Oscar Edward Cesare, 1885 - 1948 - Erstwhile Susan - c. 1916 - T-Shirt

A pencil and ink theatre caricature shows two performers from the stage comedy Erstwhile Susan, drawn with a quick, economical line on cream paper.

Visual Elements & Composition

Parchment beige fills most of the sheet, with charcoal black and pencil grey carrying the line work. Two standing figures sit on either side of a small table holding a basket of flowers. On the left, a woman in a wide-brimmed hat trimmed with roses wears a ruffled, tiered dress and holds a fan at her waist, her curled hair framing the face. On the right, a bald man with a pointed beard and bow tie stands with his hands in his pockets in a double-brested suit and waistcoat. The contrast in height and dress gives the scene its comic balance: her ornate silhouette against his plain suit. The labels "Mrs. Fiske" and "John Cope" sit beside the figures, and the caption reads "Mrs. Barnaby Dreary and friend Husband, in 'Erstwhile Susan'."

Meaning & Symbolism

The flowered hat, the ruffles and the exaggerated posture mark both figures as stock characters of the comic stage. Oscar Edward Cesare (1885-1948) drew caricatures of public figures, including performers, for American newspapers, and his theatre sketches of the 1910s recorded how actors looked in their roles for the audience. This drawing, dated about 1916, belongs to that body of work, capturing the costume and manner of two players in a single production.

Built for the Front of the Shirt

A caricature works best when the eye can take in the whole pose at once, and this design does that. The two figures stand apart across the open space of the chest, so the comic contrast between them reads clearly from across a room. Wearing it puts the stage on your own body, with the flowered hat and the plain suit facing out into the world.