Event Comment: By Authority. By the French Company of Comedians. Boxes 5s. Pit 3s. Gallery 2s. Victor, History of the Theatres, I, 54-60: People went early to the Theatre, as a crouded House was certain. I was there, in the Centre of the Pit; where I soon perceived that we were visited by two Westminster Justices, Deveil and Manning. The Leaders, that had the Conduct of the Opposition, were known to be there; one of whom called aloud for the Song in Praise of English Roast Beef, which was accordingly sung in the Gallery by a Person prepared for that Purpose; and the whole House besides joining in the Chorus, saluted the Close with three Huzzas! This, Justice Deveil was pleased to say, was a Riot; upon which Disputes commenced directly, which were carried on with some Degree of Decency on both Sides. The Justice at first informed us, 'That he was come there as a Magistrate to maintain the King's Authority; that Colonel Pulteney, with a full Company of the Guards, were without, to support him in the Execution of his Office; that it was the King's Command the Play should be acted; and that the obstructing it was opposing the King's Authority; and if that was done, he must read the Proclamation; after which all Offenders would be secured directly by the Guards in waiting.' To all these most arbitrary Threatnings, this Abuse of his Majesty's Name, the Reply was to the following Effect:-'That the Audience had a legal Right to shew their Dislike to any Play or Actor; that the common Laws of the Land were nothing but common Custom, and the antient Usuage of the People; that the Judicature of the Pit had been acknowledged and acquiesced to, Time immemorial; and as the present Set of Actors were to take their Fate from the Public, they were free to receive them as they Pleased.' By this Time the Hour of Six drew near; and the French and Spanish Embassadors, with their Ladies; the late Lord and Lady Gage, and Sir T@R@, a Commissioner of the Excise, all appeared in the Stage Boxes together! At that Instant the Curtain drew up, and discovered the Actors standing between two Files of Grenadiers, with their Bayonets fixed, and resting on their Firelocks. There was a Sight! enough to animate the coldest Briton. At this the whole Pit rose, and unanimously turned to the Justices, who sat in the Middle of it, to demand the Reason of such arbitary Proceedings? The Justices either knew nothing of the Soldiers being placed there, or thought it safest to declare so. At that Declaratinn, they demanded of Justice Deveil (who had owned himself the commanding Officer in the Affair) to order them off the Stage. He did so immediately, and they disappeared. Then began the Serenade; not only Catcalls, but all the various portable Instruments, that could make a disagreeable Noise, were brought up on this Occasion, which were continually tuning in all Parts of the House; and as an Attempt to speaking was ridiculous, the Actors retired, and they opened with a grand Dance of twelve Men and twelve Woman; but even that was prepared for; and they were directly saluted with a Bushel or two of Peas, which made their Capering very unsafe. After this they attempted to open the Comedy; but had the Actor the voice of Thunder, it would have been lost in the confused Sounds from a thousand Various Instruments. Here, at the waving Deviel's Hand, all was silent, and (standing up on his Seat) he made a Proposal to the House to this Effect:-'That if they persisted in the Opposition, he must read the Proclamation; that if they would permit the Play to go on, and to be acted through that Night, he would promise, (on his Honour) to lay their Dislikes, and Resentment to the Actors, before the King, and he doubted not but a speedy End would be put to their acting.' The Answer to this Proposal was very short, and very expressive. 'No Treaties, No Treaties!' At this the Justice called for Candles to read the Proclamation, and ordered the Guards to be in Readiness; but a Gentleman seizing Mr Deveil's Hand, stretched out for the Candle, begged of him to consider what he was going to do, for his own Sake, for ours, for the King's! that he saw the unanimous Resolution of the House; and that the Appearance of Soldiers in the Pit would throw us all into a Tumult, which must end with the Lives of many. This earnest Remostrance made the Justice turn pale and passive. At this Pause the Actors made a second Attempt to go on, and the Uproar revived; which continuing some Time, the Embassadors and their Ladies left their Box, which occasioned a universal. Huzza from the whole House! and after calling out some Time for the Falling of the Curtain, down it fell. [For other accounts of this evening, see Daily Advertiser, 9 and 10 Oct.; London Evening Post, 12 Oct.; Gentleman's Magazine, VIII (1938), 545; Historical Register, XXIII, 278-87.

