speaker 1: studies in Boston and she was back in Providence once 177 00:09:54,040 --> 00:09:58,199 Speaker 1: again giving performances. She and her husband had a lot 178 00:09:58,240 --> 00:10:01,320 Speaker 1: more in mind for her, though. She started appearing on 179 00:10:01,400 --> 00:10:05,839 Speaker 1: regional tours, often with Flora Batson, and in eight she 180 00:10:05,920 --> 00:10:08,360 Speaker 1: made her New York City debut in a concert with 181 00:10:08,440 --> 00:10:11,520 Speaker 1: Batson at Steinway Hall that was at a benefit for 182 00:10:11,520 --> 00:10:14,240 Speaker 1: the Odd Fellows Building Fund. A lot of her early 183 00:10:14,280 --> 00:10:18,280 Speaker 1: performances like this were benefits. Cisceretta was billed as the 184 00:10:18,400 --> 00:10:22,120 Speaker 1: rising Soprano of Providence and the concert ended in the 185 00:10:22,200 --> 00:10:26,160 Speaker 1: red because inclement weather kept people from attending, But the 186 00:10:26,200 --> 00:10:30,079 Speaker 1: reviews of Jones in particular were glowing, and this led 187 00:10:30,120 --> 00:10:34,319 Speaker 1: to a similar concert booking in Philadelphia soon after. So 188 00:10:34,559 --> 00:10:38,600 Speaker 1: it's unclear which of these shows that talent agent William 189 00:10:38,720 --> 00:10:42,520 Speaker 1: Risden saw, but he was really impressed with Ceceretta when 190 00:10:42,559 --> 00:10:44,880 Speaker 1: he did see her, and this led to a contract 191 00:10:44,920 --> 00:10:48,800 Speaker 1: with his agency, which was Abby's Chauffele and Growl. Risen 192 00:10:48,880 --> 00:10:51,080 Speaker 1: had quite a plan in mind for her. And we're 193 00:10:51,120 --> 00:10:53,679 Speaker 1: gonna pause here for a word from our sponsors, and 194 00:10:53,720 --> 00:10:56,439 Speaker 1: when we come back we will talk about the whirlwind 195 00:10:56,480 --> 00:11:08,720 Speaker 1: tour that Cisceretta found herself on in On August one, 196 00:11:09,520 --> 00:11:13,120 Speaker 1: c Seretta Jones attended her first rehearsal with the Tennessee 197 00:11:13,200 --> 00:11:17,200 Speaker 1: Jubilee Singers. This was an all black group of musicians 198 00:11:17,200 --> 00:11:20,400 Speaker 1: and singers and they were leaving the next day for 199 00:11:20,480 --> 00:11:24,440 Speaker 1: a tour through the Caribbean and South America. Members of 200 00:11:24,440 --> 00:11:26,680 Speaker 1: the press had been invited to hear the group perform 201 00:11:26,720 --> 00:11:29,720 Speaker 1: after just a small amount of rehearsal on that same day, 202 00:11:30,200 --> 00:11:35,160 Speaker 1: and once again Ciiceretta's voice captivated them. So it's from 203 00:11:35,160 --> 00:11:37,520 Speaker 1: the coverage of this event that it seems like she 204 00:11:37,600 --> 00:11:40,160 Speaker 1: got the nickname that stuck with her for the rest 205 00:11:40,200 --> 00:11:43,719 Speaker 1: of her life. This was a nickname she really disliked, 206 00:11:44,040 --> 00:11:47,040 Speaker 1: and that was the Black Patty, whose nickname was a 207 00:11:47,080 --> 00:11:51,760 Speaker 1: reference to Italian opera singer Adelina Patty, who was really 208 00:11:51,800 --> 00:11:54,120 Speaker 1: famous at the time. She's still one of the most 209 00:11:54,160 --> 00:11:58,400 Speaker 1: celebrated sopranos and opera history. Jones would later tell a 210 00:11:58,440 --> 00:12:01,360 Speaker 1: reporter that the reason she just liked this name was 211 00:12:01,400 --> 00:12:03,440 Speaker 1: that she felt like it might make people think she 212 00:12:03,559 --> 00:12:06,920 Speaker 1: was comparing herself as an equal to this famous singer. 213 00:12:07,520 --> 00:12:09,319 Speaker 1: What she really wanted to do was to make her 214 00:12:09,360 --> 00:12:13,760 Speaker 1: own name without using the appeal of someone else. Did 215 00:12:13,800 --> 00:12:16,840 Speaker 1: not help that her tour manager seized on the nickname 216 00:12:16,960 --> 00:12:19,000 Speaker 1: and use it to promote the tour that she had 217 00:12:19,000 --> 00:12:21,839 Speaker 1: signed on for. I mentioned this to Holly before we 218 00:12:21,880 --> 00:12:25,600 Speaker 1: got in here looking at pictures of her, So many 219 00:12:25,640 --> 00:12:28,920 Speaker 1: of them are labeled as Black Patty rather than with 220 00:12:28,960 --> 00:12:32,280 Speaker 1: her actual name. Oh yeah, and he I mean, every 221 00:12:32,320 --> 00:12:35,360 Speaker 1: one of her managers used that because it was a 222 00:12:35,400 --> 00:12:38,079 Speaker 1: ticket draw. We'll talk about it a little bit more. 223 00:12:38,640 --> 00:12:42,880 Speaker 1: It's horrifying there. The other two singers that we mentioned, 224 00:12:43,640 --> 00:12:49,079 Speaker 1: Batson and Sleeka, similarly were called other things related to 225 00:12:49,160 --> 00:12:52,520 Speaker 1: Adelina Patty. I think one of them was sometimes called 226 00:12:52,640 --> 00:12:56,480 Speaker 1: Creole Patty, and I don't remember the other one offhand. 227 00:12:56,600 --> 00:12:59,640 Speaker 1: But it was just like a very common thing in 228 00:12:59,720 --> 00:13:02,880 Speaker 1: a little bit gross because it completely demeaned these three 229 00:13:03,160 --> 00:13:07,480 Speaker 1: black women who were phenomenal talents. Um. Yeah, we'll talk 230 00:13:07,520 --> 00:13:11,120 Speaker 1: about that some more in a bit. So this uh 231 00:13:11,559 --> 00:13:14,880 Speaker 1: contract that Jones had signed was for two years. Keep 232 00:13:14,920 --> 00:13:17,000 Speaker 1: in mind she was only twenty at this time, she 233 00:13:17,120 --> 00:13:20,480 Speaker 1: had not traveled very far, and she suddenly found herself 234 00:13:20,640 --> 00:13:24,680 Speaker 1: as the star in an international tour. And on August two, 235 00:13:24,920 --> 00:13:27,720 Speaker 1: the day after that one day of rehearsal, she boarded 236 00:13:27,760 --> 00:13:31,440 Speaker 1: the steamer Athos along with her fellow performers, her husband, 237 00:13:31,600 --> 00:13:34,439 Speaker 1: and their tour manager, James R. Smith, who was white, 238 00:13:35,040 --> 00:13:37,400 Speaker 1: and they all headed to their first stop in Jamaica. 239 00:13:38,120 --> 00:13:41,280 Speaker 1: They stayed in Jamaica until October because they kept selling 240 00:13:41,320 --> 00:13:44,439 Speaker 1: out their shows. Then they went on to Panama. There 241 00:13:44,480 --> 00:13:47,480 Speaker 1: stay there was a lot shorter than anticipated because they 242 00:13:47,520 --> 00:13:50,280 Speaker 1: had low sales numbers. It was kind of the opposite experience, 243 00:13:51,200 --> 00:13:54,360 Speaker 1: but by November they were back in Jamaica. Then they 244 00:13:54,400 --> 00:13:57,800 Speaker 1: moved on to Barbados. Barbados loved her so much that 245 00:13:57,880 --> 00:14:00,760 Speaker 1: the governor and citizens of Bridgetown presented her with a 246 00:14:00,880 --> 00:14:03,040 Speaker 1: gold medal, and this was a start of a trend 247 00:14:03,600 --> 00:14:06,720 Speaker 1: in Trinidad. She was given another medal and when they 248 00:14:06,760 --> 00:14:09,320 Speaker 1: got to Guiana, which was at the time British Guiana, 249 00:14:09,800 --> 00:14:12,360 Speaker 1: they had to cancel the first performance because most of 250 