Event Comment: Boxes 5s. Pit 3s. Gallery 2s. Upper Gallery 1s. Places may be taken from Johnson at the Stage Door. No money will be taken at the stage door. None will be refunded after Curtain is drawn up. To begin at 6 o'clock. [Footnote not further noted. Garrick on his return from the continent first introduced a method of illumination by lights not visible to the audience, thus replacing the huge chandeliers (Genest, V, 86). Published this season, A Critical Balance of the Performers at Drury Lane last Season, a broadside sheet at 1s., printed for C. Moran. This scale of the following twelve values war applied to 43 actors and actresses: (A score of 20 under each heading was perfect.) Figure; Grace; Spirit & Ease, Sensibility & Truth; Dignity & Manners; Expression & Pantomime; Low Humor; Genteel Humor; Elocution and voice; Dress; Dumb show; Noise. Beside each actor was listed his outstanding parts. (See Copy in Huntington Library.)

Event Comment: Full Prices. Afterpiece: A Pantomimic dance by Love (Biographia Dramatica). Much followed and brought several crowded houses, and the success chiefly owing to the reports our newspapers were, at that time, daily filled with, of the French wild Beast that was devouring (and yet pursued by) children. This wild beast was happily introduced in this pantomime, pursued by boys led on by a Frenchman. At last the Beast made his Re-entry, and ran across the stage with the poor Frenchman in his mouth, to the great joy of the Pit, Box and Galleries (Victor, History of Theatres, III, 72). Dorilas for the first time by Mr Cautherly--very decent, but wanted spirit. This pantomime is fathered by Mr Lowe [?]--went off with applause, --Mr Garrick made most of the Business to it, which is very good (Hopkins Diary). [Letter from C. V. Theatricus on ladies' removing their hats in the theatre. A Gentleman had requested it and a debate ensued in the Public Advertiser, as to whether he wished to see the play better or to gaze more audaciously on many pretty faces. Long letter also from G. F. Theatricus to the Public Advertiser, commenting on the excellence of Powell, Mrs Yates, Holland, the Palmers, Cautherly and Bensley for their performance in Venice Preserved, Romeo and Juliet, and Mahomet respectively.

Event Comment: Tragedy, never before acted, by Dr T. Franklin. Published at 1s. 6d. [See A Letter from the Rope Dancing Monkey in the Hay-Market to the acting Monkey of Drury Lane on the Earl of Warwick (London, 1767) which damns the play as a flat and insipid plagiarism from de la Harpe's tragedy Le Conte de Warwick, Paris, 1764. Especially severe on Colman's Prologue and Garrick's Epilogue.] Rec'd stopages #4 11s. 6d.; Paid salary list #440 4s. (Treasurer's Book). Receipts: #165 9s. 6d. (Treasurer's Book)

Event Comment: Mainpiece: By Particular Desire. Afterpiece: By Desire. Benefit for Powell. Part of Pit laid into boxes. Send servants by 3 o'clock. House charges #74 10s. [Profit to Powell #207 5s.] Paid Johnston, under prompter #7; Five extra trumpets #1 5s.; 2 Flutes 10s.; Chorus singers #2 5s. 6d. (Treasurer's Book). Receipts: #281 15s. (Treasurer's Book). Half past 4 walked to Drury Lane House. With every great difficulty got into the 2s. Gallery before; saw the Death of Alexander with his Triumphal Entrance into Babylonv and the Dance of the Vintage, for the benefit of Powell who played Alexander. Some reported that Garrick says he makes mistakes in the character exceedingly in the banquet scene, in which no one ever surpassed him. I cannot judge of the truth of this observation (Neville MS Diary)

