126-471: Nahum Tate ( / ˈ n eɪ . əm ˈ t eɪ t / NAY -əm TAYT ; 1652 – 30 July 1715) was an Anglo-Irish poet , hymnist and lyricist , who became Poet Laureate in 1692. Tate is best known for The History of King Lear , his 1681 adaptation of Shakespeare 's King Lear , and for his libretto for Henry Purcell 's opera, Dido and Aeneas . He also wrote the lyrics to a Christmas carol , " While shepherds watched their flocks ". Nahum Tate
252-483: A Mr Dyte . Hadfield was quickly subdued, and George, apparently unruffled, ordered the performance to continue. The comedy actor John Bannister became acting manager in 1802. With Sheridan's son Tom , and in the circle of Richard Wroughton (stage-manager), William Dowton , Michael Kelly , Tom Dibdin and their likes, he helped to see the Theatre Royal through its next catastrophe. On 24 February 1809, despite
378-410: A stucco facade facing Bridges Street. This facade was the first time any structure that might be considered part of the theatre proper actually abutted the street: the building, like the 1663 original, had been built in the centre of the block, hemmed in by other structures. The narrow passage from Bridges street to the theatre now became an interior hallway; some theatre office space also went up behind
504-496: A "Riding Yard" ) in which the theatre stood. It is likely that the yard remained open to the sky at this date, on three sides of the Theatre Royal walls. Henri Misson, a visitor from France, offers a description of the theatre in 1698: his use of the word "amphitheatre" supports the view that Drury Lane had a circular line of boxes surrounding its pit: The Pit is an Amphitheatre, fill'd with Benches without Backboards, and adorn'd and cover'd with green Cloth. Men of Quality, particularly
630-587: A Commonwealth , performed at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in 1682. Tate's farce A Duke and No Duke (first printed 1685, but acted earlier at the Theatre Royal) imitated Sir Aston Cockayne 's Trappolin suppos'd a Prince . His Cuckold's Haven (performed 1685 at the Theatre Royal) was derived from Chapman and John Marston 's Eastward Ho . The Island Princess, or the Generous Portugals (1687)
756-423: A May 1663 letter from one Monsieur de Maonconys: "All benches of the pit, where people of rank also sit, are shaped in a semi-circle, each row higher than the next." The three galleries formed a semicircle around the floor seats; both the first and second galleries were divided up into boxes. The Great Plague of London struck in the summer of 1665, and the Theatre Royal, along with all other public entertainment,
882-503: A Wellesley born in Dublin to the Earl of Mornington , head of a prominent Anglo-Irish family in Dublin; and in the 20th century Field Marshal Lord Alanbrooke , Field Marshal Lord Alexander of Tunis , General Sir John Winthrop Hackett , Field Marshal Sir Henry Wilson and Field Marshal Sir Garnet Wolseley . (see also Irish military diaspora ). Others were prominent officials and administrators in
1008-421: A decade, including Oklahoma! (1947–1950), Carousel (1950–1951), South Pacific (1951–1953) and The King and I (1953–1956). American imports also included Lerner and Loewe 's My Fair Lady , which began a five-year run in 1958. Productions in the 1960s included Camelot (1964–1965), Hello, Dolly! (1965–1967) and The Great Waltz (1970–1972). In 1974, Monty Python recorded an album at
1134-468: A librarian or by anyone else. No sign of a signature (by Wren or anyone else) or a date appears anywhere on the drawing. Robert D. Hume of Penn State University explained that use of the drawing "rests almost entirely on the supposition that the so-called "Wren section" at All Souls represents this theatre. It could just as easily be a discarded sketch unconnected to Drury Lane in any way." Comparative evidence for Drury Lane's 1674 design can be found in
1260-400: A measure which a minority of this nation considers to be grossly oppressive. I am proud to consider myself a typical man of that minority. We against whom you have done this thing, are no petty people. We are one of the great stocks of Europe. We are the people of Burke ; we are the people of Grattan ; we are the people of Swift , the people of Emmet , the people of Parnell . We have created
1386-467: A political settlement with Irish nationalists. Anglo-Irish politicians such as Sir Horace Plunkett and Lord Monteagle became leading figures in finding a peaceful solution to the 'Irish question'. During the Irish War of Independence (1919–1921), many Anglo-Irish landlords left the country due to arson attacks on their family homes . The burnings continued and many sectarian murders were carried out by
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#17330856619471512-453: A problem that Garrick corrected during his tenure as manager. The entire complex occupied 13,134 sq ft (1,220 m ) bounded by Drury Lane (east), Brydges Street (west), Great Russell Street (north) and Little Russell Street (south). From 1674, theatregoers accessed the Drury Lane via a long ten-foot-wide passageway from Bridges Street. The passageway opened onto a yard (previously
1638-455: A rocky stream into a lake large enough on which to row a boat. This water issued from tanks in the attics above the house, which were installed – along with a much-touted iron safety curtain – as proof against fire. Richard Sheridan continued as theatre owner during the entire lifetime of this third building. He had grown in stature as a statesman during this time, but troubled finances were to be his undoing. The 1794 rebuilding had cost double
1764-580: A staunch Irish Republican , saw the Anglo-Irish as Ireland's leisure class and famously defined an Anglo-Irishman as "a Protestant with a horse". The Anglo-Irish novelist and short story writer Elizabeth Bowen memorably described her experience as feeling "English in Ireland, Irish in England" and not accepted fully as belonging to either. Due to their prominence in the military and their conservative politics,
1890-591: A strong civic sense did exist – but mainly amongst Protestants and especially Anglicans". Henry Ford , the American industrialist and business magnate , was half Anglo-Irish; his father William Ford was born in Cork to a family originally from Somerset , England. The Anglo-Irish, as a class, were mostly opposed to the notions of Irish independence and Home Rule . Most were supporters of continued political union with Great Britain , which existed between 1800 and 1922. This
2016-505: A tragedy dealing with Dido and Aeneas , was dedicated to Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset ; it was later adapted as the libretto for Henry Purcell 's opera Dido and Aeneas (1688 or earlier). The Loyal General , with a prologue by Dryden , played at the Dorset Garden Theatre in 1680. Tate then turned to making a series of adaptations of Elizabethan dramas. His version of William Shakespeare 's Richard II altered
