IATSE Local One

In 1863 the first stage employees organization was named the Theatrical Workmans Council and then became the Theatrical Mechanical Association in 1865 when it incorporated under New York State law. This was encouraged by Abraham Lincoln being elected president of the United States with the votes of the working class. When a flat dropped on acclaimed actor Louis James during Hamlets soliloquy, the actor retired to his dressing room and informed management that he would not return to the stage until the professional stagehands were reinstated. They were. The bond between stagehands and actors, still solid today, was made fast. The success of Theatrical Protective Union in New York did not go unnoticed in other cities. The Theatrical Protective Union of New York was designated Theatrical Protective Union Number One in honor of its place in history. The Local became better known as Local One of the National Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, the mother local of the Alliance ...