Event Comment: At the Late Theatre in Ayliffe Street....A Concert of Vocal and Instrumental Musick. Divided into Two Parts. Tickets at Four, Three, Two, and One Shilling. N.B. Between the two Divisions of the Concert will be presented Gratis...The Stratagem. 6 p.m. [This formula of a concert (with admission charges) and a play given gratis is employed by gf throughout the season.

Event Comment: [Benefit for twelve on basis of varying percentages of tickets.] Benefit Banks, Trott, Carney, and Bianchini. Tickets deliver'd out by Sadler, Elliot and others will be taken. /For Pit Gallery Value Half-Value/Ruby 145 48 20 #45 9s. #22 14s. 6d./Banks 6 127 144 #34 19s. #17 9s./Carny 8 42 65 #13 11s. #6 15s. 6d./Bianchini 10 38 46 #12 16s. #6 8s. (two-thirds)/Sadler ... 11 28 #4 9s. #2 4s. 6d. (two-thirds)/Elliott 1 20 45 #7 15s. #3 17s. 6d. (two-thirds)/Mrs Hayman 4 22 35 #7 16s. #3 18s./Mrs Russell 7 27 26 #8 8s. #4 4s./Mrs Keene 3 20 23 #6 1s. #3 0s. 6d. (whole)/Mrs Hales ... 16 13 #3 14s. #1 17s./Mrs Hanmore 1 11 16 #3 10s. #1 15s./Mrs Griffiths ... 7 14 #2 9s. #1 4s. 6d./Totals 180 389 475 #150 17s. #75 8s. 6d./ (Account Books, Egerton 2268). Paid Woodfall, printer part of his bill for last season #52 12s. Paid Servandoni #10 10s., and Price (a Smith) for work at lif #9 5s. (Account Books, Egerton 2268)

Event Comment: TThe London Chronicle for 1758 (p. 455): On Friday the 3rd instant was presented Coriolanus. The two first acts of this play, as it is performed at the above theatre, were written by Shakespear; the three last for the most part by Mr. Thomson. But how a man of Mr Sheridan's knowledge (who first introduc'd it there about four years ago) could think of pounding into one substance two things so heterogeneous in their natures as the productions of those authors, is to me amazing. Mr Smith enters in the first act, after having (as we are to suppose) just overcome the Volsci, to the tune of violins and hautboys; but I am a little afraid the grandeur of his triumph is a little misapplied, considering the early times in which Coriolanus lived, before the Roman empire had arrived to any degree of splendor and magnificence, and was great in virtue only. However it makes a fine show; and Mr Smith, who has an excellent person, by the help of a little burnt cork and a real coat of mail cuts a very martial appearance. I think it was one of the Gracchi, who, when he was speaking to the people, always had a servant behind him in the Rostrum with a pitch-pipe which he touched whenever he found his master's voice rising beyond a certain height; such an instrument as this would, in my opinion, be of service to Mr Smith, for his fault seems to be that of keeping too much at the top of his vioce. Mrs Hamilton in the part of Veturai, especially in the last act, excells herself; and in particular, she repeats that line: "He never can be lost who saves his country," with the genuine spirit of a free-born Englishman. By the unnatural conjunction which is attempted to be made in this tragedy, most of the other characters are robbed of their significance. Those two excellent actors, therefore, Ryan and Sparks, only give us just cause to regret that the parts of Tullus and Volscius are not longer....After the play was presented a Ballad Opera called The Contrivances; in which some good comedians are oblig'd to submit to the drudgery of supporting as contemptible a trifle as ever was acted on the stage

