Old Zip Coon

OLD ZlP COON. An

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entricity,

One Scene.

CHARACTERS ZIP COON

Old Zip Coon

CUFF CUDLIP ITALIAN MUSIC MASTER SALLY

SCENE:-The common roorn of Zip Coon's hou,se on the Old Plantation, opening on the uerandah-the cotton and cane fields beyond-the

(known today in instrumental form as The song "i,"zip coon" the Straw") can be thought of as the epitome of "Turkey nineteenth-century American popular music. Published in 1834' minthe song quickly became uttoiirt.d with the figure of the times aS a solo, a dance ve-

strel .lown and was used innumerable hicle, and as the musical number around which minstrel finales were built. The following piece cannot be dated with complete there accuracy. The playbook f;rm was copyrighted in L874,but which could is neither cast ,o. production information available piece' help to date the first performance of the bf purricular inteiest tn Old, Zip Coon are the elements associated with Reconstruction attitudes. The sentimentalized plantajokes don setring is typical of post-civil war nostalgiat 1rd the illuscreated by"the irrr..riot bf tfr. antebellum social hierarchy form' trate the inherent racism of minstrelsy in its most vicious published edition The following text is reprinted from the acting by the Huppi Hours ComPanY in 1874'

Mississippi in the distance.

reading a newspaper and' smoking a cigar, uith his feet on a table on which are decanters and glasses. White boy presenting a

(2rc, elegantly huge mint

ZIP.

dressed,

juli|.)

Dere, clar you'selfl (drinfu) Dis brandy isn't so good as de last; hit t Pt shall hab to discharge my wine merchant if he for sartin. Maybe it's my taste, but somehow 'taint improve, don't half so good as de oleJamaica massa used to gib us to wash de hoe cake down with. It's mighty comfortable to be rich, to be sure, but it's debblish tiresome to hab to keep up de dignity all de time. O, for one good old-fashioned breakdown, like we used to hab when massa run de old plantation for us, and all we had to do was play de banjo and loaf. (looking right and leftl Nobody looking! Maybe 'taint genteel, but here goes for a try. (walhs around and sings) Long time ago we hoe de cotton, Grub among de canebrake, munch de sugar cane, Hunt coon and possum by de ribber bottom, Past and gone de happy days-nebber come again! Ho,.hi! How de moments fly! Get up and do your duty While de time am passin'by!

(smncking

(breahdown, throws off his coat)

50

5l

Old Zip Coon

This Grotesque Essence

all de high-toned darkies round her, and-and de white trash dey come round her thick as flies in a'lasses hogshead. cuFF. Does any of 'em git stuck? zrr. You bet! Here comes de gal; golly, look at dat hoof.

talk' Dere we knock de banjo, make de sheepskin Shout until de rafters to de chorus ring; If de massa see us, make him walk his chalk' Trabellibely o'er de boards' cut de pigeon wing'

(Enter sALLy,z with music and an Inlian master.)

Ho, hi! etc. (Break.) ragged suit'

and in a (curr cuDlrp, with a small-bund,le on his shoulder joirx in breakd,own.)

and peeps;,n ona-ro1i$ enters. Throws hund,te d,oum CUFF.

Hoe it down libely, dere's nobody to-fear' De gate uttt off de hinges' no oberseer dere;

Nooneinaecornfield,all-decoastisclear' H... J. bell a-ringin', step up and pay your fare!

(sings). O, dulce animn, de mi con arnore dn poco. "O dull seems the time unto me when I want to play poker." sAL. MASTER. Casta Diaa mifigelia, la croche se ha ben troaato,sAL. "Casta Diva." I'm sure I'd not sing if I wasn't "obligato." (as'ide, seeing Zril My fader! (Putt her arm,s about hi,s neck) zrr. My darter! (embraces her) Here's old Cuff Cudlip-don't you 'member Cuff! (C"If attempts to embrace her too. She curtsEs and

MAsTER

passes

BOTH.

