ABSTRACT
Ford had ambitious plans for the summer of 1885, running one company throughout the season in Boston and another at Uhrig’s Cave. The program scheduled for Uhrig’s Cave was more demanding than in previous years. Patrons were promised performances of La Fille de Madame Angot, The Bohemian Girl, Fra Diavolo, Martha, Giroflé-Girofla, and, as a grand climax to the summer season, the St. Louis premiere of Gilbert and Sullivan’s latest success, The Mikado. Ford advertised in advance that he and his father had “secured from D’Oyly Carte rights to The Mikado in the Southwestern States.” St. Louisans would be among the first in America to see an authentic version of this eagerly anticipated work.
