A theater ahead, grand and glinting with chandelier light behind its windows. That’s the Astor Place Opera House. Inside, William Charles Macready, the English tragedian, is about to perform Macbeth.

A line of men in blue coats emerges, bayonets gleaming. It’s the State militia. The Seventh Regiment. They form ranks. Warnings are shouted. A carriage attempts to push through, and someone hurls a rock. Glass shatters. Cheers erupt. More warnings are shouted. The crowd only grows more agitated.

You can barely hear yourself think over the shouting. Then an order is given. Fire! You duck. People scream. Another order is given. Fire! You duck again. A man beside you falls hard, clutching his stomach. The militia fires again. Then again.

You manage to scramble back down Lafayette Street, heart pounding. Behind you, the streets are chaotic. When the smoke cleared that night, over 120 were wounded, and dozens were dead.

What Really Happened

The Astor Place Riot, also called the Astor Place Opera House Riot, occurred on May 10, 1849. It can be described as the night Shakespeare started a riot in NYC, but this was more than a battle over a theatrical rivalry. The riot reflected broader tensions in 19th-century New York City, including class divisions, nativist versus immigrant identity, and control of public cultural spaces.

Sparked by a long-standing rivalry between the British actor William Charles Macready and American actor Edwin Forrest. It marked the deadliest case of civilian casualties due to military action in the United States since the American Revolution and led to significant changes in police militarization and crowd control methods.

In the mid-1800’s, theater was a popular and influential cultural institution across the United States, drawing crowds from all social classes. Actors enjoyed celebrity status, and audiences were known to vocally express approval, or anger, at performances. Theater riots were not uncommon in the country during this period.

British actors had long dominated the American stage, and resentment toward them was fueled by anti-British nationalism dating back to the Stamp Act riots of the 1760s. The rise of Edwin Forrest as America’s first theatrical star gave working-class Americans a national figure to rally behind. His popularity coincided with increasing dissatisfaction among Irish immigrants and nativist groups alike, who both resented the dominance of British elites.

Shakespeare held a particularly revered place in 19th-century American culture. Both Forrest and Macready built their reputations on Shakespearean roles, making their feud especially symbolic. Historian Nigel Cliff described their rivalry as a cultural battle for ownership of Shakespeare and, by extension, artistic legitimacy.

The Rivalry

Forrest and Macready began their careers as mutual admirers but became bitter rivals by the 1840s. During Forrest’s second tour of Britain, he accused Macready of undermining his success. In retaliation, Forrest publicly hissed Macready during a performance of Hamlet in London. Macready, in turn, criticized Forrest’s lack of artistic “taste.” The public dispute was widely covered in newspapers and inflamed nationalist and class-based divisions.

Forrest’s style, physically imposing and emotionally intense, was embraced by American working-class audiences, particularly those in Five Points and the Bowery. Macready’s refined, genteel style appealed to wealthier, Anglophile theatergoers.

Cultural and Class Tensions

Theaters themselves became physical symbols of cultural conflict. The Bowery Theatre, where Forrest frequently performed, catered to a working-class audience. In contrast, the Astor Place Opera House, with its dress code and rigid seating arrangements, was built to exclude the immigrant poor and maintain elite respectability. Many saw the venue as a cultural affront to the egalitarian ideals associated with American theater.

Adding to the political context, Forrest’s supporters included figures linked to Tammany Hall and populist movements, while Macready was favored by the city’s elite. The looming performance schedule placed both actors in Macbeth, Forrest at the Broadway Theatre, Macready at Astor Place, on the same nights in May 1849, just blocks apart.

Lead-Up to the Riot

On May 7, 1849, three days before the riot, Forrest’s supporters disrupted Macready’s performance at Astor Place by hurling eggs, potatoes, lemons, and even torn seats at the stage. The show had to be performed in pantomime due to the noise and chaos. That same night, Forrest’s performance was cheered by enthusiastic audiences, especially during the line referencing driving the English out.

Macready considered abandoning his farewell tour but was persuaded to stay by prominent New Yorkers, including Herman Melville and Washington Irving, who signed a petition encouraging him to perform again.

