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Fatal Curiosity
''Fatal Curiosity'' is a 1737 tragedy by the British writer George Lillo. It is also known by the alternative title ''Guilt Its Own Punishment''. The original cast included Thomas Davies and Charlotte Charke. Implicitly, the work attacks the government and Imperial strategy of Robert Walpole, who had then been prime minister for over a decade. It was shown with Henry Fielding's '' The Historical Register'' as an afterpiece. Soon afterwards Walpole brought forward a Licensing Act 1737 The Licensing Act of 1737 is a defunct Act of Parliament in the Kingdom of Great Britain, and a pivotal moment in theatrical history. Its purpose was to control and censor what was being said about the British government through theatre. The act ... to clamp down on theatrical criticism of the government. References Bibliography * Baines, Paul & Ferarro, Julian & Rogers, Pat. ''The Wiley-Blackwell Encyclopedia of Eighteenth-Century Writers and Writing, 1660-1789''. Wiley-Blackwell, 2011. * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George Lillo
George Lillo (3 February 1691 – 4 September 1739) was an English playwright and tragedian. He was also a jeweller in London. He produced his first stage work, ''Silvia, or The Country Burial'', in 1730, and a year later his most famous play, ''The London Merchant''. He wrote at least six more plays before his death in 1739, including '' The Christian Hero'' (1735), '' Fatal Curiosity'' (1737) and ''Marina'' (1738). Life George Lillo was born in Moorfields, or Moorgate, in the City of London.Steffensen, James L."Lillo, George (1691/1693–1739)" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004; online edition, May 2008, retrieved 9 December 2011 ("You do not currently have access to this article"Archived site He became a partner in his father's goldsmith's and jewellery business. Early stage works Lillo wrote at least eight plays between 1730 and his death in 1739. His first work in the theatre was the ballad opera '' Sylvia, or The Country Burial'' i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Her Majesty's Theatre
Her Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The present building was designed by Charles J. Phipps and was constructed in 1897 for actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who established the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art at the theatre. In the early decades of the 20th century, Tree produced spectacular productions of William Shakespeare, Shakespeare and other classical works, and the theatre hosted premieres by major playwrights such as George Bernard Shaw, J. M. Synge, Noël Coward and J. B. Priestley. Since the First World War, the wide stage has made the theatre suitable for large-scale musical productions, and the theatre has accordingly specialised in hosting musical theatre, musicals. The theatre has been home to record-setting musical theatre runs, notably the First World War sensation ''Chu Chin Chow''Larkin, Colin (ed). ''Guinness Who's Who of Stage Musicals'' (Guinness Publishing, 1994) and the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Haymarket, London
Haymarket is a street in the St James's area of the City of Westminster, London. It runs from Piccadilly Circus in the north to Pall Mall, London, Pall Mall at the southern end. Located on the street are the Haymarket Theatre, Theatre Royal, Her Majesty's Theatre, New Zealand House, a cinema complex and restaurants. History Origins The broad street connecting Pall Mall, London, Pall Mall with Piccadilly is recorded in the Elizabethan era and, as the name suggests, was chiefly used as a street market for the sale of fodder and other farm produce. At that time, it was a rural spot, with the village of Charing (London), Charing the closest settlement. This practice continued to the reign of William III of England, William III; by that time, carts carrying hay and straw were allowed in the street to trade, toll-free. In 1692, when the street was paved, a tax was levied on the loads: 3Penny (British pre-decimal coin), d for a load of hay and 2d for one of straw. In 1830, the market w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tragedy
Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy is to invoke an accompanying catharsis, or a "pain hatawakens pleasure", for the audience. While many cultures have developed forms that provoke this paradoxical response, the term ''tragedy'' often refers to a specific tradition of drama that has played a unique and important role historically in the self-definition of Western civilization. That tradition has been multiple and discontinuous, yet the term has often been used to invoke a powerful effect of cultural identity and historical continuity—"the Greeks and the Elizabethans, in one cultural form; Hellenes and Christians, in a common activity," as Raymond Williams puts it. From its origins in the theatre of ancient Greece 2500 years ago, from which there survives only a fra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thomas Davies (bookseller)
Thomas Davies (c. 1713 – 1785) was a Scottish bookseller and author. He studied at the University of Edinburgh and was for some years on the stage; but having been ridiculed by Churchill in ''The Rosciad'' he gave up acting and opened a bookshop in Covent Garden. It was here that in 1763 he introduced Boswell to Dr. Johnson, who was his close friend and to whom he dedicated his edition of the works of Massinger. He wrote a successful ''Life of Garrick'' (1780), which passed through four editions, and ''Dramatic Miscellanies'' (three volumes, 1783–4). Life He was born about 1713, and was educated at the University of Edinburgh (1728 and 1729). In 1736 he appeared in George Lillo's '' Fatal Curiosity'' at the Haymarket, then under Henry Fielding's management. He then tried bookselling, but failed and returned to the stage. On 24 January 1746 he attempted the part of Pierre in '' Venice Preserved'', which was performed for his benefit at Covent Garden. He next became a tr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charlotte Charke
