Opening the Pocket Doors: Voices of Brooklyn

On January 1, 1898, the city of Brooklyn officially became a borough and joined Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island, and the Bronx to form New York City. To mark the centennial of this event, the Brooklyn Historical Society (BHS) created an original theatrical production titled Voices of Brooklyn.

Voices of Brooklyn is a 40-minute dramatic performance that tells the story of late 19th-century Brooklyn through the use of diary entries, newspaper articles, poems, songs, photographs, and other primary sources from the Society’s collections. The production, which can be viewed here, premiered at the Society’s annual Celebration Dinner on April 23, 1998, with participation from representatives of some of Brooklyn’s major cultural institutions. A few weeks later, on June 21, it was performed again as part of New York City 100’s Centennial Weekend. For this performance, which is the subject of this week’s photo, the Society commissioned the Hypothetical Theatre Company to adapt the script for a family audience and bring it to the stage.

Project research and development was conducted by Judith Giuriceo, Ann Meyerson, Michell Hackwelder, Jacqueline Simmons, and other BHS staff. They looked through the Society’s holdings of newspapers, diaries, correspondence, scrapbooks, sheet music, photographs, and other materials to locate first-hand accounts of life in the city of Brooklyn around the time of consolidation. Gina Ingoglia Weiner, an author and Society trustee, then worked with the collected research to write the script. Additionally, the research informed the creation of an accompanying brochure about late 19th-century Brooklyn, which features excerpts from documents showcased in the performance, as well as photographs and drawings.

The performances of Voices of Brooklyn offered audiences an entertaining glimpse into a pivotal moment in Brooklyn's history. Following the success of the June performance, the Society planned to bring the production to schools, libraries, and other venues throughout Brooklyn. Notably, Voices of Brooklyn was also one of the last major events executed by BHS before the years-long renovation of its landmark building.

While learning about Voices of Brooklyn, I couldn’t help but wonder: why hasn't Broadway seen a production dedicated to Brooklyn's rich history? As far as I know, there aren't any widely known plays or musicals that celebrate the borough's past in the same way that Hamilton and Six have done for their respective historical narratives. The closest that comes to mind is Newsies, which takes place in Manhattan, but features the absolute banger “Brooklyn’s Here.”  It's high time we rectify this oversight. The content is clearly there, but where is our Lin-Manuel Miranda?

Interested in seeing more photos from CBH’s collections? Visit our online image gallery, which includes a selection of our images, or the digital collections portal of Brooklyn Public Library. We welcome appointments to research our entire collection of images, archives, maps, and special collections. Our reference staff is available to help with your research! You can reach us at cbhreference@bklynlibrary.org.