2142-566: A triumvirate that eventually found themselves sharply satirised in Alexander Pope 's Dunciad . In 1713, Barton Booth replaced Doggett. On 2 March 1717 was the premiere of the ballet The Loves of Mars and Venus choreographed by John Weaver , and was the first ballet to be performed in England. Cibber was the de facto leader of the triumvirate, and he led the theatre through a controversial but generally successful period until 1733, when he sold his controlling interest to John Highmore. It
2268-475: A twenty-five-year period by the actor-playwright Dion Boucicault : The Queen of Spades (1851), Eugenie (1855), Formosa (1869), and The Shaughraun (1875). But this period of general decline culminated with F. B. Chatterton 's 1878 resignation; in his words, "Shakespeare spells ruin, and Byron bankruptcy." During the 19th century, Drury Lane staged ballet as well, with performers including Italy's Carlotta Grisi . One famous musical director of Drury Lane
2394-480: A vacuum of new material to perform. Garrick shared the stage with company including Peg Woffington , Susannah Cibber , Hannah Pritchard , Kitty Clive , Spranger Barry , Richard Yates , and Ned Shuter. It was under Garrick's management that spectators were for the first time barred from the stage itself. Garrick commissioned Robert Adam and his brother James to renovate the theatre's interior, which they did in 1775. Their additions included an ornate ceiling and
2520-522: A wide range of political views, with some being outspoken Irish Nationalists , but most overall being Unionists . And while most of the Anglo-Irish originated in the English diaspora in Ireland, others were descended from families of the old Gaelic nobility of Ireland . The term "Anglo-Irish" is often applied to the members of the Church of Ireland who made up the professional and landed class in Ireland from
2646-478: A £4 million restoration of the theatre to mark its 350th anniversary. Using a team of specialists, the detailed restoration has returned the public areas of the Rotunda, Royal Staircases and Grand Saloon, all of which were part of the 1810 theatre, to their original Regency style . Four of Rodgers and Hammerstein 's musicals made their London debuts in Drury Lane, holding the stage almost continuously for nearly
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#17330856619472772-649: Is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden , London , England . The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Drury Lane . The present building, opened in 1812, is the most recent of four theatres that stood at the location since 1663, making it the oldest theatre site in London still in use. According to the author Peter Thomson, for its first two centuries, Drury Lane could "reasonably have claimed to be London's leading theatre". For most of that time, it
2898-576: Is a genuine desire on the part of those who have long differed from us politically to welcome our co-operation. We should be wrong politically and religiously to reject such advances. In 1925, when the Irish Free State was poised to outlaw divorce , the Anglo-Irish poet W. B. Yeats delivered a famous eulogy for his class in the Irish Senate : I think it is tragic that within three years of this country gaining its independence we should be discussing
3024-462: Is assumed to have been John Vanbrugh 's The Relapse , and it turned out the success the company needed. Christopher Rich continued as its head until 1709, when the patent in question was actually revoked amid a complex tangle of political machinations. A lawyer named William Collier was briefly given the right to mount productions in Drury Lane, but by 1710 the troupe was in the hands of the actors Colley Cibber , Robert Wilks , and Thomas Doggett –
3150-435: Is likely that the sale was at a vastly inflated price and that Colley's goal was simply to get out of debts and make a profit (see Robert Lowe in his edition of Cibber's Apology ). Members of the troupe at the time were most displeased; an actor's revolt was organised and executed; Charles Fleetwood came to control the theatre. Fleetwood's tenure was tumultuous; his abolition of the practice of allowing footmen free access to
3276-443: Is well, only, above all, the musique being below, and most of it sounding under the very stage, there is no hearing of the bases at all, nor very well of the trebles, which sure must be mended. Performances usually began at 3 pm to take advantage of the daylight: the main floor for the audience, the pit, had no roof in order to let in the light. A glazed dome was built over the opening, but according to one of Pepys' diary entries,
3402-886: The Irish Times , the Irish Railways, and the Guinness brewery , Ireland's largest employer. They also controlled financial companies such as the Bank of Ireland and Goodbody Stockbrokers . Prominent Anglo-Irish poets, writers, and playwrights include Oscar Wilde , Maria Edgeworth , Jonathan Swift , George Berkeley , Sheridan Le Fanu , Oliver Goldsmith , Laurence Sterne , George Darley , Lucy Knox , Bram Stoker , J. M. Synge , W. B. Yeats , Cecil Day-Lewis , Bernard Shaw , Augusta, Lady Gregory , Samuel Beckett , Giles Cooper , C. S. Lewis , Lord Longford , Elizabeth Bowen , William Trevor and William Allingham . The writer Lafcadio Hearn
3528-806: The Anti-Treaty IRA during the Irish Civil War . Considering the Irish State unable to protect them, many members of the Anglo-Irish class subsequently left Ireland forever, fearing that they would be subject to discriminatory legislation and social pressures. The Protestant proportion of the Irish population dropped from 10% (300,000) to 6% (180,000) in the Irish Free State in the twenty-five years following independence, with most resettling in Great Britain . In
3654-666: The British Empire and as senior army and naval officers since the Kingdom of England and Great Britain were in a real union with the Kingdom of Ireland for over a century, before politically uniting into the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801. The term is not usually applied to Presbyterians in the province of Ulster , whose ancestry is mostly Lowland Scottish , rather than English or Irish, and who are sometimes identified as Ulster-Scots . The Anglo-Irish hold
3780-587: The British Empire , such as: Frederick Matthew Darley , the Chief Justice of New South Wales; Henry Arthur Blake , Antony MacDonnell and Gavan Duffy . Others were involved in finding better ways of managing it, heading the Donoughmore Commission or the Moyne Commission . Sir John Winthrop Hackett emigrated to Australia where he became the proprietor and editor of many prominent newspapers. He
3906-525: The COVID-19 pandemic . Disney's Frozen made its West End debut at Drury Lane on 27 August, with general shows starting from 8 September 2021. A playhouse known as the Cockpit Theatre used by Queen Anne's Men on Drury Lane was targeted by rioting apprentices on 4 March 1617. After the eleven-year-long Puritan Interregnum , which had seen the banning of pastimes regarded as frivolous, such as theatre,
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4032-629: The Georgian Era , titles in the peerage of Ireland were often granted by the British monarch to Englishmen with little or no connection to Ireland, as a way of preventing such honours from inflating the membership of the British House of Lords. A number of Anglo-Irish peers have been appointed by Presidents of Ireland to serve on their advisory Council of State . Some were also considered possible candidates for presidents of Ireland, including: Pat : He
