Troupers of the Gold Coast: The Rise of Lotta Crabtree

Now considered a classic, Troupers of the Gold Coast follows the inception and success of a theater company of the same name that first performed in 1837 at California's First Theater. More than two thousand actors and actresses performed and trained with the company between 1848 and 2005. Until their last show, in 2005, they were the oldest continually performing theater company in the world. By the time the Troupers found their footing, though, a little girl named Charlotte (Lotta) Crabtree was achieving an early stardom. Since the age of six, she had been performing along the coast for men and women of the gold rush. Her mother managed her career, thus ensuring that Lotta was never taken advantage of. She was extremely popular and very successful in acting, singing, dancing, and banjo-playing. Lotta, was named the "Nation's Darling" toured the United States and Europe before retiring in her forties. Troupers of the Gold Coast captures the rise of one of America's most beloved entertainers, as well as the formation and excitement surrounding one of the most popular and successful American theater troupes of all time.