A Book of Burlesque: Sketches of English Stage Travestie and ParodyAdams, William Davenport
History
A Book of Burlesque: Sketches of English Stage Travestie and Parody
Adams, William Davenport
Burlesque (Literature); English literature -- History and criticism; Parody
What, meanwhile, had been the _personnel_ at the other houses of
burlesque? At the Strand in the 'thirties, the great favourites were
W. J. Hammond, H. Hall, Mitchell, Oxberry, G. Cooke, Miss Daly, Miss
Horton. At the Fitzroy one finds Miss Chaplin and W. Rogers; at the
Victoria, Rogers and Mitchell; at the St. James's, Hall and Mme.
Sala; at Sadler's Wells, Rogers and C. H. Pitt; at the Queen's, T. F.
Matthews and Mrs. Selby; and at the Adelphi, O Smith, John Reeve, and
Mrs. Stirling. Early in the 'forties we see Wright and Paul Bedford
moving from the Princess's to the Adelphi, where Miss Chaplin and Miss
Woolgar are also located. At the Strand we find Wigan, Hammond, and
R. Romer. Later, we come across Keeley in burlesque at the Haymarket,
along with Bland, Miss Reynolds, and Miss Horton. The second half of
the century opens brilliantly at the Strand, where Reeve, Rogers,
Romer, and Maskell are the male comedians, with Miss Marshall, Miss
Romer, Miss Maskell, and Mrs. Horsman as their helpmates. Was not that
a truly strong company? And was not the Adelphi fortunate, about the
same time, in the possession of Miss Woolgar, Miss Mary Keeley, Keeley
himself, and Paul Bedford? At the Haymarket were Buckstone and Mrs.
Caulfield. Some of these may be names only to the uninstructed reader;
but to the theatrical student they all convey a world of meaning,
conjuring up a multitude of delightful associations.
When we come to 1856 we reach a landmark in the history of burlesque
acting. William Brough's "Perdita" is "put up" by Charles Dillon at
the Lyceum, and in the cast of it we find not only Miss Woolgar and the
author, but that very youthful actress Marie Wilton, and that rising
young comedian J. L. Toole. Here, then, is the beginning of the modern
_régime_. Robson and Julia St. George are still playing at the Olympic;
but the "palmy" days of the Strand Theatre are about to flash upon us.
Marie Wilton stays for another year at the Lyceum, but in 1858 she is
comfortably lodged at the little playhouse across the way, together
with Bland and Poynter and Mrs. Selby, and Johnny Clarke, H. J. Turner,
and Miss Ternan. In 1859 Charlotte Saunders is playing a mock Romeo to
Marie Wilton's mock Juliet, and Eleanor Bufton and Maria Simpson and
"Jimmy" Rogers are also members of the troupe--the one troupe which
can regard itself as the legitimate successor to the Vestris-Mathews
"combinations." In the year following, a new star arises at the Lyceum
in the person of Lydia Thompson; at the St. James's are Nelly Moore
and Cecilia Ranoe and Charles Young; at the Haymarket are Chippendale,
Compton, and C. Coghlan. A few months more, and the name of Kate Terry
appears on the burlesque bill at the St. James's. Fanny Josephs and
E. Danvers have been added to the Strand establishment, which shortly
welcomes Fanny Hughes and Ada Swanborough, Polly Marshall and George
Honey.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account