Event Comment: NNeville MS Diary: To Ranelagh to hear a grand Jubilee Entertainment; it is the most elegant public room in the world and must give foreigners a high idea of the riches of our nation. It is circular and the fireplace is under a circular Portico in the middle, round which are tables at which the company are served with tea and coffee, and there are two sets of boxes at the side one above another for the same purpose. The landing room from the river which projects a little into the water commands a fine view of the river and country...Saw the Tripoline ambassador in the dress of his country. Took notice of a Miss Spencer and a Miss Johnson, two pretty ladies of the town, the latter had one of the prettiest faces I ever saw. Brunswick, Cumberland...Tripolian Ambassador...Miss Spencer and a Miss Johnson, two pretty ladies of ye town... were there...Began to use an Opera glass

Event Comment: Alterations and additions to the afterpiece in form of a Trip to Naplesv. Includes two views of the eruption of Vesuviusv [a display used afterwards in Harlequin's Invasionv 19 March]. Theatrical Review, 26 Dec.: The Witches; or a Trip to Naples,...one of those Mummeries, in which the carpenters, painters and taylors belong1ng to the theatre are the principal projectors; who torture dull brains to furnish out most contemptible pieces of entertainment...the disgrace of the English stage. This what-shall-we-call-it...now reviv'd with alterations and the addition of two new scenes, viz. two views of Mount Vesuviusv: the first of which represents a Vulcano burning at a distance, and is reflected by the water in the bay of Naplesv. The second is a nearer land view of the Mounts, and represents the manner in which the Lava is thrown out whenever an eruption happens; the torrents of the lava, like a river of liquid fire, falling into a cascade from a rock. As far as carpenters and painters are concerned, these additional scenes seem to be well executed, but whether the resemblance is exact, we cannot pretend to say; though we suppose it is. Be this as it may we cannot help thinking, the terrific ideas these scenes naturally raise in the mind, must defeat every intention of giving pleasure, and consequently afford less satisfaction to curiosity than a written account of that Vulcano, or any descriptive drawing of it. Paid Printer's Bill #9 6d. Receipts: #235 12s. 6d. (Treasurer's Book)

Event Comment: With New Music, Scenes, Dresses, and Decorations for the Afterpiece. This Farce is brought on the Stage by Mrs Abington--it is very dull--It is vastly well got up and was receiv'd with Applause (Hopkins Diary). [MacMillan's note from Kemble differs slightly, mentioning Bickerstaff as the author. Larpent MS 397 contains elaborate stage direction at opening: "An interior apartment in the Seraglio. An arch in the middle of the back scene, which is shut with a curtian. On the right hand toward the front is a sopha in the Turkish manner, low deep, and long, covered with carpets and cushions. A little gold table about eight inches high and a foot and a half square. Upon it a rich or gold saver set with jewels, with two cups on porcelain, and a spoon made of the beak of an Indian bird, which is redder than coral, extremely rare and of extensive price." This may have been intended for a reading audience. In the piece Mrs Abington, an English slave , rebels in the confines of the Seraglio, and start a reform movement wherein men are to please the women. Concludes with demostration of the nobility of English women who will not be enslaved, who will not flatter, who will preserve their liberty and dignity, and who are capable of returning love for honor and respect. Reviewed in Westminster Magazine for Dec.: "The Audience appeared to be divided in their opinion of the merit of the Sultan, some loudly applauding, and others as loudly condemning it, when the curtain dropped. The Majority however, stood firmly for it, and a verdict was returned in its favor. The managers not only well dressed this dramatic trifle, but bestowed three new scenes on it: The Outer Gate of the Seraglio--An Interior view of it--and a Garden terminating in a prospect of the sea. The first was but la! la! The last two were beautiful and picturesque. Five airs were introduced into this piece which had a very good effect....The music of the two first was the composition of Mr Dibdin, and was exceedingly pretty."] Receipts: #143 1s. 6d. (Treasurer's Book)