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The Riot

On May 10, Macready returned to the Astor Place Opera House to perform Macbeth under tight security. Meanwhile, Forrest’s supporters, organized by Tammany leader Captain Isaiah Rynders and aided by dime novelist Ned Buntline, distributed anti-British handbills and free tickets, rallying a crowd with slogans like “Shall Americans or English Rule This City?”

By showtime, a crowd of up to 10,000 people filled the streets. Some ticket holders inside attempted to set fire to the building or disrupt the play, but many had been screened by police. Outside, clashes erupted between police and rioters. Protesters threw stones, bricks, and other projectiles at the building, shattering windows and injuring officers.

At 9:15 PM, fearing that police had lost control, Mayor Caleb Woodhull ordered the New York State Militia, including the Seventh Regiment, to suppress the crowd. After verbal warnings were ignored, soldiers fired volleys, first into the air, then into the crowd. At least 22 were killed, with some estimates as high as 31. Over 120 civilians were injured. Most of the casualties were working-class men, including seven Irish immigrants.

Aftermath

The violence continued the next day. A protest meeting in City Hall Park drew thousands. Demonstrators clashed again with police and mounted militia. One young boy was killed during these continued confrontations, but authorities reasserted control more quickly than on May 10.

In total, dozens were killed or wounded. Over 140 militia members and 50–70 police officers were injured. Trials followed, including one presided over by Judge Charles Patrick Daly, and resulted in convictions for inciting the riot.

The city’s elite praised the suppression of the riot. Newspaper publisher James Watson Webb applauded the government’s use of force, suggesting it reassured European investors of New York’s commitment to law and order.

However, the Astor Place Opera House never recovered. Derisively dubbed the “Massacre Opera House” and “DisAstor Place,” it closed soon after and was later turned over to the New York Mercantile Library.

Historical Significance and Legacy

The Astor Place Riot had far-reaching implications:

• It exposed deep rifts in the social fabric of New York City: class antagonism, nativism, and resentment toward perceived aristocratic privilege.

• It deepened class divisions in the city, contributing to the segregation of cultural spaces by class and neighborhood.

• It revealed a new willingness on the part of authorities to use lethal force to maintain public order. The elite called for more organized and professionalized policing and greater control of public space.

• This marked a turning point in urban policing, leading to increased riot control training, and the adoption of heavier batons.

• Theaters increasingly catered either to the “respectable” elite or to working-class audiences, with Shakespeare eventually being removed from popular entertainment and elevated as highbrow culture.

• Though Forrest’s career and reputation were damaged, his style of acting influenced early Hollywood matinee idols like John Barrymore.

The Astor Place Riot demonstrated how deeply intertwined class tensions and political identity were in the antebellum United States.

What appeared on the surface to be a dispute between two Shakespearean actors quickly escalated into a violent confrontation that reflected broader struggles over cultural power, social hierarchy, and national identity.

The riot exposed the growing divide between an increasingly organized, elite ruling class and a resentful, working-class population, many of whom were immigrants or nativists who nevertheless found common cause.

Where to Trace This Story Today

This section is designed to bring the story further to life, whether you're walking the city in person or simply tracing it in your imagination.

Link to Google Map of Locations

13 Astor Place, Site of Astor Place Opera House (now: Astor Place Starbucks)

There’s now a modern building at 13 Astor Place (and site of a soon to be closed Starbucks). This was once the location of the Astor Place Opera House. Stand near the entrance closest to Cooper Union. Now imagine: the elegant entryway glowing with gaslight. Inside, William Macready, the British tragedian, is performing Macbeth, trying to ignore the jeers rising from outside, while militia is taking position where you stand.

Intersection of Lafayette Street and Astor Place. Site of the Crowd Gathering During Riot (now: public plaza with The Cube sculpture)

This public plaza, now a spot for mostly tourists and college students spinning the iconic Cube, was the heart of the riot. Over 10,000 protestors gathered here on the night of May 10, 1849. The militia lined the balcony of the Opera House and surrounding rooftops. Bodies fell where you’re standing now.

436 West 22nd Street in Chelsea. Site of Forrest’s Home. Still Standing.

Edwin Forrest lived here in his later years. There’s no sign. No marker. No mention of his name. America’s first homegrown theater celebrity. Beloved by the working class. Larger than life.

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