MAE603-eL8

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IDOL Institute of Distance and Online Learning M.A 2 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL English Course Code: MAE 603 Semester: First Book ID: ………… Unit: 8 www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603

IDOL ENGLISH Institute of Distance and Online Learning 33 OBJECTIVES INTRODUCTION Student will be introduced to the history of 18th In this unit we are going to learn about the Century Theatre historic aspect of 18th century drama Student will be introduced to the characteristics of The student will be able to understand 18th century Drama features of dramas of 18th century Student will be able to some of the major Student will be able to understand the age dramatists of the 18th Century www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAEQ610031) INASlTl ITriUgThEt OarFeDrIeSsTeArNvCeEd AwNitDh OCNUL-IIDNOE LLEARNING

IDOL TOPICS TO BE COVERED Institute of Distance and Online Learning 4 > 18th Century Literature History, particularly drama > Characteristics of the 18th Century drama > Major dramatists of the 18th century www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 5 A general decline in the level of playwriting during the 18th century was offset in large part by the emergence of some excellent actors and the building of hundreds of theatres throughout Europe. A new audience also emerged at this time. Inflation and the studied carelessness of the aristocracy had left many noble families impoverished, while middle-class merchants and financiers prospered. www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 6 Intermarriage became a necessity for the nobility and a means of increasing social status for the middle class, whose members constituted the greater part of the new theatregoing public. Eager to enjoy its hard-won privileges but at the same time unable to cultivate the same tastes as the nobility, the middle class demanded something less artificial and formal than the theatre of the late 17th century—something more realistic and genteel. This audience was not prepared to labour over aesthetic subtleties; it wanted sensation. www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 7 The 18th century saw the flourishing of theatre as a popular pastime and many theatres were enlarged and new playhouses built in London and the provinces. One of the most successful shows on the London stage in the early part of the 18th century was the ballad opera. John Gay recycled popular songs of the day and wrote new lyrics that were humorous and satirical. Despite the attempt to suppress it via the 1737 Licensing Act, satire remained popular, such as those staged by Samuel Foote at the Haymarket Theatre. This engraving shows a performance of The Beggar's Opera from about 1729. This comic opera was first produced at Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre by the father of pantomime John Rich in 1728. www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18 CenturyInstitute of Distance and OnlineLearningth 8 Q—Which was the popular stage form in the 18th century? A—comedy B—Tragedy C—Dance D—Ballad Opera www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 9 At this time, it was still common for members of the audience to pay a little extra to sit on the stage itself. This ensured that everyone in the house could see their fine clothes, hear their witty comments and the young gallants could get close to the actresses. When an actor had a benefit performance, they would squeeze as many seats as they could on to the stage in order to maximise their profit. The actors barely had enough room to perform and were subject to interference from the spectators. www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 10 John Gay, born in 1688, is most famous for his ballad opera The Beggar's Opera, first produced in 1728. This wasn't his first attempt at writing for the stage. He had tried satire, comedy and pastoral, including The Mohocks in 1712 and The What d'ye Call It in 1715. He had also written some poetry. However, none of these works had gone down particularly well with audiences. The Beggar's Opera took the town by storm. Gay himself seems to have been a charming man but quite shy. He presented himself to the world as a simple countryman, but the modesty hid a sharp eye and a sly sense of humour. www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 11 The portrait captures these qualities, as does the epitaph he wrote for himself. He worked and was friends with many of the great writers of his day, such as Alexander Pope, to whom this plate is dedicated. Furthermore, one of the most famous satires of the time was Lilliput based on Jonathan Swift's book Gulliver's Travels which was performed on stage in 1756 with a cast of children. Cartoons about current social or political events were popular in the 18th and 19th centuries. http://www.vam.ac.uk www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 12 The below cartoon is satirising the fashion for child actors that swept the country in the late 19th century, the most famous of whom was William Henry West or Master Betty. His success led to The Glasgow Roscius and The Little Siddons, named after Sarah Siddons. The children announcing their identities in this toy theatre take no notice of each other, and all appear to be costumed for a different play. www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 http://www.vam.ac.uk/ All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 13 cartoon is satirising the fashion for child actors that swept the country in the late 19th century, the most famous of whom was William Henry West or Master Betty. www.cuidol.in http://www.vam.ac.uk/ All right are reserved with CU-IDOL Unit-8 MAE 603