00:14:12,400 --> 00:14:15,400 Speaker 1: the performers were terribly seasick. They had had a rough 251 00:14:15,559 --> 00:14:17,960 Speaker 1: ride on the way and they just could not make 252 00:14:18,000 --> 00:14:21,320 Speaker 1: that first show. And after a rough start and weak 253 00:14:21,400 --> 00:14:26,160 Speaker 1: initial turnout, which was by some attributed to racism and 254 00:14:26,320 --> 00:14:29,800 Speaker 1: by others just a mix up of what was actually 255 00:14:29,840 --> 00:14:33,360 Speaker 1: going on with the booking, Madam Jones, as she preferred 256 00:14:33,400 --> 00:14:36,920 Speaker 1: to be called, received a third gold medal. As the 257 00:14:37,000 --> 00:14:41,120 Speaker 1: tour continued, she continued to be adored by audiences right 258 00:14:41,320 --> 00:14:43,520 Speaker 1: up until the group made their return to New York 259 00:14:44,120 --> 00:14:47,760 Speaker 1: that happened in February of eight nine. They had met 260 00:14:47,880 --> 00:14:50,480 Speaker 1: with such great success and by the time she got 261 00:14:50,560 --> 00:14:53,880 Speaker 1: back to the US, Jones had been given eight different 262 00:14:54,000 --> 00:14:58,040 Speaker 1: medals as well as other gifts. But they also experienced 263 00:14:58,160 --> 00:15:01,640 Speaker 1: a lot of racism in these travel In some cities 264 00:15:01,720 --> 00:15:05,280 Speaker 1: that racism impacted their ticket sales and others they had 265 00:15:05,320 --> 00:15:08,920 Speaker 1: been turned away from hotels, but this was a profitable venture, 266 00:15:09,040 --> 00:15:13,080 Speaker 1: so their bosses were happy. Smith gave interviews this was 267 00:15:13,160 --> 00:15:15,640 Speaker 1: again the tour manager, where he talked about a planned 268 00:15:15,760 --> 00:15:19,920 Speaker 1: tour for Europe. But then everything changed when he abruptly 269 00:15:20,040 --> 00:15:23,480 Speaker 1: sold the rights to the Tennessee Jubilee Singers concerts to 270 00:15:23,640 --> 00:15:27,080 Speaker 1: a man named George M. Dusenberry. And the reason for 271 00:15:27,200 --> 00:15:30,600 Speaker 1: this sudden split was accounted for very differently by the 272 00:15:30,720 --> 00:15:35,760 Speaker 1: parties involved. Smith said that the performers had become combative 273 00:15:35,840 --> 00:15:38,160 Speaker 1: with him and that they refused to give him any 274 00:15:38,240 --> 00:15:42,520 Speaker 1: credit in their success. Several of the performers, when they 275 00:15:42,600 --> 00:15:45,160 Speaker 1: were asked questions about it, told a very different story. 276 00:15:45,720 --> 00:15:48,200 Speaker 1: Saying that Smith was not paying for all of their 277 00:15:48,240 --> 00:15:52,040 Speaker 1: expenses as had been stipulated in their contract, and that 278 00:15:52,200 --> 00:15:54,520 Speaker 1: turned out to be the truth. They had paperwork to 279 00:15:54,600 --> 00:15:57,800 Speaker 1: back that up. And when the dust all settled, their 280 00:15:57,880 --> 00:16:01,240 Speaker 1: contract was canceled and the performers all went their separate ways. 281 00:16:01,920 --> 00:16:04,520 Speaker 1: And I feel like this is a dispute that we 282 00:16:04,600 --> 00:16:07,560 Speaker 1: would see happen now. It plays out over and over 283 00:16:08,400 --> 00:16:12,080 Speaker 1: throughout Cceretta's career with various troops. But also yes, it 284 00:16:12,280 --> 00:16:15,840 Speaker 1: continues to be like a career in the arts often 285 00:16:15,960 --> 00:16:22,400 Speaker 1: involves issues with business dealings. After appearing in a number 286 00:16:22,440 --> 00:16:25,600 Speaker 1: of concerts back in Providence, Ceceretta started a new tour. 287 00:16:26,040 --> 00:16:28,400 Speaker 1: She was reunited with one of the singers from the 288 00:16:28,440 --> 00:16:31,760 Speaker 1: Tennessee Jubilee group that was Lewis Brown. They started a 289 00:16:31,840 --> 00:16:35,280 Speaker 1: new tour, this time with the black manager named Benjamin Lightfoot. 290 00:16:36,120 --> 00:16:41,239 Speaker 1: The itinerary took them through Virginia, Maryland, Washington, d c, Delaware, 291 00:16:41,360 --> 00:16:45,600 Speaker 1: and Connecticut. This time their name was Couty Star Concert Company. 292 00:16:46,520 --> 00:16:49,080 Speaker 1: Lewis Brown did not complete the tour though, and was 293 00:16:49,240 --> 00:16:52,960 Speaker 1: replaced and Jones's husband David added two dates at the 294 00:16:53,120 --> 00:16:55,960 Speaker 1: end in Baltimore. They wrapped up this tour at the 295 00:16:56,120 --> 00:16:59,680 Speaker 1: end of June nine. Yeah, they were definitely reaching a 296 00:16:59,720 --> 00:17:02,000 Speaker 1: point where her life was kind of like one tour 297 00:17:02,120 --> 00:17:04,959 Speaker 1: after another, And they had a false start for an 298 00:17:05,040 --> 00:17:08,120 Speaker 1: Autumn eight nine tour of the West Indies that would 299 00:17:08,119 --> 00:17:11,000 Speaker 1: have been managed by Florence Williams, who had worked as 300 00:17:11,000 --> 00:17:14,760 Speaker 1: a reporter for The New York Age. So Ciceretta continued 301 00:17:14,800 --> 00:17:17,600 Speaker 1: to sing instead throughout the US Northeast on bookings that 302 00:17:17,680 --> 00:17:20,560 Speaker 1: had been arranged by her husband, David. But in the 303 00:17:20,640 --> 00:17:24,160 Speaker 1: spring of eighteen ninety those contract disputes that had ended 304 00:17:24,200 --> 00:17:27,720 Speaker 1: the fall plans were revisited, and soon Williams and the 305 00:17:27,800 --> 00:17:30,920 Speaker 1: Joneses were able to come to an agreement under the 306 00:17:31,040 --> 00:17:34,639 Speaker 1: name the New York Star Concert Company. They left for 307 00:17:34,760 --> 00:17:38,200 Speaker 1: Jamaica in March, although the name changed to the Star 308 00:17:38,359 --> 00:17:41,600 Speaker 1: Tennessee Jubilee Singers on the way to their first destination. 309 00:17:42,520 --> 00:17:44,560 Speaker 1: Williams was able to write up the tour as it 310 00:17:44,640 --> 00:17:47,440 Speaker 1: went for publication in the New York Age, and this 311 00:17:47,600 --> 00:17:50,960 Speaker 1: tour was a great success. Audiences had remembered Ceceretta, they 312 00:17:51,040 --> 00:17:54,679 Speaker 1: were eagerly anticipating her return. By the time they got 313 00:17:54,720 --> 00:17:58,040 Speaker 1: back to New York in July of eightee Ceceretta had 314 00:17:58,080 --> 00:18:01,800 Speaker 1: been applauded by heads of stay and given more lavish 315 00:18:01,920 --> 00:18:04,920 Speaker 1: gifts than on her first Caribbean and South American tour, 316 00:18:05,520 --> 00:18:07,720 Speaker 1: and because of the press that had been picking up 317 00:18:07,800 --> 00:18:10,960 Speaker 1: those New York age stories and then publishing them again 318 00:18:11,040 --> 00:18:14,800 Speaker 1: in other places throughout that tour, that was going home, 319 00:18:14,920 --> 00:18:17,399 Speaker 1: so when she got home, Jones actually had even more 320 00:18:17,480 --> 00:18:21,960 Speaker 1: buzz than when she left. She gave concerts in New York, Brooklyn, 321 00:18:22,040 --> 00:18:25,960 Speaker 1: and Philadelphia when she returned, often selling out, and in 322 00:18:26,080 --> 00:18:29,080 Speaker 1: the case of