Event Comment: [Prologue by John Peter Roberdeau (European Magazine, Aug. 1791, p. 141).] "Of Palmer Sen.'s? acting the chief fault is...a manner by far too juvenile. He has very much the turn of countenance and mode of speech suitable to Falstaff, but his gait has no appearance of debility or infirmity, and is such as any man might use, incumbered by the same dress" (Gazetteer, 21 June)

Event Comment: [In mainpiece the playbill omits Earl of Richmond. The assignment is taken from Oracle, 14 Nov.] "In the play Trinculo's curtain [as used for his 1st scene in The Tempest] stood for the Tower, and Bosworth Field was a delightful little farm-yard" (Oracle, 15 Nov.). The Doors to be opened at 5:15. To begin at 6:15 [see 9 Jan. 1792]. Receipts: #189 2". (152.18; 35.1; 1.3)

Event Comment: By Permission of the Lord Chamberlain. Under the Patronage of several Persons of Distinction. Beneath the immediate Direction of a Venerable Veteran of the Stage. Afterpiece [1st time; C 2, author unknown. Not in Larpent MS; not published]: Reduced into Two Acts, from The Provok'd Wife

Event Comment: Mainpiece: [With alterations by John Philip Kemble] Not acted these 4 years. [In his prompt copy (1808) now in Harvard Theatre Collection Kemble's annotation lists the following as needed in the opening scene: 10 principals, Captain of the Guard, 3 Knights, 2 Pages, 2 Gentlemen with Crown, 2 Gentlemen with Map, Physician, Herald, 2 Ladies with Goneril, 2 Ladies with Regan, 2 Standard Bearers, 12 Guards. Nearly every scene opens or closes with drums and trumpets. In the storm scene, "Thunder and lightning; lamps down," i.e. the footlights lowered out of sight into a shallow trough. It is not unlikely that these arrangements were adhered to in this present revival.] "Kemble said that, however singular it might be, in Lear an audience quite unsettled him; the noise of the box-doors caught his ear, and routed all his meditated effects; and he found it absolutely impossible to do that at night which he had thrown out during the rehearsal in the morning" (Boaden, Siddons, II, 376). Receipts: #350 9s. 6d. (310.9.6; 38.12.0; 1.8.0)

Event Comment: Benefit for Mrs Siddons. To prevent Confusion, Ladies and Gentlemen are desired to send their Servants by Half past Four o'Clock. Mainpiece: In I The Cardinal's Banquet. In II the Court for the Trial of Queen Katharine. In V a Grand Procession to the Christening of Princess Elizabeth. Morning Herald, 7 Mar.: Tickets to be had of Mrs Siddons, No. 49, Great Marlborough-street. Receipts: #493 16s. (258.15.6; 25.13.0; 1.16.0; tickets: 207.11.6) (charge: #159 8s. 10d.)

Event Comment: Benefit for Hull and Macready. 1st piece: In Act I a Grand Banquet. With the Procession [in Act IV] from the Abbey at the Coronation of Anne Bullen . To conclude with the Ceremonial of a Royal Christening. [In 2nd piece the scenes, as listed on 10 May, are indicated.] Morning Herald, 20 May: Tickets to be had of Hull, No. 7, Duke's-court, Westminster; Diary, 21 May: of Macready, No. 3, Mary-street, Charles-street, Tottenham-Court-Road. Receipts: #282 14s

Event Comment: Mainpiece: Not acted these 2 years. Receipts: #297 16s. (296/2; 1/14)

