The problem of .22Spectacle.22 Augustan drama

rich s glory : john rich takes control of covent garden theatre in 1732. first play stage way of world.

as during restoration, economic reality drove stage during augustan period. under charles ii court patronage meant economic success, , therefore restoration stage featured plays suit monarch and/or court. drama celebrated kings , told history of britain s monarchs fit fare crown , courtiers. charles ii philanderer, , restoration comedy featured highly sexualized set of plays. however, after reign of william iii , mary ii, court , crown stopped taking great interest in playhouse. theaters had money audience of city dwellers, therefore, , consequently plays reflected city anxieties , celebrated lives of citizens ones draw crowds. aristocratic material restoration continued mounted, , adaptations of tudor plays made , ran, new plays authored , staged domestic- , middle-class dramas. other dramatic innovation spectacle : plays had little or no text, emphasized novel special effects.

pantomime , tableau spectacle

the public attended when saw lives represented on stage, attended when there sight impress them. if costumes lavish, sets impressive or actresses alluring, audiences attend. restoration spectacular had seen development of english opera , oratorio , war between competing theaters produce expensive , eye-popping plays. however, these blockbuster productions mean financial ruin as security, , neither of 2 main playhouses continue brinksmanship long. after these battles between playhouses, , these multiple, theaters calculatingly sought highest appeal lowest cost. if cost of rehearsal time, in particular, shortened, theater s investment reduced. rehearsal time cost playhouse cast, property masters, , stages, , long rehearsal meant fewer plays put on. additionally, dramatists received money each third night of box office, , dangerous house needed every farthing defray costs. star dramatists negotiate more 1 benefit night , might have terms benefits on revival, while new, unknown, or dependent authors managed. solution theatrical producers cut costs of plays , actors while increasing outright spectacle, , there quite few plays not literary @ staged more literary plays.

a print william hogarth entitled view of british stage 1724 depicting managers of drury lane (robert wilks, colley cibber, , barton booth) rehearsing play consisting of nothing special effects, while used scripts way of world, inter al., toilet paper. battle of effects common subject of satire literary wits, including pope.

john rich , colley cibber dueled on special theatrical effects. put on plays spectacles, text of play afterthought. dragons, whirlwinds, thunder, ocean waves, , actual elephants on stage. battles, explosions, , horses put on boards (cibber). rich specialized in pantomime , famous character lun in harlequin presentations. playwrights of these works hired men, not dramatists, , did not receive traditional third-night author s profits. pantomime, after all, required little in way of playwright , more in way of director, , john rich , colley cibber both acting star players , directors, such on-demand spectacles did not necessitate poet. further, spectacles written answer public s whims or rival theater s triumphs, risked offensive political statements, , did not require paying benefits playwright. in other words, gave managers more profit. plays put on in manner not preserved or studied, near monopoly on theaters, particularly in 1720s, infuriated established literary authors. alexander pope 1 of poets attack spectacle (in 1727 dunciad and, more vigor, dunciad b). criticism widespread colley cibber himself made excuses part in special-effects war, claiming had no choice comply market pressures.

the chromatic tortures , divas of opera

if vacant, subliterary spectacles not enough of threat dramatists, opera, had crossed on england in restoration, experienced enormous surge in popularity italian grand opera in england in 1710s , 1720s. in spectator, both in number 18 , 3 april 1711 number, , many places elsewhere, joseph addison fretted foreign opera drive english drama stage altogether. these fears followed sudden rage italian singers , operas took on london in 1711 arrival of handel. inasmuch opera combined singing acting, mixed genre, , violation of neoclassical strictures had made controversial form start. addison, damning opera s heterogeny, wrote, our countrymen not forbear laughing when heard lover chanting out billet-doux, , superscription of letter set tune. type of opera not took theatrical rehearsal time , space, took away dramatic subject matter. straight playwrights @ loss. john gay lamented (see below), no 1 use music in play unless opera, , englishmen forbidden that. add insult injury, casts , celebrated stars foreigners and, farinelli , senesino (the latter of whom paid 2 thousand pounds single season in 1721), castrati. castrati symbols, english, of roman catholic church. satirists saw in opera non plus ultra of invidiousness. high melodies cover singers expressions of grief or joy, conflating emotion , sense under tune might entirely unrelated. alexander pope blasted shattering of decorum , sense in dunciad b , suggested real purpose awaken roman catholic church s power ( wake dull church ) while put stop political , satirical stage , made londoners fall sleep of un-enlightenment:

joy chaos! let division reign:
chromatic tortures shall drive them [the muses] hence,
break nerves, , fritter sense:
one trill shall harmonize joy, grief, , rage,
wake dull church, , lull ranting stage;
to same notes thy sons shall hum, or snore,
and thy yawning daughters cry, encore. (iv 55–60)






an 1875 postcard victoria , albert hall showing duke s company theatre in dorset gardens (the so-called machine house ) in operation 1671 1709, began playhouse , gradually became house spectacle.

furthermore, grand opera had high degree of spectacle in it. in 17th century, when opera first came england, prompted enormously complex theatrical stagings present illusions of ghosts, mythological figures, , epic battles. when handel s arrival in england spurred new vogue english opera, caused new vogue imported opera, no matter content, long create enormous visual impact. although of tory wits pope , john gay wrote opera librettos (the 2 combining acis , galatea handel), opera spectacular form of theater left little room dramatic acting of playwrights. pope argued in dunciad handel s operas masculine in comparison italian , french opera. while musical commentary, commentary on amount of decoration , frippery put on stage, on way handel s operas concentrated on stories , music rather theatrical effects.

it not merely fact such operas drove out original drama, antics , vogue singers took away else, seemingly, infuriated english authors. singers (particularly sopranos) introduced london concept of prima donna, in both senses of term. in 1727, 2 italian sopranos, francesca cuzzoni , faustina bordoni, had such rivalry , hatred of each other (the latter had been paid more former) audiences encouraged support favorite singer hissing rival, , during performance of astyanax in 1727, 2 women began fight on stage (loughrey 13). john gay wrote jonathan swift on 3 february 1723:

there s nobody allow d sing eunuch or italian woman. every body grown great judge of musick in time of poetry & folks not distinguish 1 tune daily dispute on different styles of handel, bononcini, , aitillio. people have forgot homer, , virgil & caesar.

these operas spectaculars in every sense. personalities of stars before stage, stars before music, , music before words. additionally, opera brought new stage machines , effects. handel, whom pope values restrained , sober, had heroine brought on stage 2 huge dragons out of mouths issue fire , smoke in rinaldo in 1711.

the problem of spectacle continued in 1720s , 1730s. in 1734, henry fielding has tragedian, fustian, describe horror of pantomime show:

intimating after audience had been tired dull works of shakespeare, jonson, vanbrugh, , others, entertained 1 of these pantomimes, of master of playhouse, 2 or 3 painters, , half score dancing-masters compilers. ...i have wondered how possible creature of human understanding, after having been diverted 3 hours production of great genius, sit 3 more , see set of people running stage after 1 another, without speaking 1 syllable, , playing several juggling tricks, done @ fawks s after better manner; , this, sir, town not pay additional prices, loses several fine parts of best authors, cut out make room said farces. (pasquin, v i.)

fustian complains authors denied stagings because of these entertainments, and, well, playhouse managers steal plays authors. fustian says earlier, playwright spend 4 months trying manager s attention , tells won t do, , returns again, reserving subject, , perhaps name, brings out in next pantomime (pasquin iv i.).