an October eight show that took place 323 00:18:29,119 --> 00:18:32,000 Speaker 1: in Brooklyn, they had to add seats to the aisles 324 00:18:32,080 --> 00:18:35,359 Speaker 1: to accommodate the oversold crowds, and it turned out that 325 00:18:35,480 --> 00:18:37,920 Speaker 1: some attendees just had to stand for the entire show 326 00:18:37,960 --> 00:18:40,680 Speaker 1: because there was just nowhere left to sit. This is 327 00:18:40,720 --> 00:18:43,680 Speaker 1: also when she switched over to using her middle name 328 00:18:43,760 --> 00:18:47,399 Speaker 1: Cceretta instead of going by Matilda. And this was a 329 00:18:47,520 --> 00:18:50,320 Speaker 1: name that she just thought sounded more musical. Yeah, not 330 00:18:50,760 --> 00:18:54,560 Speaker 1: not any other Cceretta's going around, so it also just 331 00:18:54,640 --> 00:18:57,320 Speaker 1: made her stand out. And this also marks the period 332 00:18:57,800 --> 00:19:00,800 Speaker 1: where she received her first invitation in to perform at 333 00:19:00,840 --> 00:19:06,120 Speaker 1: the White House on February, she sang in a lunchtime 334 00:19:06,160 --> 00:19:10,080 Speaker 1: concert there for President Harrison and his guests, although how 335 00:19:10,200 --> 00:19:12,240 Speaker 1: she was invited and how this whole thing came to 336 00:19:12,280 --> 00:19:16,040 Speaker 1: be was completely unknown. Any correspondence about this request has 337 00:19:16,080 --> 00:19:18,880 Speaker 1: been lost, and she has also said to have sung 338 00:19:19,000 --> 00:19:23,280 Speaker 1: for three other presidents, but similarly details on those appearances 339 00:19:23,359 --> 00:19:26,280 Speaker 1: and how they were arranged has also been lost. She 340 00:19:26,520 --> 00:19:29,399 Speaker 1: did decide that she would wear all those medals that 341 00:19:29,520 --> 00:19:32,760 Speaker 1: she had been gifted on tour while she sang. They 342 00:19:32,800 --> 00:19:35,399 Speaker 1: were pinned onto her bodice, and this would become a 343 00:19:35,480 --> 00:19:39,240 Speaker 1: really iconic look for the singer. Her appearances in d C, 344 00:19:39,600 --> 00:19:42,240 Speaker 1: both for the White House and for general audiences, also 345 00:19:42,320 --> 00:19:45,640 Speaker 1: got a lot of press coverage. A lot of this coverage, though, 346 00:19:45,720 --> 00:19:48,680 Speaker 1: is pretty problematic because it praises her, but it's also 347 00:19:48,840 --> 00:19:52,159 Speaker 1: inherently racist, kind of summing up to this idea of 348 00:19:52,760 --> 00:19:56,880 Speaker 1: she's black, but she's also pretty and very talented. Yeah, 349 00:19:57,200 --> 00:20:00,280 Speaker 1: it's a reading those is a little stomach turning because 350 00:20:00,320 --> 00:20:03,160 Speaker 1: it is sort of like, in spite of the fact 351 00:20:03,240 --> 00:20:06,640 Speaker 1: that she is this, she's also this, so we're fine 352 00:20:06,720 --> 00:20:10,000 Speaker 1: with it. It's really also in that tone that's very 353 00:20:10,480 --> 00:20:13,680 Speaker 1: pat yourself on the back for accepting someone else. It's 354 00:20:13,720 --> 00:20:18,360 Speaker 1: a gross, gross tone. But the outcome of this ongoing 355 00:20:18,520 --> 00:20:21,800 Speaker 1: rise in recognition that Jones was getting was a very 356 00:20:21,920 --> 00:20:26,560 Speaker 1: major booking. She was given top billing at the Grand 357 00:20:26,640 --> 00:20:30,560 Speaker 1: African Jubilee at Madison Square Garden. This was a three 358 00:20:30,680 --> 00:20:32,760 Speaker 1: day event at the end of April of that year, 359 00:20:33,600 --> 00:20:35,920 Speaker 1: and when Cisceretta took the stage, that meant that she 360 00:20:36,080 --> 00:20:39,879 Speaker 1: was appearing before a mixed race audience and estimated thirty 361 00:20:39,960 --> 00:20:42,679 Speaker 1: seven hundred of the five thousand audience members that were 362 00:20:42,760 --> 00:20:47,159 Speaker 1: present were white. She wore a pale gray gown. She 363 00:20:47,240 --> 00:20:50,280 Speaker 1: had all of her medals once again pinned onto her bodice, 364 00:20:50,800 --> 00:20:53,240 Speaker 1: and she opened her performance with a selection from the 365 00:20:53,359 --> 00:20:56,840 Speaker 1: opera Robert Le Diable, which was one of the first 366 00:20:56,960 --> 00:21:01,240 Speaker 1: of the Paris Opera's Grand operas. She also sang Suwani 367 00:21:01,359 --> 00:21:04,720 Speaker 1: River and an assortment of other songs, and when she finished, 368 00:21:04,760 --> 00:21:07,960 Speaker 1: the crowd gave her a standing ovation. She returned to 369 00:21:08,000 --> 00:21:10,639 Speaker 1: the stage later in the evening with the selection from 370 00:21:10,720 --> 00:21:15,200 Speaker 1: La Traviata and once again had the delight of the audience, 371 00:21:15,760 --> 00:21:17,679 Speaker 1: and after the show, she was asked to give an 372 00:21:17,720 --> 00:21:20,119 Speaker 1: interview in her dressing room for the New York Herald, 373 00:21:20,200 --> 00:21:23,119 Speaker 1: which she did h and the next day. While some 374 00:21:23,320 --> 00:21:26,360 Speaker 1: performances of the Jubilee got mixed or even bad reviews, 375 00:21:26,920 --> 00:21:31,159 Speaker 1: cinceretta singing was praised universally. The right up in the 376 00:21:31,240 --> 00:21:34,080 Speaker 1: New York Dramatic Mirror read that the evening quote would 377 00:21:34,080 --> 00:21:36,240 Speaker 1: be worthy of a little note were it not that 378 00:21:36,359 --> 00:21:39,040 Speaker 1: it brought to the attention of New Yorker's a singer who, 379 00:21:39,640 --> 00:21:42,840 Speaker 1: leaving her color altogether out of the question, has one 380 00:21:42,880 --> 00:21:46,359 Speaker 1: of the most pleasing soprano voices ever heard in this city. 381 00:21:47,440 --> 00:21:50,040 Speaker 1: Another write up stated that, and I love this. The 382 00:21:50,200 --> 00:21:53,320 Speaker 1: soul of a nightingale seems to have lodged in that throat. 383 00:21:54,040 --> 00:21:55,960 Speaker 1: This reminds me of the way that people talking about 384 00:21:56,119 --> 00:22:01,359 Speaker 1: Um Jenny Lynde, although Jenny Lynde is way more famous 385 00:22:01,480 --> 00:22:07,159 Speaker 1: name today, probably because of racism UM, but like a 386 00:22:07,240 --> 00:22:13,240 Speaker 1: similar focus on like what a beautiful nightingale like voice 387 00:22:13,359 --> 00:22:17,560 Speaker 1: she had, Pith Madison Square Garden performance is the moment 388 00:22:17,640 --> 00:22:20,760 Speaker 1: in Cinciretta jones career that really marks a shift. It 389 00:22:20,880 --> 00:22:24,320 Speaker 1: had a very significant before and after this moment. She 390 00:22:24,520 --> 00:22:27,520 Speaker 1: later said, quote, I woke up famous after singing at 391 00:22:27,560 --> 00:22:32,080 Speaker 1: the Garden and didn't know it. Sisterretta's voice was undeniably spectacular. 