Event Comment: Mainpiece: In Act I The Cardinal's Banquet. In Act II The Court for the Trial of Queen Katharine. In Act V a Grand Procession to the Christening of Princess Elizabeth. Paid Charles Smith on Acct. of Upholders Work at Drury Lane Theatre #400. Powell: Henry VIII rehearsed at 10 (for Packer, lame, and Mrs Siddons); Siege of Belgrade music at 12 (for Storace, Bannister Jun., Crouch, Davis, Danby). The Iron Curtain being finish'd was this Evening exhibited for the first Time with the Epilogue [and see 21 Apr.]. "On the 24th February, 1809, this theatre was burnt down . . . Every care had been taken to guard against such a calamity. Two large reservoirs for water, on the top of the house, happened, unfortunately, at this crisis to be empty; and an iron curtain, intended to separate the auditory from the stage, for the purpose of saving a part of the edifice in case of conflagration, was, with its machinery, so much out of order as to be useless; it was, in fact, utterly immoveable" (Brayley, p. 8). Receipts: #451 8s. 6d. (389/4/0; 56/5/0; 4/6/6; tickets not come in: 1/13/0)

Event Comment: Mainpiece: In Act I The Cardinal's Banquetv. In Act II The Court for the Trial of Queen Katharinev. In Act V a Grand Processionv to the Christening of Princess Elizabeth. Afterpiece: Representation of the Engagementv, as 14 Oct. [In mainpiece the playbill omits Lord Sands, but "Sands Hollingsworth, Baddeley ill" (Powell).] Powell, 17 Oct.: Chaplet rehearsed at 10 [see under 16 Oct.]; Drummer at 11; Roman Actor at 12 (order to be dismissed by Mr Kemble); 18 Oct.: Haunted Tower rehearsed at 10; Wedding Day at 12. Receipts: #307 6s. (227.18; 77.6; 2.2)

Event Comment: Mainpece: In Act I the Cardinal's Banquet. In Act II the Court for the Trial of Queen Katharine. In Act V a Grand Procession to the Christening of Princess Elizabeth. Receipts: #211 1s. 6d. (150.5.0; 58.4.6; 2.12.0)

Event Comment: Mainpiece: Not acted these 4 years (notice on playbill of 8 Nov.). Afterpiece: The Musick composed by W. Linley. The Scenery by Greenwood. The Machinery and Decorations by Cabanel, Johnston, Jacobs. The Dresses by Johnston and Miss Rein. The Doors to be opened at 5:15. To begin at 6:15 [see 3 Apr. 1797]. Receipts: #318 4s. 6d. (237.14.6; 76.5.6; 4.4.6)

Event Comment: Mainpiece: Not acted these 2 years. [Afterpiece: Prologue by George Colman elder.] Receipts: #327 8s. (244.10.6; 81.2.0; 1.15.6)

Event Comment: "...Richard III, which I saw performed at Drury-lane theatre at the beginning of the present season...The dresses of the characters which here make their appearance are in the usual half-and-half mode, made up from portraits of Charles I's reign, and from unrestrained fancy. Richard's habit, indeed, shews a faint hint, at the costume of his day; but how modernized! A fancy cap and feather,with a milliner's white-ribband rose, sewed thereon. A deep ruff, of that make not known until the reign of James I From the neck depends a ribband With the George: this decoration never seen in paintings till about the fashions of the abovementioned monarch's court. On his legs and feet, white silk stockings, white shoes, and red roses. These latter ornaments unknown before Elizabeth or James I's modes of dress prevailed; at any rate, they should have been white ones to have accorded with the party-badge in his cap." Writer signing himself "An Artist and an Antiquary" in Gentleman's Magazine, Apr. 1800, p. 319. Receipts: #225 16s. 6d. (178.3.6; 47.12.0; 0.1.0)

Event Comment: Mainpiece: Not acted these 2 years. Receipts: #161 7s. (158.19.6; 2.7.6)

Event Comment: King Lear oblig'd to be deferr'd on account of Indisposition of a principal Performer. Paid Thompson (perukemaker) #7 19s. 6d., and Banks for 2 Masks #1 1s. (Account Book). Receipts: #174 3s

