Concern over World War I had a negative impact on attendance at theaters throughout the country, including the Elitch Theatre. During Broadway’s 1914-15 season, the immediate effect of the war resulted in a significant plunge in theater attendance.
On May 7, 1915, the Lusitania was sunk by a German torpedo. Broadway producer Charles Frohman and playwright Charles Klein were aboard and among the dead. The uncertainty of the future caused patrons of the theater and others to be focused on the war news rather than on the box office.
The Theatre was closed on August 14, 1915, and the final three plays…were not presented. On September 23rd, the Gardens were placed into receivership.
[Borrillo, T. A. (2012). Denver’s historic Elitch Theatre: A nostalgic journey (a history of its times). Colorado. p. 114-116]
Theatre Staff:
- Mrs. Mary Elitch Long, President
- John F. Harley, Manager
- David M. Hartford, Stage Director
Resident Company:
- Mary Hall
- Louise Vallentine
- Leona Powers
- Jessie Mueller
- Marie Pettes
- Mathilde Deshon
- Forrest Winant
- Charles Gunn
- Charles Dow Clark
- Robert Homans
- Wilfred Lytell
- Joseph W. Kane
- Hayden Stevenson
- Robert Deshon
- John De Weese
- Earle Brown
Productions:
- Week of June 5: The Thief, by Henri Bernstein, adapted by Haddon Chambers.
- Week of June 13: Nearly Married, by Edgar Selwyn.
- Week of June 20: Within the Law, by Bayard Veiller.
- Week of June 27: Seven Keys to Baldpate, by George M. Cohan.
- Week of July 4: The Argyle Case, by Harvey O’Higgins and Harriet Ford.
- Week of July 11: The Third Party, by Jocelyn Brandon and Frederick Arthur.
- Week of July 18: The Affairs of Anatol, by Arthur Schnitzler, adapted by Granville Barker.
- Week of July 25: The Country Boy, by Edgar Selwyn.
- Week of Aug. 1: Young Wisdom, by Rachel Crothers.
- Week of Aug. 8: The Miracle Man, by George M. Cohan, featuring Edith Taliaferro.
- Week of Aug. 15: The Things That Count, by Laurence Eyre, featuring Edith Taliaferro.
- Week of Aug. 22: We Are Seven, by Eleanor Gates, featuring Edith Taliaferro.
- Week of Aug. 29: Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm, by Charlotte Thompson and Kate Wiggin, featuring Edith Taliaferro in her original role.
