American Company

The Hallam family, an Anglo-American acting troupe, established the beginnings of professional theatre in the United States. Lewis Hallam founded the family and arrived in the American colonies in 1752, presenting the first professional acting company performance in Williamsburg, Virginia. They later built the first theatre in New York City in 1753. By 1763, under David Douglass, the company was known as the American Company and presented the first professional production of an American play in 1767. Lewis Hallam the Younger managed the family company for 25 years, continuing its presence across the United States.123