Vaudeville
From 1880 to the early 1930s, large crowds watched jugglers, acrobats, singers, dancers, dramatists, and comedians perform on vaudeville stages This book details the rise and fall of this uniquely American form of entertainment.

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1. \Vaude"ville\, n.
   Loosely, and now commonly, variety (see above), as, to play
   in vaudeville; a vaudeville actor.
   

2. \Vaude"ville\, n. [F., fr. Vau-de-vire, a village in
   Normandy, where Olivier Basselin, at the end of the 14th
   century, composed such songs.] [Written also {vaudevil}.]
   1. A kind of song of a lively character, frequently embodying
      a satire on some person or event, sung to a familiar air
      in couplets with a refrain; a street song; a topical song.
   2. A theatrical piece, usually a comedy, the dialogue of
      which is intermingled with light or satirical songs, set
      to familiar airs.
            The early vaudeville, which is the forerunner of the
            opera bouffe, was light, graceful, and piquant.
                                                  --Johnson's
                                                  Cyc.