4158-554: The Plantations of Ireland . The rights of Roman Catholics to inherit landed property were severely restricted. Those who converted to the Church of Ireland were usually able to keep or regain their lost property, as the issue was considered primarily one of allegiance. In the late 18th century, the Parliament of Ireland in Dublin won legislative independence, and the movement for the repeal of
4284-740: The Riverside Shakespeare Company of New York City staged Tate's History of King Lear , directed by W. Stuart McDowell at The Shakespeare Center . Musical interludes were sung by cast members during the act breaks, accompanied by a harpsichord in the orchestra pit . In the summer of 2021, the Tate version of King Lear was performed by the NY Classical Theatre in four New York City outdoor locations. Anglo-Irish people Anglo-Irish people ( Irish : Angla-Éireannach ) denotes an ethnic, social and religious grouping who are mostly
4410-576: The Test Acts began. Not all Anglo-Irish people could trace their origins to the Protestant English settlers of the Cromwellian period; some were of Welsh stock, and others descended from Old English or even native Gaelic converts to Anglicanism. Members of this ruling class commonly identified themselves as Irish, while retaining English habits in politics, commerce, and culture. They participated in
4536-660: The Theatre Royal, Bristol , built in 1766, whose design was modelled, in part, on Drury Lane's. The site measured 112 ft (34 m) east-west and 59 ft (18 m) north-south. The building was smaller than this, as reliable surveys and maps of the period show three passageways measuring between 5 and 10 ft (1.5 and 3.0 m) wide surrounding the Theatre Royal on three sides. The building probably measured between 40 and 50 ft (12 and 15 m) wide (the average width of all "Restoration" Theatres) and between 90 and 100 ft (27 and 30 m) long. Architect Robert Adam designed Drury Lane's 1674 interior. The theatre
4662-413: The "King's Playhouse." The building was a three-tiered wooden structure, 112 ft (34 m) long and 59 ft (18 m) wide; it could hold an audience of 700. Set well back from the broader streets, the theatre was accessed by narrow passages between surrounding buildings. The King's Company was forced to commission the technically advanced and expensive Theatre Royal playhouse by the success of
4788-527: The 1 shilling seats of the upper gallery. Seats were not numbered and were offered on a "first come, first served" basis, leading many members of the gentry to send servants to reserve seats well ahead of performances. The stage was 45 ft (14 m) wide and 30 ft (9.1 m) deep with a raked floor from the footlights to the backdrop. The angle of the rake rose one inch for every 24 in (610 mm) of horizontal stage. The stage floor included grooves for wings and flats in addition to trap doors in
4914-522: The 1660s, British playwrights wrote parts for outspoken female characters, daring love scenes and provocative breeches roles . In any case, the competition between the King's Company and the Duke's was good for the rebirth and development of English drama. The King himself frequently attended the theatre's productions, as did Samuel Pepys , whose private diaries provide much of what we know of London theatre-going in
5040-481: The 1660s. The day after the Theatre Royal opened, Pepys attended a performance of Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher 's The Humorous Lieutenant . He has this to say in his diary: The house is made with extraordinary good contrivance, and yet hath some faults, as the narrowness of the passages in and out of the Pitt, and the distance from the stage to the boxes, which I am confident cannot hear; but for all other things it
5166-507: The 17th and 19th centuries (although enforced with varying degrees of severity), Roman Catholic recusants in Great Britain and Ireland were barred from holding public office, while in Ireland they were also barred from entry to Trinity College Dublin and from professions such as law, medicine, and the military . The lands of the recusant Roman Catholic landed gentry who refused to take the prescribed oaths were largely confiscated during
Nahum Tate - Misplaced Pages Continue
5292-550: The 17th century up to the time of Irish independence in the early 20th century. In the course of the 17th century , this Anglo-Irish landed class replaced the Gaelic Irish and Old English aristocracies as the ruling class in Ireland. They were also referred to as " New English " to distinguish them from the "Old English", who descended from the medieval Hiberno-Norman settlers. Under the Penal Laws , which were in force between
5418-466: The 20th century, one illustration was repeatedly – and wrongly – published as "Christopher Wren, design for the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, 1674". Since 1964, this presumption has been disputed by scholars. Careful inspection of the drawing at All Souls' College, Oxford Library shows that it has one pencil inscription: "Play house" [ sic ], which may have been added by
5544-655: The 20th century, scientists John Joly and Ernest Walton were also Anglo-Irish, as was the polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton . Medical experts included Sir William Wilde , Robert Graves , Thomas Wrigley Grimshaw , William Stokes , Robert Collis , Sir John Lumsden and William Babington . The geographer William Cooley was one of the first to describe the process of globalization . The Anglo-Irishmen Richard Brinsley Sheridan , Henry Grattan , Lord Castlereagh , George Canning , Lord Macartney , Thomas Spring Rice , Charles Stewart Parnell , and Edward Carson played major roles in British politics. Downing Street itself
5670-627: The Anglo-Irish class in particular, were by no means universally attached to the cause of continued political union with Great Britain. For instance, author Jonathan Swift (1667–1745), a clergyman in the Church of Ireland, vigorously denounced the plight of ordinary Irish Catholics under the rule of the landlords. Reformist politicians such as Henry Grattan (1746–1820), Wolfe Tone (1763–1798), Robert Emmet (1778–1803), Sir John Gray (1815–1875), and Charles Stewart Parnell (1846–1891), were also Protestant nationalists , and in large measure led and defined Irish nationalism. The Irish Rebellion of 1798
5796-487: The Anglo-Irish have been compared to the Prussian Junker class by, among others, Correlli Barnett . At the beginning of the 20th century, the Anglo-Irish owned many of the major indigenous businesses in Ireland, such as Jacob's Biscuits , Bewley's , Beamish and Crawford , Jameson's Whiskey , W. P. & R. Odlum , Cleeve's , R&H Hall , Maguire & Patterson , Dockrell's , Arnott's , Goulding Chemicals ,
