Babes in Toyland - 1903 Grumio

A final Caroline Siedle piece from Babes in Toyland is this costume design for Grumio, an assistant to the Master Toymaker. This is an elegant outfit, most likely from the third act of the production.

With striped coat, floral waistcoat and lace, ribbons and bows in tones of light blue and turquoise, you'd never guess this was a lowly assistant. Siedle has given him all the trappings of a dandy, a contrast to the outfit he wears in the Toymaker’s shop. In the third act he’s supposed to be disguised as a valet, which could account for his finery; valets like to be well dressed! This pairs well with Jill’s green dress, as the two characters are fleeing Toyland together.

Grumio was played by Charles Guyer, the husband of Nellie Daly, who played Jill. The pair created a hit in the show with their “knockabout dance” in which they destroy much of the Toymaker’s workroom. The color advertisement shown gives a sense of the action; we see Grumio wearing his workshop costume spinning Jill, wearing her Act 1 dress. But in the later publicity photo shown below, Grumio (Walter Schrode) is still dressed for the workroom, while Jill (Maud Campbell) is in her fancy outfit. Identifying what costume was used where can be very confusing!