The Padlock

About the show

An old miser keeps his fiancée behind a locked door because he fears she will be unfaithful. The opera centers on Mungo, the household servant, whose comic scenes include songs and spoken dialogue. The source describes the original Mungo as a racist caricature, performed in blackface; Ira Aldridge later transformed the role into a serious portrayal and added an abolitionist address to the audience.