5922-821: The British Isles – all factors which encouraged political support for unionism . Between the mid-nineteenth century and 1922, the Anglo-Irish comprised the bulk of the support for movements such as the Irish Unionist Alliance , especially in the southern three provinces of Ireland. During World War I , Irish nationalist MP Tom Kettle compared the Anglo-Irish landlord class to the Prussian Junkers , saying, "England goes to fight for liberty in Europe and for junkerdom in Ireland ." However, Protestants in Ireland, and
6048-537: The Duke's. The 1674 Theatre Royal building contained a warren of rooms, including storage space and dressing rooms used by the management and performers, nearly seventy people in total, as well as some fifty technical staff members. Additionally three rooms were provided for scripts, including a library for their storage, a separate room for copying actors' parts and a special library for the theatre's account books, ledger books and music scores. This jumble of rooms often made communication among various departments difficult,
6174-501: The English monarchy was restored to the throne with the return of Charles II in 1660. Soon after, Charles issued Letters Patent to two parties licensing the formation of new acting companies. One of these went to Thomas Killigrew , whose company became known as the King's Company , and who built a new theatre in Drury Lane. The Letters Patent also granted the two companies a shared monopoly on
6300-669: The English victory in the Nine Years' War (1594–1603), the " Flight of the Earls " in 1607, the traditional Gaelic Irish nobility was displaced in Ireland, particularly in the Cromwellian period. By 1707, after further defeat in the Williamite War and the subsequent Union of England and Scotland, the aristocracy in Ireland was dominated by Anglican families who owed allegiance to the Crown. Some of these were Irish families who had chosen to conform to
6426-488: The Fool is omitted. Cordelia has a confidante named Arante, and has her own "abduction" scene on the heath. This version concludes with several happy endings with a presumed marriage between Cordelia and Edgar, for Lear (who regains his throne) and Kent. Although Joseph Addison protested at this mutilation of Shakespeare, Samuel Johnson defended the poetic justice of Tate's adaptation. Coriolanus became The Ingratitude of
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#17330856619476552-495: The Italian operas that had played earlier at the theatre. These included Fair Rosamond and Farinelli by John Barnett ; a series of twelve operas by Michael Balfe including The Maid of Artois and The Bohemian Girl ; Maritana and others by William Vincent Wallace and several by Julius Benedict . In 1837, actor-manager Samuel Phelps (1804–1878) joined the company at Drury Lane, appearing with William Charles Macready ,
6678-589: The Man in Grey is the ghost of a knife-stabbed man whose skeletal remains were found within a walled-up side passage in 1848. Various people have reported seeing the ghost, including W. J. MacQueen-Pope , who described its usual path as starting at the end of the fourth row in the upper circle and then proceeding via the rear gangway to the wall near the royal box, where the remains were found. The ghosts of actor Charles Macklin and clown Joseph Grimaldi are also supposed to haunt
6804-452: The Theatre Royal nevertheless continued to be dominated by actor-driven "talk" drama, contrasting with William Davenant 's baroque spectacles and operas at Lincoln's Inn Fields . Internal power structures were the main reason for this difference: while Davenant skilfully commanded a docile young troupe, Killigrew's authority over his veteran actors was far from absolute. Experienced actors Michael Mohun (who Pepys called "the best actor in
6930-423: The Theatre Royal one of the world's most haunted theatres. The appearance of almost any one of the handful of ghosts that are said to frequent the theatre signals good luck for an actor or production. The most famous ghost is the "Man in Grey", who appears dressed as a nobleman of the late 18th century: powdered hair beneath a tricorne hat, a dress jacket and cloak or cape, riding boots and a sword. Legend says that
7056-480: The United Company – henceforth known as the "Patent Company" – in "a very despicable condition," according to an anonymous contemporary pamphlet: The disproportion was so great at parting, that it was almost impossible, in Drury Lane, to muster up a sufficient number to take in all the parts of any play; and of them so few were tolerable, that a play must of necessity be damned, that had not extraordinary favour from
7182-492: The Upper one. As Misson points out, the seating was divided by class , and tickets were priced accordingly. Box seats, used by the nobility and wealthy gentry, cost 5 shillings ; the benches in the pit where some gentry sat, but also critics and scholars, cost 3 shillings; tradesmen and professionals occupied the first gallery with seats costing 2 shillings, while servants and other "ordinary people", as Misson refers to them, occupied
7308-464: The arch, often including the thrust stages found in the Elizabethan theatres . The players could still step forward and bridge the distance between performer and audience, and in addition, it was not unusual for audience members to mount the stage themselves. Killigrew's investment in the new playhouse put the two companies on a level as far as technical resources were concerned, but the offerings at
7434-420: The artificial bombast typical of dramatic roles prior. In 1747, Fleetwood's playhouse patent expired. The theatre and a patent renewal were purchased by actor David Garrick (who had trained under Macklin earlier) and partner James Lacy . Garrick served as manager and lead actor of the theatre until roughly 1766 and continued on in the management role for another ten years after that. He is remembered as one of
7560-434: The audience. No fewer than sixteen (most of the old standing) went away; and with them the very beauty and vigour of the stage; they who were left being for the most part learners, boys and girls, a very unequal match for them that revolted. A private letter from 19 November 1696 reported that Drury Lane "has no company at all, and unless a new play comes out on Saturday revives their reputation, they must break." The new play
7686-456: The company's resources by cost-cutting tyranny, pitting actor against actor and slashing salaries. By 1695, the actors, including day-to-day manager and acting legend Thomas Betterton, were alienated and humiliated enough to walk out and set up a cooperative company of their own. Nine men and six women departed, all of them established professional performers, including such draws as tragedian Elizabeth Barry and comedian Anne Bracegirdle , leaving
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#17330856619477812-659: The descendants and successors of the English Protestant Ascendancy in Ireland. They mostly belong to the Anglican Church of Ireland , which was the established church of Ireland until 1871, or to a lesser extent one of the English dissenting churches, such as the Methodist church , though some were Roman Catholics . They often defined themselves as simply "British", and less frequently "Anglo-Irish", "Irish" or "English". Many became eminent as administrators in