392 00:22:32,240 --> 00:22:35,000 Speaker 1: We unfortunately do not have any recordings of it, and 393 00:22:35,080 --> 00:22:37,359 Speaker 1: I wish we did, because the way people talk about 394 00:22:37,400 --> 00:22:41,320 Speaker 1: it is rhapsodic. And the thing is, everybody kind of 395 00:22:41,400 --> 00:22:44,320 Speaker 1: recognized that she would have been able to handle operatic roles, 396 00:22:44,400 --> 00:22:47,000 Speaker 1: which is something that she wanted to do, and there 397 00:22:47,040 --> 00:22:50,040 Speaker 1: were even rumors that she was being considered for roles 398 00:22:50,119 --> 00:22:53,720 Speaker 1: at the Met and with other companies, but opera companies 399 00:22:53,760 --> 00:22:56,240 Speaker 1: at this point, we're not going to hire black singers, 400 00:22:56,400 --> 00:22:59,399 Speaker 1: even for roles that were actually written as black characters. 401 00:23:00,200 --> 00:23:02,639 Speaker 1: And aside from the racism in casting, there was this 402 00:23:02,760 --> 00:23:05,640 Speaker 1: other problem, which is that there were plenty of other 403 00:23:05,800 --> 00:23:08,960 Speaker 1: performers that were already established who had made clear that 404 00:23:09,080 --> 00:23:11,280 Speaker 1: they would not ever appear on the stage with a 405 00:23:11,320 --> 00:23:14,920 Speaker 1: black opera singer. She's sang in numerous concerts after that 406 00:23:15,080 --> 00:23:17,200 Speaker 1: night at the Garden, but it was two months later 407 00:23:17,400 --> 00:23:20,520 Speaker 1: that promoter Major James B. Pond reached out to her 408 00:23:20,520 --> 00:23:24,760 Speaker 1: about managing her career. She agreed, and soon she was 409 00:23:24,840 --> 00:23:27,720 Speaker 1: on a one year contract with him. POD was a 410 00:23:27,840 --> 00:23:31,320 Speaker 1: really big deal because agency handled people like Mark Twain 411 00:23:31,480 --> 00:23:34,240 Speaker 1: and Charles Dickens on their tours, so this really seems 412 00:23:34,280 --> 00:23:38,080 Speaker 1: like a step up. In June, Jones sang in the 413 00:23:38,160 --> 00:23:41,360 Speaker 1: lower level venue at Carnegie Hall for a benefit concert, 414 00:23:41,480 --> 00:23:45,280 Speaker 1: not the main stage. This appearance happened very very shortly 415 00:23:45,320 --> 00:23:48,080 Speaker 1: after she signed her contract with Pond, and it seems 416 00:23:48,160 --> 00:23:50,159 Speaker 1: most likely that it had been booked before he was 417 00:23:50,240 --> 00:23:53,600 Speaker 1: managing her performance schedule. Pond booked a group of white 418 00:23:53,680 --> 00:23:57,560 Speaker 1: European musicians for Cincaretta to perform with. This was the 419 00:23:57,680 --> 00:23:59,879 Speaker 1: first time that she had not been part of an 420 00:24:00,080 --> 00:24:03,160 Speaker 1: all black group of performers, and he kept them all 421 00:24:03,320 --> 00:24:06,960 Speaker 1: really busy. This also marked a shift from performing for 422 00:24:07,080 --> 00:24:11,760 Speaker 1: primarily black audiences to primarily white crowds. She noted to 423 00:24:11,880 --> 00:24:15,080 Speaker 1: a reporter when asked about the shifting demographic of her 424 00:24:15,119 --> 00:24:17,760 Speaker 1: ticket buyers, quote, I do not feel as much at 425 00:24:17,840 --> 00:24:21,040 Speaker 1: home with them yet. I'm a little shy lest they 426 00:24:21,080 --> 00:24:24,000 Speaker 1: should not like me, but so far they have proved 427 00:24:24,119 --> 00:24:29,080 Speaker 1: most kind. Pond famously booked Cisceretta at the Pittsburgh Exposition 428 00:24:29,200 --> 00:24:33,520 Speaker 1: in September. This was a week long booking and she 429 00:24:33,640 --> 00:24:36,720 Speaker 1: gave concerts for thousands of people each day, usually doing 430 00:24:36,880 --> 00:24:39,520 Speaker 1: one in the afternoon and one in the evening and 431 00:24:39,600 --> 00:24:42,359 Speaker 1: on her final night at the Expo booking, the venue 432 00:24:42,480 --> 00:24:46,040 Speaker 1: was so packed and so stifling as a consequence that 433 00:24:46,160 --> 00:24:49,200 Speaker 1: several people are said to have fainted, and when it 434 00:24:49,320 --> 00:24:52,119 Speaker 1: was over, she was applauded for a full five minutes. 435 00:24:52,640 --> 00:24:55,439 Speaker 1: The Expo continued after that first week, and Jones went 436 00:24:55,520 --> 00:24:58,480 Speaker 1: on to perform in other East Coast venues. Then the 437 00:24:58,520 --> 00:25:01,920 Speaker 1: expo manager begged Haunt to book her for another week 438 00:25:02,160 --> 00:25:04,960 Speaker 1: there at the Expo, and this was really no small ask. 439 00:25:05,880 --> 00:25:07,879 Speaker 1: As part of the terms of the second week of 440 00:25:07,960 --> 00:25:11,440 Speaker 1: Expo appearances, the expo manager had to buy out all 441 00:25:11,520 --> 00:25:14,400 Speaker 1: the other appearances that she had been scheduled for that week, 442 00:25:14,960 --> 00:25:16,680 Speaker 1: but she was a big enough draw that it was 443 00:25:16,760 --> 00:25:20,119 Speaker 1: worth it, so they did exactly that. She's said to 444 00:25:20,240 --> 00:25:22,960 Speaker 1: have commanded a two thousand dollar fee for the week, 445 00:25:23,040 --> 00:25:26,040 Speaker 1: which was enormous for the time and particularly so for 446 00:25:26,160 --> 00:25:30,520 Speaker 1: a black performer. At the start of Cisceretta was booked 447 00:25:30,600 --> 00:25:33,720 Speaker 1: at the Central Music Hall in Chicago, and she was 448 00:25:33,840 --> 00:25:36,879 Speaker 1: still being promoted as Black Patty during this time and 449 00:25:36,960 --> 00:25:39,280 Speaker 1: for the rest of her career, and she still disliked it, 450 00:25:39,400 --> 00:25:43,080 Speaker 1: but it did help draw crowds. Although a critic noted 451 00:25:43,200 --> 00:25:45,920 Speaker 1: in Chicago that the name kind of had a negative 452 00:25:46,000 --> 00:25:48,600 Speaker 1: impact on the audience's impression of her work, like he 453 00:25:48,760 --> 00:25:51,200 Speaker 1: just felt like it's set up, this weird framing of 454 00:25:51,240 --> 00:25:55,080 Speaker 1: it that was unnecessary. But regardless of whether ticket buyers 455 00:25:55,160 --> 00:25:58,080 Speaker 1: merely went out of curiosity and draw of that name 456 00:25:58,320 --> 00:26:00,159 Speaker 1: or because they knew about her a new she was 457 00:26:00,200 --> 00:26:03,879 Speaker 1: a gifted singer, she continued to win audiences over with 458 00:26:03,960 --> 00:26:08,840 Speaker 1: her beautiful voice an incredibly expressive performance, moving from operatic 459 00:26:08,920 --> 00:26:12,800 Speaker 1: pieces to popular songs and back, although in Chicago she 460 00:26:12,960 --> 00:26:15,600 Speaker 1: did get a handful of harsher critiques than she was 461 00:26:15,720 --> 00:26:20,920 Speaker 1: usually accustomed to. That same year, in Jones, sang on 462 00:26:21,000 --> 00:26:23,480 Speaker 1: the main stage at Carnegie Hall as part of a 463 00:26:23,600 --> 00:26:27,600 Speaker 1: fundraiser for a project helmed by composer Will Mary and 464 00:26:27,760 --> 00:26:32,600 Speaker 1: Cook was attempting to stage an all black opera titled 465 00:26:32,640 --> 00:26:36,639 Speaker 1: Scenes from Uncle Tom's Cabin at the upcoming World's Columbian 466 00:26:36,720 --> 00:26:40,159 Speaker 1: Exposition in Chicago. Yeah, she agreed to be part of 467 00:26:40,240 --> 00:26:43,159 Speaker 1: that opera. She also agreed to be part of this fundraiser, 468 00:26:43,320 --> 00:26:45,280 Speaker 1: Like her name being attached to it was really helping 469 00:26:45,359 --> 00:26:50,360 