The Shakespeare Riots Portrayed in Opera

Bay Street Theater welcomes the Divaria Productions opera “The Shakespeare Riots” on Saturday, October 8, at 8 p.m. The historical show brings to life one of the bloodiest incidents in New York history, the infamous 1849 Astor Place Riot, and promises audiences a dramatic, enthralling evening unlike any other.

Starring Ron Menzel and Michael Nansel, the show captures 19th-century class and nativist tensions that come to a head when a riot breaks out over a British actor playing Macbeth instead of a favorite local American actor. Directed by J.A. Diaz, the opera will also feature Nicholas Simpson and Ashley Galvani Bell, with Gregory Moomjy as the show’s musicologist.

“The Shakespeare Riots” tells of a time when passions over exclusivity boiled over on the streets of 1849 New York in the Astor Place Riot. This was the deadliest riot since the American Revolution in which immigrants and members of the working class protested the fact that Macbeth was performed by Brit Charles Macready and not Edwin Forrest, the beloved American and local favorite. The production took place at the Astor Place Opera House, a theater created by New York’s upper crust known as the Upper Ten or Astorocracy, who envisioned their opera house more as a way to demonstrate social position and influence rather than as a place where community could come together across class boundaries purely for the love of music and theater. This event during a performance of “Macbeth” led to Shakespeare and opera moving uptown away from the dense population center to rarefied circles that were less accessible to all.

The opera is a welcome return for Divaria Productions to the Bay Street stage where for the past six years it has presented sell-out shows, with productions of “La Traviata,” “Don Giovanni in New York,” and “Othello,” to name a few. The New York City-based company is dedicated to educating audiences about the historical circumstances surrounding classic works and watershed moments in operatic history. The talented cast has performed in operas across the United States and Europe, and are thrilled to bring this one-of-a-kind show to Sag Harbor.

Tickets are on sale now starting at $35 at baystreet.org 631-725-9500. Bay Street Theater is on Long Wharf in Sag Harbor.