7938-419: The design process. This was a cavernous theatre, accommodating more than 3,600 spectators. The motivation behind building on such a large scale? In the words of one owner: I was aware of the very popular notion that our theatres ought to be very small; but it appeared to me that if that very popular notion should be suffered to proceed too far it would in every way deteriorate our dramatic performances depriving
8064-415: The dome was not entirely effective at keeping out the elements: he and his wife were forced to leave the theatre to take refuge from a hail storm. Green baize cloth covered the benches in the pit and served to decorate the boxes (additionally ornamented with gold-tooled leather) and even the stage itself. The backless green benches in the pit were in a semicircular arrangement facing the stage, according to
8190-713: The established Church of Ireland , keeping their lands and privileges, such as the Dukes of Leinster (whose surname is FitzGerald , and who descend from the Hiberno-Norman aristocracy), or the Gaelic Guinness family . Some were families of British or mixed-British ancestry who owed their status in Ireland to the Crown, such as the Earls of Cork (whose surname is Boyle and whose ancestral roots were in Herefordshire , England). Among
8316-404: The floor. The proscenium arch covered the stage equipment above the stage that included a pair of girondels – large wheels holding many candles used to counteract the light from the footlights. Towards the latter part of the 18th century, doors were placed on either side of the stage, and a series of small spikes traced the edge of the stage apron to prevent audiences from climbing onto the stage. At
8442-635: The gifted actor-manager in several Shakespeare plays. He also created the role of Captain Channel in Douglas Jerrold 's melodrama , The Prisoner of War (1842), and of Lord Tresham in Robert Browning 's A Blot in the 'Scutcheon (1843). Macready was briefly manager in 1841–1843, putting significant reforms in place. Nevertheless, most productions there were financial disasters. The theatrical monopoly first bestowed by Royal Letters Patent 183 years earlier
8568-460: The gospel" at Sudbury from 1654 to 1658. He had returned to Dublin by 1660. He published a poem on the Trinity entitled Ter Tria , as well as some sermons, two of which he dedicated to Oliver and Henry Cromwell . Nahum Teate followed his father to Trinity College Dublin in 1668, and graduated BM in 1672. By 1676, he had moved to London and was writing for a living. The following year he had adopted
8694-533: The great stage actors and is especially associated with advancing the Shakespearean tradition in English theatre – during his time at Drury Lane, the company mounted at least 24 of Shakespeare's plays. Some of Shakespeare's surge in popularity during this period can be traced to the Licensing Act of 1737 , which mandated governmental approval of any play before it could be performed and thereby created something of
8820-594: The hart" ( Psalm 42 ) rise above the general level, and are said to be Tate's work. A supplement was licensed in 1703 which included the Christmas carol " While shepherds watched their flocks ", one of a number of hymns by Tate. Of his numerous poems the most original is Panacea, a poem on Tea (1700). In spite of his consistent Toryism , he succeeded Thomas Shadwell as poet laureate in 1692. His poems were sharply criticised by Alexander Pope in The Dunciad . In 1985,
8946-413: The last of whom employed Joseph Grimaldi as the theatre's resident Clown. In 1791, under Sheridan's management, the building was demolished to make way for a larger theatre which opened in 1794. This new Drury Lane survived for 15 years before burning down in 1809. The building that stands today opened in 1812. It has been the residency of well known actors including Edmund Kean , comedian Dan Leno and
9072-456: The lean years. In 1682, the companies merged, or rather, the King's was absorbed by the Duke's. Led at the time by Thomas Betterton , the United Company, as it was now called, chose Drury Lane as their production house, leaving the Duke's Company's theatre in Dorset Garden closed for a time. In 1688, Betterton was removed from managerial control by Alexander Davenant, son of William Davenant ,
9198-701: The most notable interiors produced by the specialist ornamental plasterwork company of Clark and Fenn . Composer and performer Ivor Novello , immensely popular in his time though little-remembered today, presented his musicals in Drury Lane from 1931 to 1939. The theatre was closed in 1939 because of the outbreak of the Second World War . During the war, it served as the headquarters for the Entertainments National Service Association , sustaining some minor bomb damage. It reopened in 1946 with Noël Coward 's Pacific 1860 . The building
9324-494: The most of the modern literature of this country. We have created the best of its political intelligence. Yet I do not altogether regret what has happened. I shall be able to find out, if not I, my children will be able to find out whether we have lost our stamina or not. You have defined our position and have given us a popular following. If we have not lost our stamina then your victory will be brief, and your defeat final, and when it comes this nation may be transformed. Following
9450-521: The musical composer and performer Ivor Novello . From the Second World War , the theatre has primarily hosted long runs of musicals, including Oklahoma! , My Fair Lady , 42nd Street and Miss Saigon , the theatre's longest-running show. The theatre is owned by the composer Andrew Lloyd Webber . Since January 2019, the venue has had ongoing renovations, and in July 2021, the theatre reopened after over two years' of extensive work and closures related to
9576-434: The names of the characters, and changed the text so that every scene, he wrote, was "full of respect to Majesty and the dignity of courts"; but in spite of these precautions The Sicilian Usurper (1681), as his adaptation was called, was suppressed on the third performance on account of a possible political interpretation. In 1681, Thomas Betterton played Tate's version of King Lear ( The History of King Lear ), in which
9702-488: The new facade. With a series of farewell performances, Garrick left the stage in 1776 and sold his shares in the theatre to the Irish playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan . Sheridan and his partners, Thomas Linley the elder and Doctor James Ford (court physician to King George III ), completed their purchase of Drury Lane two years later, and Sheridan owned it until 1809. Sheridan premiered his own comedy of manners The School for Scandal in 1777. Active management of
9828-450: The new form Restoration comedy , dominated in the 1660s by William Wycherley and the Theatre Royal's house dramatist John Dryden . Actors such as Hart and Charles II's mistress Nell Gwyn developed and refined the famous scenes of repartee, banter and flirtation in Dryden's and Wycherley's comedies. With the appearance of actresses for the first time at Drury Lane and Lincoln's Inn Fields in