Speaker 1: it get support. But then during a performance in Louisville, Kentucky, 470 00:26:50,440 --> 00:26:54,880 Speaker 1: that year, she encountered this very strange setup of segregated 471 00:26:54,960 --> 00:26:58,040 Speaker 1: seating that really bothered her enough that she mentioned it 472 00:26:58,119 --> 00:27:00,840 Speaker 1: in an interview while she was in the city. The 473 00:27:01,000 --> 00:27:05,639 Speaker 1: orchestra seating at this particular venue was reserved exclusively for 474 00:27:05,760 --> 00:27:09,480 Speaker 1: white patrons and the gallery was for black patrons. But 475 00:27:09,600 --> 00:27:12,240 Speaker 1: because this particular concert had not drawn much of a 476 00:27:12,320 --> 00:27:15,240 Speaker 1: white audience, she sang to a hall that was half 477 00:27:15,320 --> 00:27:18,400 Speaker 1: empty at her level, while the gallery above was full, 478 00:27:18,840 --> 00:27:21,280 Speaker 1: and the black attendees were not allowed to move down 479 00:27:21,320 --> 00:27:24,680 Speaker 1: to the empty orchestra seats, and she was quoted as saying, 480 00:27:25,400 --> 00:27:28,359 Speaker 1: I have never met with anything like it before. I 481 00:27:28,440 --> 00:27:30,760 Speaker 1: think people of my race ought not to be shut 482 00:27:30,840 --> 00:27:36,119 Speaker 1: out that way. On April, her manager, Pond, filed a 483 00:27:36,200 --> 00:27:39,920 Speaker 1: motion to prevent Jones from appearing in concert unless he 484 00:27:40,119 --> 00:27:43,760 Speaker 1: had arranged it. This happened because she and David had 485 00:27:43,800 --> 00:27:47,399 Speaker 1: technically broken their contract by booking a couple of side gigs. 486 00:27:48,000 --> 00:27:50,840 Speaker 1: But as this case unfolded, it turned into this ugly 487 00:27:51,000 --> 00:27:55,360 Speaker 1: back and forth between the Jones and Pond, including sworn 488 00:27:55,440 --> 00:27:59,160 Speaker 1: affidavit's that Pond's own boss had told them the terms 489 00:27:59,240 --> 00:28:03,040 Speaker 1: of their contract couldn't be fulfilled by the company. This 490 00:28:03,240 --> 00:28:06,480 Speaker 1: case dragged out into the summer, with first a ruling 491 00:28:06,520 --> 00:28:09,119 Speaker 1: in favor of the Joneses and then a second ruling 492 00:28:09,160 --> 00:28:14,600 Speaker 1: in favor of Pond. So though this strained the relationships, 493 00:28:14,680 --> 00:28:18,440 Speaker 1: Seretta sang only when Pond arranged for it, and then 494 00:28:18,560 --> 00:28:21,159 Speaker 1: in exchange he had to pay her a hundred and 495 00:28:21,200 --> 00:28:24,520 Speaker 1: fifty dollars a week. Since the country was entering a 496 00:28:24,600 --> 00:28:29,440 Speaker 1: financial depression, the case could be made. This outcome was 497 00:28:29,600 --> 00:28:32,200 Speaker 1: kind of favorable to the singer, at least just in 498 00:28:32,359 --> 00:28:36,240 Speaker 1: strict financial terms. Yeah, it offered some stability at a 499 00:28:36,320 --> 00:28:39,479 Speaker 1: time when bookings were not necessarily going to be as 500 00:28:39,520 --> 00:28:42,520 Speaker 1: consistent because the people just couldn't afford tickets to go 501 00:28:42,640 --> 00:28:47,560 Speaker 1: to shows. So, going back to that all black opera, 502 00:28:48,040 --> 00:28:51,120 Speaker 1: when the World's Columbian Exposition was supposed to see the 503 00:28:51,200 --> 00:28:55,200 Speaker 1: premiere of Scenes from Uncle Tom's Cabin, Cincretta was not 504 00:28:55,440 --> 00:28:58,080 Speaker 1: at the ex Bow, neither were many of the other 505 00:28:58,200 --> 00:29:03,040 Speaker 1: prominent black performers or speak years. As the date had approached, 506 00:29:03,160 --> 00:29:06,400 Speaker 1: which had been named Colored Folks Day by Expo officials 507 00:29:06,800 --> 00:29:09,440 Speaker 1: who wanted to turn the premiere into a bigger themed event, 508 00:29:10,040 --> 00:29:13,360 Speaker 1: Criticisms over how the Expo had handled the entire thing 509 00:29:13,680 --> 00:29:17,480 Speaker 1: and its prejudice treatment of black participants and attendees led 510 00:29:17,520 --> 00:29:20,600 Speaker 1: a lot of the promised speakers and performers to cancel. 511 00:29:21,040 --> 00:29:24,200 Speaker 1: The opera did not happen, and in fact, Cisceretta was 512 00:29:24,240 --> 00:29:26,920 Speaker 1: booked for another show in New York, and although there 513 00:29:27,000 --> 00:29:30,760 Speaker 1: had been advanced notice of her cancelation, a crowd still 514 00:29:30,840 --> 00:29:34,520 Speaker 1: came to see her in a huge, confused and largely 515 00:29:34,640 --> 00:29:38,000 Speaker 1: concocted set of stories emerged about why she wasn't there. 516 00:29:38,920 --> 00:29:41,880 Speaker 1: She did sing at that expo, although not for another month, 517 00:29:42,160 --> 00:29:45,480 Speaker 1: and she did manage to pack the house despite that 518 00:29:45,600 --> 00:29:48,840 Speaker 1: earlier kerfuffle, so apparently audiences did not hold the whole 519 00:29:48,880 --> 00:29:51,640 Speaker 1: confusion against her. So we're about to get to another 520 00:29:51,720 --> 00:29:54,440 Speaker 1: new phase of c Seretta's career, where she joins a 521 00:29:54,560 --> 00:29:58,160 Speaker 1: new manager and goes on an international tour. But first 522 00:29:58,200 --> 00:30:00,800 Speaker 1: we can hear from the sponsors that helped keep Stuffy 523 00:30:00,840 --> 00:30:11,640 Speaker 1: Myth and History Class going. By mid eighteen ninety four, 524 00:30:11,800 --> 00:30:15,480 Speaker 1: for reasons that are unknown, the relationship between Pond and 525 00:30:15,560 --> 00:30:19,480 Speaker 1: the Joneses was severed and cisseretta schedule was then being 526 00:30:19,560 --> 00:30:23,400 Speaker 1: managed by a man named Rudolph Vocal and under Vocal 527 00:30:23,520 --> 00:30:26,080 Speaker 1: Cisceretta went on a tour of Europe, which is something 528 00:30:26,240 --> 00:30:29,480 Speaker 1: she had wanted for a very long time. The new 529 00:30:29,640 --> 00:30:33,320 Speaker 1: company that Vocal formed was called the Black Patty Concert Company, 530 00:30:33,480 --> 00:30:37,480 Speaker 1: and that company staged its first performance consisting entirely of 531 00:30:37,560 --> 00:30:43,000 Speaker 1: classical pieces, at Carnegie Hall on November eight. So, after 532 00:30:43,080 --> 00:30:45,200 Speaker 1: a number of concerts in the New York area and 533 00:30:45,280 --> 00:30:49,480 Speaker 1: then the surrounding states, their European tour began on February eleven, 534 00:30:50,920 --> 00:30:53,800 Speaker 1: as they headed to their first show in Berlin. The 535 00:30:53,960 --> 00:30:58,920 Speaker 1: reviews were just wonderful. One German reviewer wrote, quote, her 536 00:30:59,000 --> 00:31:03,720 Speaker 1: voice has hour and fire, and the florid passages remind 537 00:31:04,120 --> 00:31:08,040 Speaker 1: one of the rapid flow of a mountain brook. There 538 00:31:08,120 --> 00:31:10,560 Speaker 1: was also a lot of talk about her appearance in 539 00:31:10,640 --> 00:31:15,800 Speaker 1: the press, including again many cringe inducing discussions of whether 540 00:31:15,880 --> 00:31:19,040 Speaker 1: she should be called Black Patty because she appeared to 541 00:31:19,160 --> 00:31:23,400 Speaker 1: be of mixed race. In their opinion, yeah, there was 542 00:31:23,480 --> 00:31:26,240 Speaker 1: so much discussion about the shade of her skin and 543 00:31:26,560 --> 00:31:30,400 Speaker 1: what that meant, and it's gross. Let men talk a 544 00:31:30,480 --> 00:31:32,719 Speaker 1: little bit more about it in our behind the scenes, 545 00:31:32,840 --> 00:31:37,000 Speaker 1: but those descriptions are upsetting. Her reviews when she got 546 00:31:37,080 --> 00:31:40,520 Speaker 1: to London were a little bit more critical. There were 547 00:31:40,640 --> 00:31:44,800 Speaker 1: some more direct comparisons to Adelina Patty, and Jones was 548 00:31:44,880 --> 00:31:48,680 Speaker 1: found lacking by some reviewers, not all. This was also 549 00:31:48,880 --> 00:31:51,080 Speaker 1: the period where she started to tell the press that 550 00:31:51,240 --> 00:31:54,640 Speaker 1: she did not like that nickname Black Patty because to her, 551 00:31:54,760 --> 00:31:58,640 Speaker 1: it made her seem full of herself. After London, Jones 552 00:31:58,760 --> 00:32:02,000 Speaker 1: continued to move through Europe, appearing in Paris before moving 553 00:32:02,040 --> 00:32:04,800 Speaker 1: on to Monte Carlo and Milan, and then going back 554 00:32:04,880 --> 00:32:08,560 Speaker 1: to Germany. The entire tour had been different from her 555 00:32:08,600 --> 00:32:11,800 Speaker 1: work before this, and that she was billed not only 556 00:32:11,880 --> 00:32:15,160 Speaker 1: with other musical acts, but with more of a Vaude 557 00:32:15,240 --> 00:32:18,440 Speaker 1: billion mix of performers. She did the same when she 558 00:32:18,600 --> 00:32:22,280 Speaker 1: returned to the US, initially appearing at Procter's Pleasure Palace 559 00:32:22,400 --> 00:32:26,840 Speaker 1: on twenty three Street in Manhattan for an extended arrangement. Yeah. 560 00:32:26,840 --> 00:32:30,160 Speaker 1: So at this point, you know, you're with like comedians 561 00:32:30,280 --> 00:32:35,960 Speaker 1: and jugglers and animal trick acts and all kinds of things. Um, 562 00:32:36,640 --> 00:32:38,840 Speaker 1: this was all going pretty well though, But after the 563 00:32:38,920 --> 00:32:41,840 Speaker 1: Plessy versus Ferguson case was decided by the U. S. 564 00:32:41,880 --> 00:32:47,160 Speaker 1: Supreme Court in eight, which of course upheld segregation as constitutional, 565 00:32:48,040 --> 00:32:50,440 Speaker 1: it pretty quickly became more and more difficult for black 566 00:32:50,520 --> 00:32:53,960 Speaker 1: performers to book concert halls the way Cisceretta had before 567 00:32:54,080 --> 00:32:58,600 Speaker 1: she left Europe, and that impacted her career considerably. So 568 00:32:58,960 --> 00:33:02,200 Speaker 1: soon sister I was touring with a new company. And 569 00:33:02,320 --> 00:33:05,840 Speaker 1: it's not clear who proposed the idea for this company. 570 00:33:06,000 --> 00:33:08,960 Speaker 1: In some accounts it's David Jones, and others it's food 571 00:33:09,000 --> 00:33:12,600 Speaker 1: alf Focal, regardless of who came up with the idea, though, 572 00:33:12,920 --> 00:33:17,360 Speaker 1: soon Ceceretta was touring with the Black Patty Troubadours, and 573 00:33:17,440 --> 00:33:21,600 Speaker 1: this offered her regular income in some stability, although maybe 574 00:33:21,680 --> 00:33:25,320 Speaker 1: not the grandeur of her previous engagements. She was making 575 00:33:25,400 --> 00:33:28,400 Speaker 1: roughly twenty dollars a year, and that was the most 576 00:33:28,480 --> 00:33:31,959 Speaker 1: of any black entertainer during this period. Yeah, there were 577 00:33:32,040 --> 00:33:35,000 Speaker 1: definitely lots of discussions about how rich she was in 578 00:33:35,080 --> 00:33:38,960 Speaker 1: the press, which the most for any black entertainer, but 579 00:33:39,080 --> 00:33:43,120 Speaker 1: there were still other entertainers making more. But because Ceceretta's 580 00:33:43,200 --> 00:33:46,640 Speaker 1: voice was universally acclaimed and she had made this transition 581 00:33:46,760 --> 00:33:50,640 Speaker 1: to you know, kind of a touring comedy troupe almost 582 00:33:50,720 --> 00:33:54,800 Speaker 1: more than than these you know, very um slightly more 583 00:33:54,960 --> 00:34:00,920 Speaker 1: highbrow concert situations. An interviewer in eight asked her if 584 00:34:01,000 --> 00:34:04,920 Speaker 1: she would ever consider just disguising herself as white or 585 00:34:05,080 --> 00:34:07,840 Speaker 1: lighter skinned to pursue the career that she could have 586 00:34:07,960 --> 00:34:13,200 Speaker 1: easily had if racism had not maintained this barrier to opera. 587 00:34:14,120 --> 00:34:17,080 Speaker 1: She responded, quote, try to hide my race and deny 588 00:34:17,160 --> 00:34:20,040 Speaker 1: my own people. Oh, I would never do that. I 589 00:34:20,120 --> 00:34:22,080 Speaker 1: am proud of belonging to them, and I would not 590 00:34:22,200 --> 00:34:26,000 Speaker 1: hide what I am even for an evening. There were 591 00:34:26,000 --> 00:34:28,920 Speaker 1: also questions posed to her about the possibility of playing 592 00:34:29,080 --> 00:34:32,880 Speaker 1: roles in opera that had historically been white singers in 593 00:34:33,120 --> 00:34:35,759 Speaker 1: roles that were written as black, such as admire Beers, Laugh, 594 00:34:35,840 --> 00:34:38,959 Speaker 1: I Can. There was some discussion that maybe that could 595 00:34:39,000 --> 00:34:42,279 Speaker 1: open up an avenue for some black performers, but she 596 00:34:42,360 --> 00:34:44,239 Speaker 1: has said that she was just too busy with her 597 00:34:44,280 --> 00:34:46,880 Speaker 1: touring career to make that work, And whether she was 598 00:34:47,000 --> 00:34:51,280 Speaker 1: sidestepping having a bigger conversation about race on the opera stage, 599 00:34:51,320 --> 00:34:53,560 Speaker 1: we don't know, although it does kind of seem that way. 600 00:34:53,640 --> 00:34:57,360 Speaker 1: She was pretty careful to avoid those questions. So this 601 00:34:57,600 --> 00:35:01,440 Speaker 1: new constantly touring phase of her career started. It was 602 00:35:01,640 --> 00:35:05,200 Speaker 1: less grand than the days that had gone before, and 603 00:35:05,320 --> 00:35:08,719 Speaker 1: her marriage was also landing in its last phase. There 604 00:35:08,760 --> 00:35:10,840 Speaker 1: had been hints over the years that she and David 605 00:35:10,920 --> 00:35:13,600 Speaker 1: might have been having some problems, and that those problems 606 00:35:13,719 --> 00:35:16,720 Speaker 1: might have stemmed, at least in part from the ease 607 00:35:16,960 --> 00:35:20,120 Speaker 1: with which their money seemed to just pass through his hands. 608 00:35:20,880 --> 00:35:25,040 Speaker 1: In Aretta filed for divorce on the basis of drunkenness 609 00:35:25,200 --> 00:35:29,440 Speaker 1: and non support. With the Black Patty Troubadours, Jones toured 610 00:35:29,760 --> 00:35:34,520 Speaker 1: for nineteen years, traveling all over the US, also Canada 611 00:35:34,560 --> 00:35:38,600 Speaker 1: and some other places on a steemingly NonStop, revolving door 612 00:35:38,680 --> 00:35:42,520 Speaker 1: of bookings. And though this was a stable career and 613 00:35:42,680 --> 00:35:45,680 Speaker 1: she was, as we said, the highest paid black performer 614 00:35:45,680 --> 00:35:49,200 Speaker 1: at the time, there were also plenty of problems. For example, 615 00:35:49,840 --> 00:35:53,400 Speaker 1: she and her fellow performers often could not stay in hotels. 