Event Comment: Benefit for Widow Vincent. House charges #64 15s. 6d. [Deficit Mrs Vincent #20 3s. 6d.] Rec'd by draft on Mr Clutterbuck #200, and from Sinking Fund #287; Paid Blandford (tallow chandler) #27 18s. 11d.; and French on account #12 12s. (Treasurer's Book). Fifteen minutes past 5 went to the 2s. gallery...(Widow Vincent's voice pleases me much. Holland did Oakly,-he imitates Garrick, but is very inferior to him (Neville MS Diary). Receipts: #44 12s. (Treasurer's Book)

Event Comment: Doors to open at half past Four. Play to begin at half past Six. Send servants to hold places by Four o'clock. [Mrs Vincent's deficit of 1st instant received #20 3s. 6d.] Paid scavenger's rate for St Martin's due Lady Day #5 1s. Paid printer's bill #9 6s. (Treasurer's Book). Receipts: #262 7s. 6d. (Treasurer's Book). Went to Drury Lane, but could not get in. Stayed from half past 4, sometime at one Pit door, sometime at the other, till past 6, and got in at the right hand side just as the play began, and was dreadfully squeezed, but rewarded by seeing Garrick play Hamlet. The expression in his features, his eyes particularly, surpasses anything I ever saw. He is a little man, but handsome and full of that fire which marks the stronger, and of the softness natural to the tender passions. It is impossible to see his greatest excellencies from ye Gallery. Baddeley and Dodd are pretty well in Polonius and Ostrick. Mrs Baddeley and Yates do Ophelia and ye Grave Digger very well. Mrs Pritchard is great, as usual in ye Queen. Gravedigger's man-Castle. Horatio-$Mr Packer. Several parts of ye play, as it is in $Shakespeare, are omitted rather improperly...The Prince Brunswick, his wife and Louisa were present (Neville MS Diary)

Event Comment: Benefit for Westminster New Lying in Hospital, near Westminster Bridge. N.B. Those Ladies and Gentlemen who have taken tickets, are desired to secure places immediately, of Mr Johnston at the Stage Door. [The Theatrical Monitor, No IX, asked this day for a public declaration of receipts and salary expenditures for the 1766-67 season from Garrick and Lacy. Not receiving it the war breaking out in January came to absorb his interest, and the estimate never appeared.] Receipts: #261 4s. 6d. (Winston MS 10)

Event Comment: Drugger, Mr Garrick (Cross Diary). Cymbeline Deferr'd on account of Mrs Barry's indisposition

Event Comment: Benefit for Weston. Mainpiece: By Desire. Tickets deliver'd for A Comedy will be taken. Paid 6 days salary list at #86 14s. 7d. per diem, #520 7s. 6d.; Mr G. Garrick on acct #50; Rec'd from Sinking Fund #45; Stopages #15 17s. (Treasurer's Book). Receipts: #149 9s. Charges: #64 12s. Profits to Weston: #84 17s. (Treasurer's Book)

Event Comment: Benefit for Younger, lately burnt out by the Fire in King Street, Covent Garden. Doors open at half past 5. To begin at exactly half past 6. [Miss Catley returned for this benefit. Description of the Fire in Gentlemen's Magazine, 1774, p. 234.] Charges #67 10s. Profit to Younger, #105 19s.. plus #67 12s. from tickets (Box 216; Pit 76; Gallery 22) (Account Book). [See dl 6 May where Garrick gave Younger & Kennedy #21 as a present to help them. See also dl 25 May.] Receipts: #173 9s. (Account Book)

Event Comment: Benefit for Johnston (Housekeeper and Box-book keeper). Rec'd from Sinking Fund (3rd) #73 10s.; From Mr Clutterbuck (1st) #500; from Stopages #11; Paid Salary list #564 16s.; J. French on acct #5 5s.; G. Garrick on acct #100. Receipts: #276 4s. 6d. Charges: #84. Profits to Mr A. Johnston: #192 4s. 6d. (Treasurer's Book)

Event Comment: [Mainpiece seemingly the Garrick version. See 24 Nov. 1774.

