Abbey, Schoeffel and Grau

Abbey, Schoeffel and Grau, originally Abbey and Schoeffel, was an American theatre management and production firm. The firm was established in 1876 when a partnership was formed between Henry Abbey and John Schoeffel. Fellow theatre manager and producer Maurice Grau began collaborating with the pair as early as 1880, but did not formally join the firm until 1887 when it became Abbey, Schoeffel and Grau. They managed and ran a number of theatres in New York and Boston, including the Metropolitan Opera House ("the old Met"). Abbey was the sole manager and lessee of the Metropolitan Opera during its first season in 1883-1884 with Schoeffel uninvolved with the Met at this time. Grau was hired by Abbey to serve as the Met's unofficial business manager during its first season but did not have a formal title on the Met's staff. Later, Abbey, Schoeffel and Grau were the official co-managers of the Met from 1891 until 1896 when Abbey died. The firm dissolved at the conclusion of the Met's 1896-1897 season, and Grau became the sole manager of the Metropolitan Opera from 1896-1903.