Ho, hi! etc. (break) be niggerl (puts his bundle cuFF. Hy'a! ir's no use talking-nigger will

s*.

zr,..Hossmedicine,/ouignoramusdarky'you!Dat'sdegenuine Otard.

it. But, s"y,r zip, yort look cuFF. If dat's "old tod" I don't want none of us ajob' as if you took de world easy; tT-t y"" +P would you? well, go workin" zr,,. you would.r', degrade you;setf by out dere among de white. trash' den' whar's de ole cuFF. I say-I see a gran pranner dere, but

banjo-

1

whar's de ole cremonum? ,member when we lib in de ole Z|P. o, dem ain,t fashionable, now. You de master,s cook? Hy'a! quarter and I took a shine to SaI Beeswax, property and married his I g9! and Well-dernrrru'' goned away face an' white todder de ot Sal, and we got u iurt..-black

"iid"

-vll,shewon,ttouchnuffin,shortobapiannum,anddatbrings in northern Italy' the name of which was Fiddle. A reference to cremona, a town made there by Nicola Amati' Antonio used ro designate any of the exquisi;.";i;li;t Guarneri G.ri..PPe Stradivari, oi

I

52

embraces

Zip irxtead, and, is slapped.)

Wtat magic's stealing o'er me, that mein, that noble brow! O, how my heartris thumping against my corsets now. If this is what de crazy chaps call "love" in poetry, I's ready to frow up de sponge, for a gone coon am I!

on table and takcs chair)

zlv(stippingintohiscoat).I,dhabyouknowdereaintnoniggahsnow. IbelongstodeupPerCrust.Yo.,,-makin,you,selfmight},Com;spor. you couldn't be hired to refuse a drink? fortable anyhow. takes a swig' spits it rut) cuFF. Don',t press me. (puts bottle to his mu,cth, Bah! What sort o' siuff dat? Hoss medicine?

under-he

(sings).

(goes to

pi4no with master)

cuFF (sings).

Now my heart with remembrance is wa'harming, And lub all its outposts is sto-horming, New hopes in my bosom am fo-horming, O, how like a belus8 I sigh! I feel like a chap-fallen lover Dat a big garden roller's past over; I'd consider myself in clover For to catch but a glance of her eye! (pulkng zrc on his kilk). Put on your airs! Here comes de company in pairsCUFF.

O, yes, by twos and threes they come; I'lI let them see that I'm at home.

2 It is probable that the actor who played Sally wore some fo-rm of.pie-bald makeupa furthir indication of the grotesque visual extremes minstrelsy relied on. 3 A bellows. 53

This Grotesque Essence (nkesblackcoatu,t,tofbund,te,and,putsoncoatondlargewhitekids) and black) ser. (as enter com,pany of both sex?' uhite ggt Daddy's along! Walk alonf, stall 9e gout; it out! shake him make elbowl Take him by de (sits at Pinno and Pln'Ys to choru's) CHORUS.

Troll, troll! let de chorus roll' (rhq Him aut ao"r"{3i"" us, hir him o,er de poll!

dance.)

Unele Eph's Dream

AIR CUFF.

O, clar de kitchen, niggers' Your music can't begin' Pull off Your coats and sPencers'4 Take Your gloves off and sail in; Listen to de banjo While de old ting am in tune' Incline Your ears and listen' And I'll gib You "Old ZiP Coon!"

Takingbanjosudd'enlyfrornbund'le'p@taoncechn'ngedtotheold with Zip and Cuff' metod,y-S;il leaaes thi piano ond, dai*s-alterna'tely till sal enthusiastic, all the rest nearly frantic' she and, they become rnore in thi arms of Cuff, and

faints

4 A spencer

CURTAIN

was a short, close-fitting jacket'

54

By focusing on farcical elements it is easy to overlook the fact that minstrelsy was a very sentimental art form. The minstrel show's first part invariably included mother songs or pathetic ballads which helped balance the comic songs and exchanges between interlocutor and end men. Numerous performers were renowned for their ability to leave audiences weeping. Dan Bryant, for example, with his portrayals of starving slaves, is said to have been the only actor in America who could consistently move the great Edwin Forrest to tears. Even the afterpieces could indulge in the delicious pain of sentimentality as the following piece shows. Though the action of Uncle Eph's Dream tends toward slapstick, the subordinate elements-such as the setting, the background music, and the dream tableau-are evidence of the sincere though mawkish nostalgia with which a large portion of American society reacted to the harsh realities of Reconstruction. The first recorded performance of Uncle Eph's Dream occurred on November 6, 1871, when Bryant's Minstrels added it to their bill at Mechanics Hall in New York. In the next three iears the piece was revived four times by Bryant's and ran for several weeks each time. The cast list printed with this text is problematic. There is no record of these four performers having 55

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Theater poster for the original Ji* 91"* Rice' 1833' as Performed bY DaddY

Louisiana State UniversitSi' Press Baton Rouge and London