<P> The interactions between newly arrived immigrants and settled immigrants within the backdrop of the unknown American urban landscape allowed vaudeville to be utilized as an avenue for expression and understanding . The often hostile immigrant experience in their new country was now used for comic relief on the vaudeville stage, where stereotypes of different ethnic groups were perpetuated . The crude stereotypes that emerged were easily identifiable not only by their distinct ethnic cultural attributes, but how those attributes differed from the mainstream established American culture and identity . </P> <P> Coupled with their historical presence on the English stage for comic relief, and as operators and actors of the vaudeville stage, Irish Americans became interpreters of immigrant cultural images in American popular culture . New arrivals found their ethnic group status defined within the immigrant population and in their new country as a whole by the Irish on stage . Unfortunately, the same interactions between ethnic groups within the close living conditions of cities also created racial tensions which were reflected in vaudeville . Conflict between Irish and African Americans saw the promotion of black - face minstrelsy on the stage, purposefully used to place African Americans beneath the Irish in the racial and social urban hierarchy . </P> <P> Although the Irish had a strong Celtic presence in vaudeville and in the promotion of ethnic stereotypes, the ethnic groups that they were characterizing also utilized the same humor . As the Irish donned their ethnic costumes, groups such as the Chinese, Italians, Germans and Jews utilized ethnic caricatures to understand themselves as well as the Irish . The urban diversity within the vaudeville stage and audience also reflected their societal status, with the working class constituting two - thirds of the typical vaudeville audience . </P> <P> The ethnic caricatures that now comprised American humor reflected the positive and negative interactions between ethnic groups in America's cities . The caricatures served as a method of understanding different groups and their societal positions within their cities . The use of the greenhorn immigrant for comedic effect showcased how immigrants were viewed as new arrivals, but also what they could aspire to be . In addition to interpreting visual ethnic caricatures, the Irish American ideal of transitioning from the shanty to the lace curtain became a model of economic upward mobility for immigrant groups . </P>

Who owned the victoria theatre a big-time vaudeville theatre in new york city