616 00:35:53,480 --> 00:35:58,040 Speaker 1: They were not given rooms. This was of course problematic, uh, 617 00:35:58,320 --> 00:36:01,279 Speaker 1: particularly because when you're touring and you're exhausted and you 618 00:36:01,400 --> 00:36:03,640 Speaker 1: just want to sleep, the last thing you need is 619 00:36:03,680 --> 00:36:07,040 Speaker 1: to be told you can't. I know, when we've done tours, 620 00:36:07,200 --> 00:36:09,319 Speaker 1: if somebody had told me you can't have this hotel room, 621 00:36:09,360 --> 00:36:13,000 Speaker 1: I would have cried. So I feel like singing at 622 00:36:13,040 --> 00:36:15,920 Speaker 1: the level she was at is even more exhausting. So 623 00:36:16,080 --> 00:36:20,080 Speaker 1: eventually vocal arranged to have a luxury train car purchase 624 00:36:20,160 --> 00:36:22,960 Speaker 1: for the company, and that essentially became their home. It 625 00:36:23,120 --> 00:36:25,359 Speaker 1: was very, very large. It had I think I had 626 00:36:25,360 --> 00:36:28,680 Speaker 1: read ten compartments as well as two kind of common 627 00:36:28,760 --> 00:36:31,560 Speaker 1: seating areas where they would all hang out together. These 628 00:36:31,680 --> 00:36:36,640 Speaker 1: Vaudevillion productions featured broad comedy and musical performances that often 629 00:36:36,719 --> 00:36:41,280 Speaker 1: appeased audiences with acts that really played into racist stereotypes, 630 00:36:41,400 --> 00:36:44,000 Speaker 1: but that was really the only way they could get 631 00:36:44,080 --> 00:36:48,520 Speaker 1: continued bookings. When it was Cisaretta's time to take the stage, though, 632 00:36:48,600 --> 00:36:51,760 Speaker 1: which was the last segment of the show, the tone 633 00:36:51,880 --> 00:36:55,560 Speaker 1: of everything changed considerably. Even though she was the main 634 00:36:55,880 --> 00:36:58,719 Speaker 1: name on the show, she did not appear until the end, 635 00:36:59,280 --> 00:37:03,680 Speaker 1: and for this section she went almost strictly with opera selections. 636 00:37:04,400 --> 00:37:07,800 Speaker 1: Many of these were arias from composers like Verdi, and 637 00:37:08,080 --> 00:37:11,399 Speaker 1: over time the staging of these sections of the show 638 00:37:11,560 --> 00:37:16,000 Speaker 1: grew grander and more complex, with audiences essentially getting treated 639 00:37:16,080 --> 00:37:20,000 Speaker 1: to a mini opera that included lavish costumes and beautiful sets, 640 00:37:20,400 --> 00:37:23,520 Speaker 1: as well as a full supporting chorus, and this segment 641 00:37:23,600 --> 00:37:26,839 Speaker 1: came to be known as the operatic Kaleidoscope. There were 642 00:37:27,040 --> 00:37:31,800 Speaker 1: plenty of ups and downs during those nineteen years. Early on, 643 00:37:31,960 --> 00:37:35,440 Speaker 1: there were ongoing legal battles with James Pond over money 644 00:37:35,560 --> 00:37:38,959 Speaker 1: that he still owed the Joneses. There were disputes among 645 00:37:39,040 --> 00:37:41,840 Speaker 1: the performers. At one point there was a huge falling 646 00:37:41,840 --> 00:37:45,240 Speaker 1: out between the tour managers and the stage manager, Bob Cole, 647 00:37:45,360 --> 00:37:49,680 Speaker 1: who also composed music for the show. Co Stars came 648 00:37:49,760 --> 00:37:54,880 Speaker 1: and went, The supporting cast shifted around. Reviews became less 649 00:37:54,960 --> 00:37:58,120 Speaker 1: consistently a brilliant and more mixed over time, but it 650 00:37:58,400 --> 00:38:01,880 Speaker 1: was consistent work, and the Troop or Doors rolled out 651 00:38:01,920 --> 00:38:04,839 Speaker 1: a new show for each theatrical season, and they kept 652 00:38:04,960 --> 00:38:08,480 Speaker 1: drawing in crowds, and over time the show evolved. One 653 00:38:08,520 --> 00:38:10,560 Speaker 1: of the big things was that they phased out those 654 00:38:10,640 --> 00:38:15,000 Speaker 1: holdout racist stereotypes from the minstrel shows of the nineteenth century. 655 00:38:15,840 --> 00:38:18,439 Speaker 1: It had also had a name change in nineteen o nine, 656 00:38:18,560 --> 00:38:21,839 Speaker 1: It became the Black Patty Musical Comedy Company, and at 657 00:38:21,880 --> 00:38:25,960 Speaker 1: that point they started staging three act performances that featured 658 00:38:26,000 --> 00:38:30,160 Speaker 1: cinerretta acting as well as singing. Vocal remained as the manager. 659 00:38:30,440 --> 00:38:33,480 Speaker 1: He was well respected, well liked, and had a reputation 660 00:38:33,600 --> 00:38:36,839 Speaker 1: for treating the performers well and ensuring that they had 661 00:38:36,920 --> 00:38:39,400 Speaker 1: whatever they needed and that they were taken care of. 662 00:38:39,800 --> 00:38:42,480 Speaker 1: He also kept them booked and busy, working on the 663 00:38:42,600 --> 00:38:46,200 Speaker 1: road forty five weeks a year. The nineteen fourteen to 664 00:38:46,360 --> 00:38:49,960 Speaker 1: nineteen fifteen season of the show finally hit a stumbling 665 00:38:50,000 --> 00:38:53,680 Speaker 1: block too large to power through. There had been some 666 00:38:53,880 --> 00:38:57,400 Speaker 1: rumors that the company was having financial troubles. Vocal had 667 00:38:57,440 --> 00:39:00,680 Speaker 1: denied those, but the thing that actually had aalize the 668 00:39:00,880 --> 00:39:03,560 Speaker 1: end was a report that several members of the cast 669 00:39:03,719 --> 00:39:07,719 Speaker 1: had been drunk during a performance in Memphis. Once this 670 00:39:07,880 --> 00:39:10,640 Speaker 1: news got out, other venues were unwilling to book them, 671 00:39:11,239 --> 00:39:14,800 Speaker 1: and dispute over money's owed from that last show tanked 672 00:39:14,840 --> 00:39:19,239 Speaker 1: the entire enterprise. Suddenly, Madam Jones, in her mid to 673 00:39:19,360 --> 00:39:22,160 Speaker 1: late forties, was without the job that had made up 674 00:39:22,200 --> 00:39:26,719 Speaker 1: the bulk of her income for almost two decades. The timing, though, 675 00:39:26,840 --> 00:39:30,880 Speaker 1: was sort of fortuitous. Throughout her career and particularly as 676 00:39:30,920 --> 00:39:34,160 Speaker 1: she gained success, Cceretta had remained very close to her mother, 677 00:39:34,800 --> 00:39:37,480 Speaker 1: and she was sure to help take care of her financially, 678 00:39:37,680 --> 00:39:40,200 Speaker 1: just as Henrietta had taken care of her and the 679 00:39:40,320 --> 00:39:44,040 Speaker 1: family after she had gotten married as a teenager. Before 680 00:39:44,160 --> 00:39:46,640 Speaker 1: and after tours and as often as she could manage, 681 00:39:46,680 --> 00:39:49,560 Speaker 1: she would travel to Providence to visit her mother. And 682 00:39:49,640 --> 00:39:52,239 Speaker 1: in nineteen fifteen, when this whole blow up happened with 683 00:39:52,280 --> 00:39:56,800 Speaker 1: the touring company, Ciceretta's mother was ill, and Ciceretta was 684 00:39:56,920 --> 00:39:58,879 Speaker 1: kind of ready to retire so that she could take 685 00:39:58,920 --> 00:40:02,600 Speaker 1: care of her. So Madam Jones gave her last performance 686 00:40:02,719 --> 00:40:05,040 Speaker 1: in New York at the Lafayette Theater in the fall 687 00:40:05,120 --> 00:40:08,719 Speaker 1: of nineteen fifteen, and then she all but vanished from 688 00:40:08,760 --> 00:40:11,919 Speaker 1: public life. She moved into the house that her mother 689 00:40:12,080 --> 00:40:16,239 Speaker 1: lived in with her second husband, Daniel Crenshaw. When Henrietta 690 00:40:16,320 --> 00:40:21,000 Speaker 1: died in Cinceretta stayed and Crenshaw did as well. And 691 00:40:21,080 --> 00:40:23,279 Speaker 1: then this story gets really blurry. There's just not a 692 00:40:23,360 --> 00:40:26,839 Speaker 1: lot of documentation about what Jones's life was like during 693 00:40:26,920 --> 00:40:30,839 Speaker 1: these years. There are some varied and contradictory accounts from 694 00:40:30,960 --> 00:40:33,959 Speaker 1: various people. She may have taken work as a cook, 695 00:40:34,400 --> 00:40:37,520 Speaker 1: she may have adopted children, She may have been regularly 696 00:40:37,640 --> 00:40:41,239 Speaker 1: visited by a number of celebrity friends. We really don't 697 00:40:41,280 --> 00:40:44,040 Speaker 1: have anything to corroborate the memories that were shared by 698 00:40:44,160 --> 00:40:48,080 Speaker 1: various people over time. We do know that Cinceretta slowly 699 00:40:48,200 --> 00:40:50,960 Speaker 1: sold off her jewelry and her other valuables that she 700 00:40:51,040 --> 00:40:54,440 Speaker 1: had acquired during her performing career to kind of keep 701 00:40:54,520 --> 00:40:58,239 Speaker 1: herself afloat and basically financed the remainder of her life. 702 00:40:59,000 --> 00:41:01,000 Speaker 1: But towards the very in she had run out of 703 00:41:01,080 --> 00:41:03,440 Speaker 1: valuables and she actually had to have some help from 704 00:41:03,480 --> 00:41:06,000 Speaker 1: the president of the local in Double A c P Chapter, 705 00:41:06,440 --> 00:41:09,200 Speaker 1: William P. H. Freeman, to meet her bills and keep 706 00:41:09,239 --> 00:41:13,799 Speaker 1: things running. On June nine, thirty three, Cincretta died at 707 00:41:13,840 --> 00:41:16,840 Speaker 1: the age of sixty five from cancer had started in 708 00:41:16,880 --> 00:41:20,200 Speaker 1: her stomach and spread stew her liver. She was buried 709 00:41:20,239 --> 00:41:22,960 Speaker 1: at Grace Church Cemetery near her mother, and that was 710 00:41:23,040 --> 00:41:26,600 Speaker 1: arranged by Mr. Freeman, although there was no headstone there 711 00:41:26,680 --> 00:41:31,840 Speaker 1: until eighteen when one was crowdfunded in A plaque was 712 00:41:31,920 --> 00:41:34,360 Speaker 1: erected to mark the location of the home in Rhode Island, 713 00:41:34,400 --> 00:41:38,120 Speaker 1: near where Cisterretta lived, spearheaded by the Rhode Island Black 714 00:41:38,200 --> 00:41:42,560 Speaker 1: Heritage Society. So in recent years she's gotten a little 715 00:41:42,600 --> 00:41:46,040 Speaker 1: bit more attention. Again, I'm so glad that you chose 716 00:41:46,200 --> 00:41:49,520 Speaker 1: the subject because I had never ever heard of her. Yeah, 717 00:41:49,680 --> 00:41:52,200 Speaker 1: I am, like I said, I had that scribbled note 718 00:41:52,239 --> 00:41:54,520 Speaker 1: and I didn't remember what it was even until I 719 00:41:54,600 --> 00:41:57,359 Speaker 1: went back and looked her up again. You can't help 720 00:41:57,400 --> 00:41:59,439 Speaker 1: but sort of fall in love with her. She's really 721 00:42:00,200 --> 00:42:03,840 Speaker 1: an interesting figure. She was we'll talk about it some 722 00:42:03,920 --> 00:42:06,359 Speaker 1: more in our Friday episode, but she was so sort 723 00:42:06,400 --> 00:42:11,320 Speaker 1: of quietly breaking a lot of color barriers without pointing 724 00:42:11,360 --> 00:42:13,239 Speaker 1: out that she was doing it. It was almost like 725 00:42:13,280 --> 00:42:15,360 Speaker 1: her approach was to be really sly about it and 726 00:42:15,440 --> 00:42:18,880 Speaker 1: then just accepted as the norm um, which is pretty interesting. 727 00:42:19,480 --> 00:42:24,959 Speaker 1: She's pretty wonderful. Um. I have a brief listener mail, 728 00:42:26,600 --> 00:42:32,680 Speaker 1: mostly because I wanna congratulate this person. Uh Lisa wrote 729 00:42:32,800 --> 00:42:34,880 Speaker 1: us to say, I want to thank you and past 730 00:42:34,920 --> 00:42:37,600 Speaker 1: host for all of the wonderful podcasts. I switched to 731 00:42:37,680 --> 00:42:39,759 Speaker 1: a new teaching job two and a half years ago, 732 00:42:39,880 --> 00:42:42,480 Speaker 1: and today, on my birthday, of all days, I finished 733 00:42:42,560 --> 00:42:45,279 Speaker 1: the last of the past episodes. I love how each 734 00:42:45,320 --> 00:42:48,000 Speaker 1: of the host makes history so exciting. There's no way 735 00:42:48,040 --> 00:42:50,040 Speaker 1: I can pick my favorite episode, but I love your 736 00:42:50,120 --> 00:42:53,359 Speaker 1: music related episodes. She is a music teacher, any sad 737 00:42:53,480 --> 00:42:56,680 Speaker 1: Royal story and of course Victorian or Regency era history. 738 00:42:57,160 --> 00:42:59,479 Speaker 1: Attached is a picture of her in her PhD shirt. 739 00:42:59,560 --> 00:43:01,759 Speaker 1: We have shirts on our t public store. That's a 740 00:43:01,880 --> 00:43:04,320 Speaker 1: PhD and stuff you Missed in History Class and she 741 00:43:04,440 --> 00:43:06,440 Speaker 1: has earned one. I thought this was a great time 742 00:43:06,480 --> 00:43:09,600 Speaker 1: since this was a music episode to UH to give 743 00:43:09,640 --> 00:43:11,960 Speaker 1: her a shout out and thank her for writing in 744 00:43:12,200 --> 00:43:14,600 Speaker 1: and telling us about it and her picture is adorable, 745 00:43:15,400 --> 00:43:18,600 Speaker 1: and thank her for being an educator as well. We 746 00:43:18,719 --> 00:43:21,840 Speaker 1: need it UM. And there's there's so much that says 747 00:43:21,920 --> 00:43:26,080 Speaker 1: that UM music education leads to all kinds of better 748 00:43:26,160 --> 00:43:30,520 Speaker 1: performance in other areas of academics. So those music teachers 749 00:43:30,560 --> 00:43:33,040 Speaker 1: offen the unsung heroes. UH. If you would like to 750 00:43:33,080 --> 00:43:35,120 Speaker 1: write to us, you can do so at History Podcast 751 00:43:35,320 --> 00:43:38,080 Speaker 1: at i heart radio dot com. You can also find 752 00:43:38,160 --> 00:43:40,600 Speaker 1: us on social media as Missed in History and you 753 00:43:40,640 --> 00:43:43,160 Speaker 1: can subscribe to the show on the I heart Radio app, 754 00:43:43,280 --> 00:43:51,600 Speaker 1: at Apple podcasts, or wherever it is you listen. Stuff 755 00:43:51,640 --> 00:43:53,560 Speaker 1: you Missed in History Class is a production of I 756 00:43:53,760 --> 00:43:57,120 Speaker 1: heart Radio. For more podcasts from I heart Radio, visit 757 00:43:57,200 --> 00:44:00,120 Speaker 1: the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you 758 00:44:00,239 --> 00:44:02,160 Speaker 1: listen to your favorite shows. M