Event Comment: king's "On 28th March 1795, I saw the Opera Aci & Galathea by Bianchi. The music is very rich in parts for the wind instruments, and I rather think one would hear the principal melody better if it were not so richly scored. The Opera is too long, especially since Banti has to keep everything going all by herself; for Brida is a good youngster with a beautiful voice but very little musical feeling; and Rovedino, and the good old Braghetti, and the wretched Seconda Donna-they all deserved, and received, not the least applause. The orchestra is larger this year, but just as mechanical and badly placed as it was before, and indiscreet in its accompaniments; in short, it was the 3rd time that this Opera was performed, and everyone was dissatisfied. It happened that, when the 2nd Ballet began, the whole public suddenly became dissatisfied and yelled 'off-off-off,' because they wanted to see the new Ballet which Madam Hilligsberg had given at her Benefice 2 days earlier. Everyone was embarrassed-there was an interval lasting half an hour-until at last a dancer came forward and said, very submissively: 'Ladies and Gentlemen: since the performer [sic, instead of proprietor] Mr Taylor cannot be found, the whole Ballet Company promises to perform the desired ballet next week, for which, however, the Impresario must pay Madam Hilligsberg #300.'That satisfied them, and they then yelled, 'go on-go on;' and thus the old Ballet was performed' (Haydn, 293)

Event Comment: The King's Company. The exact date of this performance is not known, but the Prologue refers to "After a four Months Fast," suggesting that the theatre did not reopen until the end of the Long Vacation (24 Oct. 1681 is the beginning of Michaelmas Term). The Epilogue also seems to refer to events at Bartholomew Fair, and the Prologue to the King's visit to Newmarket, from which the King did not return until 12 Oct. 1681. Furthermore, The Impartial Protestant Mercury, No. 54, 28 Oct. 1681, reports: A Revised Play was some days since Acted on an Eminent Publick Theatre, and the Prologue is extreamly talked of. [The periodical reprints some of the lines (which are essentially those in the printed version).] The Loyal Protestant, No. 70, 29 Oct. 1681, refers to the same performance and reprints part of the Epilogue (which also is essentially that of the separately printed Epilogue). All of these elements point to a performance in mid-October. Both the Prologue and the Epilogue were printed separately, and have been reprinted by Wiley, Rare Prologues and Epilogues, pp. 43-45. Broadside copies of the Prologue and Epilogue in the Huntington Library bear Luttrell's manuscript notations that both were written by Dryden. Luttrell's date of acquisition is 13 Feb. 1681@2, an instance in which Luttrell's date of purchase does not apparently correspond closely to a date of performance

Event Comment: [By Theophilus Cibber.] Alter'd from Shakespear. Containing the Marriages of King Edward the Fourth , and young Prince Edward , with Lady Gray , and Lady Anne . The Distresses of Queen Margaret . The Deposing King Henry the Sixth . The Battles Fought at St. Albans, Wakefield, Mortimer's-Cross, and Tewkesbury. The Deaths of Lord Clifford of Cumberland , and his Son, the Duke of York , his Steward. And many other True Historical Passages

Event Comment: Benefit for Cautherly. [Farce never before acted, written by King.

Event Comment: The United Company. As 9 Nov. 1692 is known to be the second day, it is assumed that 8 Nov. 1692 represents the first performance. (See entry for 9 Nov. 1692.) The authorship is uncertain; William Mountfort signed tne Dedication, but its authorship is linked with that of Edward III (November 1690), which may have been by Bancroft. Gentleman's Journal, October 1692 (not issued until November): Henry the Second, King of England, A new Play, by the Author of that call'd Edward the Third, which gave such universal satisfaction, hath been acted several times with applause. It is a Tragedy with a mixture of Comedy....Had you seen it acted, you would own that an Evening is pass'd very agreeably, when at a Representation of that pleasing Piece. [Alfred Harbage, Elizabethan-Restoration Palimpsest, Modern Language Review, XXXV (1940), 312-18, argues that this play is the Elizabethan Henry II once in the possession of Moseley. A song, In vain 'gainst Love I strove, composed by Henry Purcell and sung by Mrs Dyer, not in the printed play, is in Comes Amoris, 1693, and Joyful Cuckoldom 1695. See Purcell's Works, Purcell Society, XX (1916), vii