uring the Spanish period, theater appeared as an expression of the traditions previously brought by the French. The English language eventually dominated the performing arts and everything else, but the genre was developed in New Orleans in a very peculiar way. Despite the hardships of colonial life, as early as 1743 the government of the dissolute Marquis de Vaudrieul presented plays, dances, gambling, and Mardi Gras festivities. However, such activities were restricted to the elite circle of colonists. The harsh climate and the small size of the population made it difficult to successfully promote enclosed performances for seated people. Most preferred informal, outdoor gatherings such as parades, carnivals, and balls, and, later, entertainment in the showboats.

Two Parisian brothers, Jean-Marie Henry and Louis-Alexander Henry, erected the Peter Street Theater in 1792. It is considered the first theater to have operated on a regular schedule in the city. It became the stage for a group of actors who had escaped disturbances in Haiti. The first opera performed in the city was probably Silvain, an opera-comique. The theater operated until 1810 and presented over 300 operatic performances. Usually theater performances were complemented afterward with ballroom dancing.

In the first years after the Louisiana Purchase, the English language was still alien to many in the city. In 1806 the first English-language plays were presented to a small group of citizens in Moore's Tavern on Chartres Street. They were The Doctor's Courtship and three acts from the Pantomime of Don Juan. In 1808-10, the St. Philip Theater opened its doors. The Orleans Theater already existed, but it was unable to operate satisfactorily and eventually burned to the ground. It was replaced by another theater under the same name, which opened in 1819 and specialized in French opera until 1833.

James Caldwell, an English actor who came to Virginia, was in part responsible for the expansion of the theater circuit that included New Orleans. In 1824 he opened his Camp Street Theater, which was located outside the Vieux CarrŽ, in Faubourg St. Mary. Caldwell capitalized on the success of the Commonwealth Company, the United States troupe that came to New Orleans in 1817 to give performances in English. Caldwell's theater was the first with gaslights. He later built the elegant St. Charles Theater with a seating capacity of 4,200 people, which unfortunately burned down in 1842. The same happened to another of Caldwell's theaters, the American Theater. The St. Charles was rebuilt by theater managers Noah Ludlow and Sol Smith and remained a popular playhouse until the end of the 19th century.

In 1849 the Association Variété constructed the Varieties Theater, which was destined for burlesque, vaudeville, and farces. It burned down in 1854 and was replaced by a second theater named Gaiety. A third theater, known as the Grand Opera House, was built in 1882 and remained in service until it was demolished in 1906. The Academy of Music dates from 1853 as a showplace for the circus King Dan Rice. Years later it became the Pelican Theater and in 1860 recovered its original name, to be changed again later to the Audubon Theater.

After the Civil War, the only theater offering fine French opera to the people of New Orleans was the French Opera House, at the corner of Toulouse and Bourbon Streets. It opened on December 1, 1850 with William Tell. The theater became the most important opera house in the South until a fire destroyed it in 1919. The destruction of this particular building sealed the fate of French theater in New Orleans, which could not be revived. English was the sole language for the audience. Although it had taken more than 100 years to displace the French theater for good, vaudeville had become the dominant type of stage entertainment. The city was not the only place hosting theatrical events. Between 1870 and 1890, showboats went up and down the Mississippi River with melodramas so popular that they were performed over and over again.