ABSTRACT
The worldwide popularity of McCay's Little Nemo in Slumberland comic strip inspired Klaw and Erlanger, the most powerful theatrical syndicate of the era, to produce a lavish musical spectacle with a cast of 172 performing to an operetta score by Victor Herbert, at the unheard of cost of $100,000. (The average production budget was between $20,000 and $30,000.) McCay was consulted throughout rehearsals and the out-of-town tryout in Philadelphia. The glittering show of exotic costumes, special stage effects, and three acts opened in the fall of 1908 at the New Amsterdam Theatre on New York's 42nd Street. All the newspaper reviews were uniformly excellent. Unfortunately, the ambitious, huge production cost too much. With $86,000 spent before its opening, and the New York run costing in excess of $300,000, the original investment was never returned. The show ran 123 performances before going on the road for two seasons, ending in the winter of 1910.