Event Comment: Mainpiece: By Particular Desire and advertised as Garrick's last time of performing the character of Lusignan. This Farce of Two Acts was written by Mr Colman -the first Act was receiv'd with great Applause the second Act a little heavy -and not so much Applause as the first (Hopkins Diary). Paid Mr Park 1 chorus 4 nights (Jubilee) #1 10s. (Treasurer's Book). [The Westminster Magazine for March tells the plot of the afterpiece, and concludes: "The wit and dialogue of this piece will hardly keep it long in esteem with the public. They are sometimes lively, but generally pert and affected."] Receipts: #272 18s. 6d. (Treasurer's Book)

Event Comment: Human Nature cannot arrive at greater Excellence in Acting than Garrick was possess'd of this Night All words must fall far short of what he did and none but his Spectators can have an Idea how great he was-The Applause was unbounded. House (Hopkins Diary). Receipts: #309 13s. 6d. (Treasurer's Book)

Event Comment: Epilogue by David Garrick. Second Ballet: with New Scenes [by deLoutherbourg] and Dresses [by Lupini]. Two new Grand Ballets, composed by Gallet, were introduced in this Piece (The Maid of the Oaks) in which Gallet and Mlle Dupre made their first Appearance upon the Eng. Stage--the first Dance, which was to be in the 2nd Act, was obliged to be deferred till the end of the 3rd Act, as Lupini, who made the Dancers Dresses, had not brought them to the House--this put us all into great Confusion, and Dodd made an Apology to the Audience, that an unforseen Accident had prevented the Dance being done in the proper Place. At the beginning of the 3rd Act most of the Dresses were brought, but not all, and some of the Dancers were obliged to put on what Dresses could be got for them--They were all very much confused--the Music also was not perfect. Gallet went on, and spoke in French to the Audience, and told the Band that he wished they had any Heads. In the first Dance Mlle Dupre fell down, and a little after Gallet fell down, but (they) did not hurt themselves, and the Dance went on--and even with all these Disadvantages was much applauded (Hopkins Diary). Receipts: #181 19s. 6d

Event Comment: 3rd piece: Prologue by David Garrick

Event Comment: [Afterpiece: Epilogue by David Garrick]. Receipts: #232 10s. 6d. (188.17.0; 42.11.6; 1.2.0)

Event Comment: Benefit for Mrs Mattocks. 1st piece [1st time; INT 1, by John Cartwright Cross. Larpent MS 1213; not published]. Genest, VII 365, states that the Epilogue Address "was in all probability the Epilogue to Alonzo [by David Garrick]." 3rd piece: conclude with a Rural Procession: Four Lads bearing Streamers-Plough decorated with Flowers-Four Countrymen bearing a May-day Garland-Four Lasses Bearing Implements of Husbandry-Country Girls leading a Lamb, decorated with Flowers-Four Lasses bearing a Garland-a Chorus and Finale. Tickets delivered for Every One has His Fault will be admitted. Times, 17 Apr.: Tickets to be had of Mrs Mattocks, No. 8, Great Russell-street, Covent-garden. Receipts: #259 16s. 6d. (124.7.0; 2.13.0; tickets: 132.16.6)

Event Comment: 1st piece [1st time; PREL I, by George Colman elder; also ascribed to George Keate. Larpent MS 565; not published]: In Three Scenes of Dialogue. 2nd piece: The Music compiled by Dr Pepusch. 3rd piece [1st time; B. BALL I (see king's, 29 Mar.)]: Ballet Tragi-Comique by Signior Novestris [i.e. George Colman, the elder]. The Music by Signior Gluck. With New Scenes, Dresses and Decorations. Machinist and Painter-Signior Rookereschi. Tailor-Signior Walkerino. Morning Chronicle, 9 Aug.: Bannister with great good sense played chastely, and suffered the burlesque to arise out of his serious performance of Polly, not attempting to render the character ridiculous by making it more outre than it was rendered by his voice and figure