Charlotte Charke (née Cibber, also Charlotte Secheverell, aka Charles Brown) (13 January 1713 – 6 April 1760) was an English actress, playwright, novelist, autobiographer, and noted cross-dresser. She acted on the stage from the age of 17, mainly in breeches roles, and took to wearing male clothing off the stage. She assumed the name "Charles Brown" and called her daughter "Mrs. Brown." She suffered a series of failures in her business affairs after working in various jobs commonly associated with men, including valet, sausage maker, farmer, pastry chef, and tavern owner. She eventually succeeded under her name as a writer and continued as a novelist and memoirist for the rest of her life. Early life Charlotte was the twelfth and last child born to actor/playwright and poet laureate Colley Cibber and the musician/actress Katherine Shore. She was born when her mother was 45, and later said she felt she had been "an unwelcome Guest to the family." Most of her siblings died ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Walpole
Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, (26 August 1676 – 18 March 1745; known between 1725 and 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole) was a British statesman and Whig politician who, as First Lord of the Treasury, Chancellor of the Exchequer, and Leader of the House of Commons, is generally regarded as the ''de facto'' first Prime Minister of Great Britain. Although the exact dates of Walpole's dominance, dubbed the "Robinocracy", are a matter of scholarly debate, the period 1721–1742 is often used. He dominated the Walpole–Townshend ministry, as well as the subsequent Walpole ministry, and holds the record as the longest-serving British prime minister. W. A. Speck wrote that Walpole's uninterrupted run of 20 years as prime minister "is rightly regarded as one of the major feats of British political history. Explanations are usually offered in terms of his expert handling of the political system after 1720, ndhis unique blending of the surviving powers of the crown with the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Henry Fielding
Henry Fielding (22 April 1707 – 8 October 1754) was an English novelist, irony writer, and dramatist known for earthy humour and satire. His comic novel '' Tom Jones'' is still widely appreciated. He and Samuel Richardson are seen as founders of the traditional English novel. He also holds a place in the history of law enforcement, having used his authority as a magistrate to found the Bow Street Runners, London's first intermittently funded, full-time police force. Early life Fielding was born 22 April 1707 at Sharpham, Somerset, and educated at Eton College, where he began a lifelong friendship with William Pitt the Elder. His mother died when he was 11. A suit for custody was brought by his grandmother against his charming but irresponsible father, Lt Gen. Edmund Fielding. The settlement placed Henry in his grandmother's care, but he continued to see his father in London. In 1725, Henry tried to abduct his cousin Sarah Andrews (with whom he was infatuated) while she was on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Historical Register For The Year 1736
''The Historical Register for the Year 1736'' is a 1737 play by Henry Fielding. A denunciation of contemporary society and politics, most notably prime minister Sir Robert Walpole, it was performed for the first time in April 1737 and published shortly thereafter by J. Roberts in London according to the book's title page (but actually W. Cheyne in Edinburgh). In satirizing contemporary politicians, "good" society and the more influential figures of the London theatre of the time, ''The Historical Register for the year 1736'' is responsible, in more than one way, for his having been censored from the stage. The play gives a critical survey of English manners and morals, it exposes the corruption of political life and the false values of the beau monde. It also satirizes some influential figures of the London theatre of its time. It was owing to such satires that Prime Minister Robert Walpole's government in 1737 introduced a Licensing Act for the theatre, which put drama under th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Afterpiece
An afterpiece is a short, usually humorous one-act playlet or musical work following the main attraction, the full-length play, and concluding the theatrical evening.p24 "The Chambers Dictionary"Edinburgh, Chambers,2003 This short comedy, farce, opera or pantomime was a popular theatrical form in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was presented to lighten the five-act tragedy that was commonly performed. A similar piece preceding the main attraction is a curtain raiser. An example is ''The Padlock'' by Charles Dibdin, first performed in London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ... in 1768. Notes Theatrical genres Opera genres {{Theat-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Licensing Act 1737
The Licensing Act of 1737 is a defunct Act of Parliament in the Kingdom of Great Britain, and a pivotal moment in theatrical history. Its purpose was to control and censor what was being said about the British government through theatre. The act was modified by the Theatres Act 1843 and was finally named as the Theatres Act 1968. The Lord Chamberlain was the official censor and the office of Examiner of Plays was created under the Act. The Examiner assisted the Lord Chamberlain in the task of censoring all plays from 1737 to 1968. The Examiner read all plays which were to be publicly performed, produced a synopsis and recommended them for licence, consulting the Lord Chamberlain in cases of doubt. Forerunner The function of censorship of plays for performance (at least in London) fell to the Master of the Revels by the time of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. The power was used mostly with respect to matters of politics and religion (including blasphemy). It was certainly exercised ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1737 Plays
Events January–March * January 5 – Spain and the Holy Roman Empire sign instruments of cession at Pontremoli in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany in Italy, with the Empire receiving control of Tuscany and the Grand Duchy of Parma and Piacenza, in return for Don Carlos of Spain being recognized as King of Naples and King of Sicily. * January 9 – The Empires of Austria and Russia enter into a secret military alliance that leads to Austria's disastrous entry into the Russo-Turkish War. * January 18 – In Manila, a peace treaty is signed between Spain's Governor-General of the Philippines, Fernándo Valdés y Tamon, and the Sultan Azim ud-Din I of Sulu, recognizing Azim's authority over the islands of the Sulu Archipelago. * February 20 – France's Foreign Minister, Germain Louis Chauvelin, is dismissed by King Louis XV's Chief Minister, Cardinal André-Hercule de Fleury * February 27 – French scientists Henri-Louis Duhamel du Monceau and Ge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
