be an American playwright who was committed to exploring native subjects and themes. His work reflected the conflict for American authors in finding their own native voice. He believed that American artistic tastes should be independent of those of Europe, and condemned Americans' feelings of inferiority. He took the position that American art was to be both democratic and useful. Two of Barker's most popular plays were The Indian Princess and Marmion. Superstition is considered one of Barker's best plays. The Indian Princess The Indian Princess; or, La Belle Sauvage (1808), is a melodrama about the Pocahontas story. Though originally written as a play, Barker decided to turn it into an operatic melodrama, collaborating with the English John Bray, who wrote the music. It is the first play that survives in its entirety with Native American characters, (Ponteach from 1766, for example, was a play about Native Americans that was never produced). It was also the first original American play to be produced in London after being premiered in America. However, according to the American music scholar H. Wiley Hitchcock, the London production was "a bowdlerized version" of the original. In a letter of June 10, 1832, to William Dunlap, Barker said that the London production at Drury Lane "differs essentially from mine in the plan and arrangement". It was premiered at The Chestnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia. It is based on Captain John Smith's Generall Historie of Virginia (1624), though he used Smith's text freely. Its New York premiere was at the Park Theatre on June 14, 1809. It satisfied intrigue for both American and English audiences regarding the figure of the Native American. Even though romantic conquest takes precedence over colonial conquest, it is evident that the connection between the two is strong. The Indian Princess gained popularity due to a search for a national identity, as American history was becoming more popular. As Susan Scheckel wrote, "In bringing Pocahontas to the popular stage, James Nelson Barker enlisted the conventions of melodrama to produce a romanticized version of American history that resolved conflicts implicit in past acts of conquest and revolution and defined national identity in terms that reinforced a sense of moral and cultural integrity." Though historical accuracy is overshadowed by romantic melodrama, Barker was aware that that was what his audience wanted, as they were accustomed to romantic melodramas from England. As Jeffrey H. Richards noted,