THE STAR SPANGLED BANNER " PANTOMIME " 1903 SONG BOOKLET by FRANCIS SCOTT KEY

Description

We are offering "
The Star Spangled Banner
Pantomime "
by Edgar S. Werner & Company, Belmar, New Jersey.  Copyright 1903.  (16 pages; 5 1/2" x 7 3/4").
Pantomimed by Anna D. Cooper, with Poses Under Her Direction.  Includes 10 blue-tone pictures of Cooper in pantomime poses with lines of the Star Spangled banner below each pose.
This is a very unusual booklet in which Edgar Werner gives explicit directions as to how the pantomime should be conducted on stage.
Before the panomime, he suggests a narrative be read of the circumstances under which Francis Scott Key composed his epic poem, later setting it to music and creating what was to become America's national anthem.  [This narrative of those circumstances during the War of 1812 is written here in the booklet].  Werner describes Cooper's costume in detail; suggests an orchestral accompaniment rather than piano; says the singer [of the Star Spangled Banner] should be concealed from the view of the audience; and suggests a marine view as the background.  The pantomime was accompanied by the entire 4 stanzas of the Star Spangled Banner, although only the first stanza is commonly sung.
Werner directs the pantomime as an experienced and precise director would, depending upon the parts of the anthem that were being pantomimed, regarding:
hand movements; facial expressions; standing positions; and even weight distribution on either foot or both feet.  The end of the booklet has sheet music with words of all 4 stanzas of the Star Spangled Banner.
CONDITION:  Excellent.