By 1866, Henry C. Jarrett and Henry Palmer had formed a producing partnership with the idea to import European novelty acts to America. They saw the Féerie "La Biche au bois" in Paris, and a pantomime at Astley's Amphitheatre in London, and they wanted to incorporate into their American productions the original elements of spectacle that they saw in those shows. They engaged some of the lead dancers from the Paris show and purchased the grand transformation scene from the London piece. They hoped to put together a spectacular production at the New York Academy of Music, but the Academy burned down that summer. Meanwhile, Barras, an actor, wrote an extravaganza, "The Black Crook", with the intention of touring the piece to feature himself and his wife, dancer Sallie St. Clair. He negotiated the show's New York premiere with William Wheatley, the manager at Niblo's Garden, for a run of 100 performances, which was an extraordinarily long contract for the 1880s. Barras then began to build the scenery and properties in Buffalo, New York.