Not
different from what occurred in Europe towards the middle of the Nineteenth
century, the theatre was remarkably fostered also in the United States. The
North American literatures rose indubitably as the projection of the English
one and took its own connotation only with the passing of tens years as a
real national identity grew. The first step of this long way was the conquer
of the politic independence. Furthermore, the gold rush and the thousands
individuals' displacement toward the western lands, generated the constitution
of different Theatre companies - obviously different levels - that, in parallel
with the town and more ancient tradition, 
great
and important companies, had the merit to bring, even if to little centres,
the taste of the representation and the narration of events belonging to the
history of this American land. The widening and the worsening of the slavery
problem and the civil war between the years 1861-65 were the dominating topics
of the works, both of the novelists and those who devoted to theatre exclusively.
An unquestionable example was the world success, achieved by the novel, and
then by the theatre adaptation of the “Uncle's Tom hut”, that had for
tens years several versions and adaptations, and that interested generations
and generations of Americans. Drawn from the homonymous novel (1850) by the
writer Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896), the theatrical text proposed
to a very wide public, by the time in addition the most illiterate, the black
slavery problem in America, the sale of slaves and racism. So it rises the
nice personage of Uncle Tom, noble and gentle slave, serving loyally the Shelby
family; for a sudden, as well as radical, financial failure of his master,
Tom must leave his wife and sons, and sold to a slave dealer. For different
events it seems it's a moment of peace for Tom in the new good master's house,
but the latter's death makes once more the sage black fall under the yoke
of the auction sale. Unfortunately for him this time it happens that the new
master is a certain Legree, a perfidious planter, amoral, nasty and alcoholic.
The latter, for a futile matter, whips him till he bleeds and the arrive of
the good master's Shelby son, coming to attempt to ransom him, cannot change
the situation: he succeeds only in catching the last words of the hero Tom,
who, dying, notwithstanding the bad he received, expresses a whole forgiveness.
George Shelby, deeply upset for what had happened, getting back to home will
decide to change his life and to let free all his slaves. This main 
themes and the way to present them had the great value to foster the abolitionist
cause, with the hope, maybe hidden, to attain in the future a parity and an
assimilation among different races. Featured the same by committed topics,
it rose by this time a genre having already found in England its own audience,
the “burlesque” one. It made its way in America, meeting with outstanding
success and becoming the spectacle, even more followed, thanks to the parodistic
notes belonging to this genre. In the last ten years of the XIX century the
burlesque changed more and more by the means of spectacular scenography, also
introducing music, dance and songs, losing so on the parodistic element, till
then predominant. In several works of this period it can be noticed a clear
prevailing of realism and the these times great promoter, critical and literary
level, was William Dean Howells (1837-1920). Reporter and writer, he
struggled in favour of the realism, aiming in novel to analyze social background
morals topics, mainly representing personages of the towns emergent middle
class. Are of this period two works for the stage, being of a certain interest,
as “Margaret Fleming” (1890) by James Herne (1839-1901), deemed
by many observers the nineteenth century most realistic American drama; the
other text, “Secret Service “ (1895) by William Gillette (1855-1937).
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