American Theatre (Thalia Theatre) In the stratified world of New York City theaters, with their implicit class associations, the American Theatre, at the corner of Canal Street and the Bowery, was considered a middlebrow house. Designed by Ithiel Town with the innovative use of gas jets for interior lighting, it had opened in 1826 and, by 1833, had been twice remodeled after fires. Three thousand patrons could be accommodated within its large central pit and four tiers of galleries, which reached across the house and down each side almost to the stage. In the Jacksonian era, urban theaters like the American Theatre had assumed new importance as democratic gathering spaces, in which ticket holders could not only relax but also vent political opinions publicly and intermingle with allies and enemies seated, depending on allegiances, in the more boisterous pit or costlier boxes. Ungovernable audiences often interrupted performances.

Lower East Side original character actor Sam "Shalom" Jaffe had an acting career that spanned decades, was studded with awards and was throughly unexpected. A City College college graduate who went on to study engineering at Columbia University, Jaffe was headed for industry when his artistic interests grabbed hold. As a child he appeared in Yiddish theatre, and as an adult, The Forward was gifted with his generous appearances on their behalf, such as at The Forward's WEVD radio station studio seen in the archival image above, where he is seen performing before ABC radio microphones.

"Thalia Theatre, 46-48 Bowery. Formerly Bowery Theatre. Photograph taken around 1881." Built originally in 1826, as the New York Theatre, the playhouse was established as direct competition to the Park Theatre on Park Row and Ann Street. The wealthy and fashionable citizens who had recently moved to the newly developing neighborhood on nearby Lafayette Street wanted access to high-class European theatre. The building itself was constructed on land that had once been occupied by the Bull's Head Tavern, one of George Washington's headquarters during the Revolution. After only two years in business, the theatre suffered a major fire in 1828, and the interior was rebuilt behind the surviving facade and renamed the Bowery Theatre. Though it would have a series of other names (American Theatre, Thalia Theatre , Fay's Bowery Theatre) it was from 1828 on generally referred to as the Bowery Theatre. The theatre's most successful period was from the 1830s to the 1850s, when it made a name for itself as a American nativist and populist hub (unsurprisingly it was during this period that it was renamed American Theatre). The building survived through the constantly changing neighborhood and populations of the mid to late 19th century and early 20th century. After a series of 19th century fires and rebuilding efforts, the theatre was finally destroyed by a fire in 1929.