9954-461: The original estimate of £80,000, and Sheridan bore the entirety of the debt. Productions were more expensive to mount in the larger structure, and increased audience revenues failed to make up the difference. An assassination attempt against King George III took place at the theatre on 15 May 1800. James Hadfield fired two pistol shots from the pit toward the King, sitting in the royal box. The shots missed by inches, Hadfield having been jostled by
10080-491: The original patent holder for the Duke's Company. Davenant's management (with Charles Killigrew) proved brief and disastrous, and by 1693 he was fleeing to the Canary Islands in the wake of embezzlement charges. The Theatre Royal found itself in the hands of lawyer Christopher Rich for the next 16 years. Neither Davenant's nor Killigrew's sons were much better than crooks, and Rich attempted to recoup their depredations of
10206-412: The pantomimes. Productions relying on spectacle became the norm at Drury Lane under the managements first of Harris, from 1879 to 1896, and then of Arthur Collins from 1896 to 1923. Examples include the 1909 play, The Whip , which featured not only a train crash, but also twelve horses recreating the 2,000 Guineas Stakes on an on-stage treadmill. Jimmy Glover , Director of Music from 1893 to 1923,
10332-478: The popular English sports of the day, particularly racing and fox hunting , and intermarried with the ruling classes in Great Britain. Many of the more successful of them spent much of their careers either in Great Britain or in some part of the British Empire . Many constructed large country houses , which became known in Ireland as Big Houses , and these became symbolic of the class' dominance in Irish society. The Dublin working class playwright Brendan Behan ,
10458-485: The previously mentioned fire safety precautions, the theatre burned down. On being encountered drinking a glass of wine in the street while watching the fire, R.B. Sheridan was famously reported to have said: "A man may surely be allowed to take a glass of wine by his own fireside." Already on the shakiest financial ground, Sheridan was ruined entirely by the loss of the building. He turned to brewer Samuel Whitbread , an old friend, for help. As well as investing strongly in
10584-474: The project, Whitbread agreed to head a committee that would manage the company and oversee the rebuilding of the theatre, but asked Sheridan to withdraw from management himself, which he did entirely by 1811. The present Theatre Royal in Drury Lane, designed by Benjamin Dean Wyatt on behalf of the committee led by Whitbread, opened on 10 October 1812 with a production of Hamlet featuring Robert Elliston in
10710-718: The prominent Anglo-Irish peers are: Until the year 1800, the peers of Ireland were all entitled to a seat in the Irish House of Lords , the upper house of the Parliament of Ireland , in Dublin . After 1800, under the provisions of the Act of Union , the Parliament of Ireland was abolished and the Irish peers were entitled to elect twenty-eight of their number to sit in the British House of Lords , in London, as Irish representative peers . During
10836-466: The proprietors of that revenue which is indispensable to defray the heavy expenses of such a concern. New technology facilitated the expansion: iron columns replaced bulky wood, supporting five tiers of galleries. The stage was large, too: 83 ft (25 m) wide and 92 ft (28 m) deep. Holland, the architect, said it was "on a larger scale than any other theatre in Europe." Except for churches, it
10962-480: The public performance of legitimate drama in London; this monopoly was challenged in the 18th century by new venues and by a certain slipperiness in the definition of "legitimate drama," but remained legally in place until 1843. The new playhouse, architect unknown, opened on 7 May 1663 and was known from the placement of the entrance as the "Theatre Royal in Bridges Street." It went by other names as well, including
11088-541: The remainder of the 19th century, Drury Lane passed quickly from one proprietor to another. A colonnade was added to the Russell Street frontage, in 1831, by architect Samuel Beazley . In 1833, Alfred Bunn gained control of both Drury Lane and Covent Garden, managing the former from 1833 to 1839, and again from 1843 to 1850. Following the lead of the Lyceum Theatre, London , Bunn championed English opera, rather than
11214-415: The rival Duke's Company , which was drawing fascinated crowds with their "moveable" or "changeable" scenery and visually gorgeous productions at the former Lisle's Tennis Court at Lincoln's Inn Fields . Imitating the innovations at Lincoln's Inn Fields, the Theatre Royal also featured moveable scenery with wings or shutters that could be smoothly changed between or even within acts. When not in use,
11340-548: The shutters rested out of sight behind the sides of the proscenium arch , which also served as a visual frame for the on-stage happenings. The picture-frame-like separation between audience and performance was a new phenomenon in English theatre, though it had been found on the Continent earlier. Theatre design in London remained ambivalent about the merits of the "picture-box" stage, and for many decades to come, London theatres including Drury Lane had large forestages protruding beyond
11466-581: The spelling "Tate", which would remain until his death. He died within the precincts of the Mint , Southwark , where he had taken refuge from his creditors, on 30 July 1715 and was buried at St George the Martyr, Southwark on 1 August as "of next to the Prince Eugene, Mint". Tate published a volume of poems in London in 1677, and became a regular writer for the stage. Brutus of Alba, or The Enchanted Lovers (1678),
11592-453: The text for Purcell's Birthday Ode Come Ye Sons of Art in 1694. Tate also translated Syphilis sive Morbus Gallicus , Girolamo Fracastoro 's Latin pastoral poem on the subject of the disease of syphilis , into English heroic couplets . Tate's name is connected with New Version of the Psalms of David (1696), for which he collaborated with Nicholas Brady . Some items such as "As pants
11718-499: The theatre in 1780. Grimaldi became best known for his development of the modern day white-face clown and popularised the role of Clown in many Pantomimes and Harlequinades . Towards the end of the 1790s, Grimaldi starred in Robinson Crusoe , which confirmed him as a key Christmas pantomime performer. Many pantomimes followed, but his career at Drury Lane became turbulent, and he left the theatre for good in 1806. The theatre
11844-417: The theatre was carried out by several parties during Sheridan's ownership, including himself, his father Thomas , and, from 1788 to 1796 and 1800 to 1802, the popular actor John Philip Kemble . Linley took up the post of Musical Director at the theatre, receiving a retainer of £500 per annum. Sheridan employed dozens of children as extras at Drury Lane including Joseph Grimaldi who made his stage debut at
11970-465: The theatre was failing in its role as one of the very few permitted to show legitimate drama. Management of the theatre after it reopened in 1813 fell to Samuel James Arnold , overseen by an amateur board of directors and a subcommittee focusing on the theatre as a centre for national culture. ( Lord Byron was briefly on this subcommittee, from June 1815 until leaving England in April 1816.) Actor Edmund Kean