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 14 The Licensing Act:- The Licensing Act of 1737 was to have a huge impact on the development of theatre in Britain. It restricted the production of plays to the two patent theatres and tightened up the censorship of drama, stating that the Lord Chamberlain with his Examiners of Plays must vet any script before a performance was allowed. The act was put in place by Prime Minister Robert Walpole who was concerned that political satire on the stage was undermining him and the authority of the government. A production of The Golden Rump enabled Walpole to push the case for banning obscene drama from the public arena. The play scandalously suggested that the Queen administered enemas to the King. Henry Fielding, author of a number of successful satires, and others were suspicious that this play had been engineered by Walpole himself. www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 15 Over the next 100 years the restrictions of the Licensing Act contributed to the popularity of certain styles of theatre. Non-patent theatres produced melodrama, ballad opera and burlesque which incorporated music between short scenes and thus were not classed as plays. The act was responsible for dividing British theatrical performance into what became known as legitimate and illegitimate theatre. The huge growth in demand for theatrical entertainment in the early 19th century made the dominance of the patent theatres unworkable. In 1843 the Patent Act was dropped, enabling other theatres to present drama. However, the Lord Chamberlain's censorship of plays remained in place until 1968. One of the last play to be censored was Edward Bond's production of Saved in 1965. Before 1968 the Lord Chamberlain's blue pencil marks were struck through lines in literally hundreds of plays including classical works such as Lysistrata by Aristophanes, George Bernard Shaw's Mrs Warren's Profession and Ibsen's Hedda Gabler. In the 1930s club theatres in London managed to avoid censorship by admitting 'members' and presented new and controversial works, including many plays by foreign writers www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 16 William Shakespeare:- Shakespeare's plays became increasingly popular during the 18th century but were reworked to suit the tastes of the day. His style was still felt to be too erratic and poets such as Alexander Pope carefully tidied up any uneven verse lines. Shakespeare's ending to King Lear was felt to be too distressing and Nahum Tate's revised version (where Cordelia and the King survive) was preferred to the original. David Garrick rewrote the end of Romeo and Juliet so that the lovers speak to each other before dying in the tomb and turned the Taming of the Shrew into a farce. However, Garrick was also responsible for restoring much of Shakespeare's original text to other plays. www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 17 The 18th century saw the development of Shakespeare as a national symbol. The Stratford Jubilee of 1769, organised by Garrick, celebrated 200 years since Shakespeare's birth. A wooden octagonal playhouse was constructed beside the river at Stratford-upon-Avon but no work by Shakespeare was performed. A planned procession of characters from Shakespeare's plays was postponed due to terrible weather and eventually re-enacted on the stage at Drury Lane in London where it proved an enormous hit. www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 18 David Garrick:- Garrick was one of Britain's greatest actors and the first to be called a star. From 1741 until his retirement in 1776, he was a highly successful actor, producer and theatre manager. He wrote more than 20 plays and adapted many more, including plays by Shakespeare. His sellout performance as Richard III at Goodman's Fields Theatre caught the eye of the patent theatres. In 1742, the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane hired him and he began a triumphant career that would last for over 30 years. Within five years, he was also managing the theatre. Garrick changed the whole style of acting. He rejected the fashion for declamation, where actors would strike a pose and speak their lines formally. Garrick preferred a more easy, natural manner of speech and movement. The effect was a more subtle, less mannered style of acting and a move towards realism. www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 19 David Garrick:- One of Garrick's most famous roles was Hamlet. He allegedly had a special wig that made Hamlet's hair stand on end. This he used to dramatic effect in the scene where the ghost of Hamlet's father appears. Whilst modern audiences would probably laugh at the sight of the hair on an actor's wig standing on end, such was the force of Garrick's performance in the scene where Hamlet meets his father's ghost that audiences were filled with absolute terror. Garrick also became a hugely successful manager after taking over Drury Lane theatre in 1747. He made several major changes and ended the tradition of having audience members sitting on the stage, where they often interfered with the action. www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 20 Q—Name the dramatist whose plays were very popular in the 18th century? A—Theatres were reopened in 1660 B—Theatres were closed in 1660 C—Dramas were performed without theatres D—Dramas were read www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL British Drama History—18th Century Institute of Distance and Online Learning 21 Q—Name the dramatist who rewrote the end of Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet? A—Ben Jonson B—Christopher Marlowe C—David Garrick D—John Gay www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL References Institute of Distance and Online Learning 22 1. Leech, C. (1978). Marlowe: A Collection of Critical Essays (Twentieth Century Views Series). New Delhi: Prentice Hall India 2. O’Neill, J. (1969). Critics on Marlowe. London: Allen & Unwin 3. Sharma, G. ed. (1984). Reinterpretations of Marlowe’s Faustus: A Collection of Critical Essays. New Delhi: Doaba House 4. Bradley, A.C. (2009). Shakespearean Tragedy: Lectures on Hamlet, Othello, King Lear, Macbeth. New Delhi: Dodo Press 5. Kaufmann, R.J. (1970). Elizabethan Drama: Modern Essays in Criticism. Oxford: Oxford University Press 6. Harbage, A. (2005). Shakespeare: The Tragedies: A Collection of Critical Essays. New Delhi: Pearson 7. Adelman, .t ed. (1980). Twentieth Century Interpretations of King Lear. New Delhi: Prentice-Hall India 8. Morwood, J. & Crane, D. , Ed. (1996). Sheridan Studies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 9. Chaudhary, A.D. (2010). Contemporary British Drama. India : Penguin Books. 10. en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Drama 11. study.com › academy › lesson › history-of-drama-dramatic-movements 12. en.wikipedia.org › wiki › History_of_theatre 13. englishhistory.net › shakespeare › elizabethan-theatre www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL

IDOL Institute of Distance and Online Learning 23 THANK YOU For queries Email: [email protected] www.cuidol.in Unit-8 MAE 603 All right are reserved with CU-IDOL