A solo play about Charles Feltman, the immigrant who created the modern hot dog.
Set between nineteenth-century Coney Island and the present day, this solo play tells the true story of Charles Feltman, a German immigrant whose food cart business grew into a culinary phenomenon and helped popularize the hot dog in America. Through a series of characters performed by Michael Quinn, the production follows Feltman's rise from newcomer to entrepreneur while also tracing Quinn's own efforts to revive the historic Feltman's brand more than a century later.
The production is written and performed by Michael Quinn, an actor, playwright, historian, and former owner of the Feltman's hot dog brand. Direction is by Peter Michael Marino, whose work includes numerous solo and independent theatre productions. The piece combines historical research, personal experience, and character-driven storytelling to examine the origins and legacy of one of America's most recognizable foods.
Presented as a one-person show, the production recreates the world of nineteenth-century Coney Island through multiple characters and historical episodes. The narrative moves between Charles Feltman's entrepreneurial journey and Michael Quinn's contemporary connection to the brand, placing both stories within the broader history of immigration, business, and American food culture.