12096-407: The theatre's annual pantomime , beginning at Christmas 1888, adding a well-known comedian, Dan Leno . These spectacular Christmas shows were a major success, often playing into March. They were choreographed by the theatre's dance master, John D'Auban . Many of the designs under Harris were created by the imaginative designer C. Wilhelm , including the spectacular drama, Armada (1888), and many of
12222-419: The theatre's proprietors hired prominent actors who performed at the theatre on a regular basis, including Nell Gwyn and Charles Hart . In 1672, the theatre caught fire and Killigrew built a larger theatre on the same plot, renamed the "Theatre Royal in Drury Lane"; it opened in 1674. This building lasted nearly 120 years, under the leaderships of Colley Cibber , David Garrick and Richard Brinsley Sheridan ,
12348-682: The theatre, Live at Drury Lane . Later long runs at the theatre include productions of A Chorus Line (1976–1979), 42nd Street (1984–1989), Miss Saigon (1989–1999, the theatre's longest-running show), The Producers (2004–2007), The Lord of the Rings (2007–2008), Oliver! (2009–2011), Shrek The Musical (2011–2013), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory the Musical (2013–2017), and Frozen (2021–2024). Notable productions since 1919 have included: The author Tom Ogden calls
12474-482: The theatre. Macklin appears backstage, wandering the corridor which now stands in the spot where, in 1735, he killed fellow actor Thomas Hallam in an argument over a wig ("Goddamn you for a blackguard, scrub, rascal!" he shouted, thrusting a cane into Hallam's face and piercing his left eye). Grimaldi is reported to be a helpful apparition, purportedly guiding nervous actors skillfully about the stage on more than one occasion. The comedian Stanley Lupino said he had seen
12600-442: The title role. The new theatre made some concessions toward intimacy, seating 3,060 people, about 550 fewer than the earlier building (though this size is still considered an extremely large theatre). On 6 September 1817, gas lighting was extended from the audience area to the stage, making it the first British theatre to be gaslit throughout. In 1820, the portico that still stands at the theatre's front entrance on Catherine Street
12726-547: The upper gallery led to riots in 1737, and Fleetwood's gambling problems entangled the theatre in his own financial difficulties. It was during this period that actor Charles Macklin (a native of Inishowen in County Donegal in Ulster ) rose to fame, propelled by a singular performance as Shylock in an early 1741 production of The Merchant of Venice , in which he introduced a realistic, naturalistic style of acting, abandoning
12852-527: The very back of the stage, a wide door opened to reveal Drury Lane. An added difficulty for Killigrew and his sons Thomas and Charles was the political unrest of 1678–1684 with the Popish Plot and the Exclusion Bill crisis distracting potential audiences from things theatrical. This affected both the King's and the Duke's companies, but most of all the King's which had no profit margin to carry them through
12978-581: The whole of Ireland the percentage of Protestants was 26% (1.1 million). The reaction of the Anglo-Irish to the Anglo-Irish Treaty which envisaged the establishment of the Irish Free State was mixed. J. A. F. Gregg , the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin , stated in a sermon in December 1921 (the month the Treaty was signed): It concerns us all to offer the Irish Free State our loyalty. I believe there
13104-448: The world" ) and Charles Hart held out for shares and good contracts in the King's Company. Such a division of power between the patentee, Killigrew, and his chief actors led to frequent conflicts that hampered the Theatre Royal as a business venture. Nevertheless, it was mostly at the struggling Theatre Royal, rather than at the efficiently run Lincoln's Inn Fields, that the plays were acted that are classics today. This applies especially to
13230-586: The younger Sort, some Ladies of Reputation and Virtue, and abundance of Damsels that haunt for Prey, sit all together in this Place, Higgledy-piggledy, chatter, toy, play, hear, hear not. Farther up, against the Wall, under the first Gallery and just opposite to the Stage, rises another Amphitheatre, which is taken by persons of the best Quality, among whom are generally very few Men. The Galleries, whereof there are only two Rows, are fill'd with none but ordinary People, particularly
13356-604: Was Grade I listed in February 1958. In 2000, Theatre Royal Drury Lane was purchased by Andrew Lloyd Webber . Since 2014 , it has been owned and managed by LW Theatres, Lloyd Webber's management company. The seating plan for the theatre remains the same and the auditorium is still one of the largest in London's West End . It is one of the 40 theatres featured in the 2012 DVD documentary series Great West End Theatres , presented by Donald Sinden . On 15 May 2013, Lloyd Webber revealed
13482-450: Was a significant figure at the theatre during the Collins years and wrote books which record much more than its musical life. In 1922, under the ownership of managing director Sir Alfred Butt , the theatre underwent its last major interior renovation of the 20th century. At a cost of £150,000, it became a four-tiered theatre able to seat just over 2,000 people. It was decorated with one of
13608-483: Was abolished by the Theatres Act 1843 , but the patent had been largely toothless for decades and this had little immediate effect. On the other hand, other theatres, used to presenting musical entertainments, continued to do so, and Drury Lane continued as one of the most accepted venues for legitimate theatre. The 19th-century run of financial and artistic failures at Drury Lane was interrupted by four plays produced over
13734-472: Was adapted from John Fletcher . Injur'd Love, or the Cruel Husband (1707), altered from John Webster 's The White Devil , seems never to have been acted. In 1682, Tate collaborated with John Dryden to complete the second half of his epic poem Absalom and Achitophel . Tate wrote the libretto for Henry Purcell 's opera Dido and Aeneas ; its first known performance was in 1689. He also wrote
13860-629: Was added, and in 1822 the interior underwent a significant remodelling. The colonnade running down the Russell Street side of the building was added in 1831. Productions relying more on scenery and effects than on dialogue and acting remained commonplace in the new facility. The 1823 production of Cataract of the Ganges had a finale featuring a horseback escape up a flowing cataract "with fire raging all around." Effects for an 1829 production were produced by hydraulic apparatus that reportedly could discharge 39 tons of water. There were those concerned that
