On January 11, 1762, in New York, Lewis Hallam played Romeo to his mother's Juliet--probably the first and last time that a son has played the lover to his own mother.

• The Coming of the Hallams - Their origin and professional standing. Preparations for an American tour. Robert Upton. The Murray-Kean troupe in Annapolis. Arrival of Lewis Hallam and his company at Williamsburg, VA. First performance of the company at Williamsburg. A Virginia theatre audience. The first theatrical prologue spoken in America.
• Lewis Hallam in New York and Philadelphia - Difficulties with the authorities. Remarkable repertoire. Opposition overcome in the Quaker City. Death of Lewis Hallam. Rise of David Douglass. Invasion of New England. The moral dialogues. Thomson's Epilogue in Defence of the Player.