13986-682: Was also influential in the founding of the University of Western Australia and was its first chancellor. Prolific art music composers included Michael William Balfe , John Field , George Alexander Osborne , Thomas Roseingrave , Charles Villiers Stanford , John Andrew Stevenson , Robert Prescott Stewart , William Vincent Wallace , and Charles Wood . In the visual arts , sculptor John Henry Foley , art dealer Hugh Lane , artists Daniel Maclise , William Orpen and Jack Yeats ; ballerina Dame Ninette de Valois and designer-architect Eileen Gray were famous outside Ireland. William Desmond Taylor
14112-630: Was an Anglo-Irishman. Meg : In the name of God, what's that? Pat : A Protestant with a horse. Ropeen : Leadbetter. Pat : No, no, an ordinary Protestant like Leadbetter, the plumber in the back parlour next door, won't do, nor a Belfast orangeman , not if he was as black as your boot. Meg : Why not? Pat : Because they work. An Anglo-Irishman only works at riding horses, drinking whiskey, and reading double-meaning books in Irish at Trinity College . Theatre Royal, Drury Lane The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane , commonly known as Drury Lane ,
14238-497: Was an early and prolific maker of silent films in Hollywood . Scriptwriter Johanna Harwood penned several of the early James Bond films, among others. Philanthropists included Thomas Barnardo and Lord Iveagh . Confederate general Patrick Cleburne was of Anglo-Irish ancestry. Discussing what he considered the lack of Irish civic morality in 2011, former Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald remarked that before 1922: "In Ireland
14364-426: Was any sense of intimacy and connection to the company on stage lost, but the very size of the theatre put a great deal of the audience at such a distance from the stage so as to make hearing a player's voice quite difficult. To compensate, the productions mounted in the new theatre tended more toward spectacle than the spoken word. An example of such a spectacle is a 1794 production that featured real water flowing down
14490-579: Was born in Dublin and came from a family of Puritan clerics. He was the son of Faithful Teate , an Irish cleric whose father, also Faithful, had been rector of Castleterra , Ballyhaise , until his house was burnt and his family attacked during the Irish Rebellion of 1641 . After living at the provost's lodgings in Trinity College Dublin , Faithful Teate moved to England. He was the incumbent at East Greenwich around 1650, and "preacher of
14616-492: Was for many reasons, but most important were the economic benefits of union for the landowning class, the close personal and familial relations with the British establishment, and the political prominence held by the Anglo-Irish in Ireland under the union settlement. Many Anglo-Irish men served as officers in the British Army , were clergymen in the established Anglican Church of Ireland or had land (or business interests) across
14742-584: Was in need of updating by the end of the 18th century and was demolished in 1791, with the company moving temporarily to the new King's Theatre , in the Haymarket . A third theatre was designed by Henry Holland and opened on 12 March 1794. In the design of the theatre boxes, Henry Holland asked John Linnell for assistance. The designs by Linnell survive in the V&;A Print Room – there are also designs by Henry Holland and Charles Heathcote Tatham who were involved in
14868-400: Was led by members of the Anglo-Irish and Ulster Scots class, some of whom feared the political implications of the impending union with Great Britain. By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, however, Irish nationalism became increasingly tied to a Roman Catholic identity. By the beginning of the twentieth century, many Anglo-Irishmen in southern Ireland had become convinced of the need for
14994-413: Was managed, from 1747 to Adam's retirement in the 1770s, by David Garrick . The King's Company never recovered financially from the loss of the old Theatre Royal Bridges Street. The cost of constructing the new theatre, replacing their costumes and scenery lost in the fire and competitive pressure from the rival Duke's Company contributed to its decline. Eventually, in 1682, the King's Company merged with
15120-536: Was named after Sir George Downing . In the Church, Bishop Richard Pococke contributed much to C18 travel writing. The Anglo-Irish were also represented among the senior officers of the British Army by men such as Field Marshal Earl Roberts , first honorary Colonel of the Irish Guards regiment, who spent most of his career in British India ; Field Marshal Viscount Gough , who served under Wellington , himself
15246-450: Was of Anglo-Irish descent on his father's side but was brought up as a Catholic by his great-aunt. In the 19th century, some of the most prominent mathematical and physical scientists of the British Isles, including Sir William Rowan Hamilton , Sir George Stokes , John Tyndall , George Johnstone Stoney , Thomas Romney Robinson , Edward Sabine , Thomas Andrews , Lord Rosse , George Salmon , and George FitzGerald , were Anglo-Irish. In
15372-485: Was one of a handful of patent theatres , granted monopoly rights to the production of "legitimate" drama in London (meaning spoken plays, rather than opera, dance, concerts, or plays with music). The first theatre on the site was built at the behest of Thomas Killigrew in the early 1660s, when theatres were allowed to reopen during the English Restoration . Initially known as "Theatre Royal in Bridges Street",
15498-577: Was shut down by order of the Crown on 5 June. It remained closed for 18 months until the autumn of 1666, during which time it received at least a little interior renovation, including widening of the stage. Located well to the west of the City boundary, the theatre was unaffected by the Great Fire of London , which raged through the City in September 1666, but it burned down six years later on 25 January 1672. During
15624-526: Was the eccentric French conductor and composer of light music Louis-Antoine Jullien (1812–1860), who successfully invited Berlioz to visit London and give concerts in the Theatre. The house's fortunes rose again under the management of Augustus Harris from 1879. In the 1880s and 1890s, the theatre hosted many of the productions of the Carl Rosa Opera Company . Harris focused increased resources on
15750-415: Was the on-stage highlight; like Macklin before him, he made his reputation as Shylock , premiering in the role in 1814. Kean remained until 1820 through praise and notorious disputes with local playwrights such as Charles Bucke . Elliston leased the theatre from 1819 until he went bankrupt in 1826. An American, Stephen Price of New York City's Park Theatre , followed from 1826 to 1830. Through most of
15876-485: Was the tallest building in London. The "very popular notion that our theatres ought to be very small" proved hard to overcome. Various accounts from the period bemoan the mammoth size of the new theatre, longing for the "warm close observant seats of Old Drury," as one May 1794 theatregoer put it. Actress Sarah Siddons , then part of the Drury Lane company, called it "a wilderness of a place" (and left Drury Lane along with her brother John Philip Kemble in 1803). Not only
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