D. L. 1716-1717. Sept. 29. Country Wife. Alithea Mrs. Younger: Mrs. Dainty Fidget Mrs. Horton :-rest as May 18 1715. = Oct. 2. Henry 4th. Falstaff Mills: King = Thurmond. 4. Love makes a Man. Louisa Mrs. Horton: Angelina Mrs. Santlow: Elvira Mrs. Mountfort. = 9. Love for Love. Mrs. Foresight Mrs. Horton: Miss Prue Mrs. Younger. 11. Spanish Fryar. 12. Old Batchelor. Heartwell is omitted: Sir Joseph Whittol=Bowen: Belinda Mrs. Mountfort. = 13. Macbeth. Lady Macduff Mrs. Horton. = 15. Strategem- -20. Julius Cæsar. 17. Unhappy Favourite. Essex Wilks. = 22. Distressed Mother. Orestes Mills: Andro = mache, with the Epilogue, Mrs. Oldfield. 24. Rover-26. Busy Body. 27. Amorous Widow. Clodpole Miller: Barnaby Brittle-Cibber :--he acted the character on this and some other occasions, seemingly in consequence of Norris' indisposition, who took care however not to give up the part-Cibber was applauded and said to Mrs. Oldfield "Nanny how do you like "your new husband?"-She replied, Why very "well, but not half so well as Dicky Norris "_"How "so?"—"Why you are too important a figure; but "Norris has such a diminutive form and so sneaking "a look, he seems formed on purpose for horns, and "I always make him a cuckold with a hearty good "will." (Chetwood and Davies.) 30. Duke of Guise and Stage Coach. Squire Somebody Miller. = Nov. 1. Jane Shore and What d'ye call it. 2. Love's last Shift-3. Scornful Lady. 5. Not acted 7 years, Tamerlane-this T. was acted 6 times following-on the 3d night Mills who acted Bajazet being suddenly taken ill, Quin was with much persuasion prevailed on to read the part -he succeeded so well that the audience gave him great applause the next night he made himself perfect in the words, and acted the part with encreased approbation. (Chetwood.) 12. Double Gallant. Wishwell Mrs. Saunders. 13. Wit without Money. Valentine Wilks: Francisco Mills: Lance Miller: Shorthose= Norris Lady Hartwell Mrs. Oldfield: Isabella = Mrs. Porter. 14. Greenwich Park. Young Reveller Mills : Dorinda Mrs. Horton. 16. Æsop. 19. Not acted 8 years, Henry 8th. with the Coronation, and the author's old original Prologue-no characters-acted 5 nights successively, with the exception of the 22d, when the Man of the Mode was the play. 26. She wou'd and she wou'd not. 27. Tender Husband. Sir Harry Gubbin= Miller: Mrs. Clerimont Mrs. Bignell. Dec. 1. Othello-3. Venice Preserved- 4. Silent Woman. 5. She wou'd if she cou'd. Sir Oliver Cockwood = Norris: Sir Joslin Jolly Leigh: Courtall-Wilks: Freeman Mills: Lady Cockwood Mrs. Hunt: Ariana Mrs. Porter: Gatty Mrs. Santlow: Sentry = Mrs. Saunders. 10. Bartholemew Fair-11. Funeral. 12. Not acted 3 years, Mourning Bride. Dufoy 14. Comical Revenge. Dufoy Bowen: Sir Frederick Frolick Wilks: Sir Nicholas Cully= Norris: Palmer Johnson: Col. Bruce Booth: Mrs. Rich Mrs. Oldfield: Jenny Mrs. Saunders: -rest omitted. = = 17. Never acted, Cruel Gift. Lorenzo (General of Lombardy)= Booth: Learchus (son to Antenor) Ryan King of Lombardy = Mills: Antenor (prime minister of state) Quin: Cardono (friend to Lorenzo) = Walker: Hermit Boman: Agonistus = W. Wilks: Leonora (Princess of Lombardy)= Mrs. Oldfield: Antimora (supposed sister to Lorenzo) Mrs. Porter :-Lorenzo is privately married to Leonora-she is in the habit of admitting him to her bower by a secret passage-the King sees him there, and orders him to be seized as he comes out-Lorenzo is carried to prison-his friends attempt to rescue him, but fail in the attempt the King is so enraged, that he commands Lorenzo to be put to death and his heart to be brought to the Princessin the last act, Learchus enters with a man's heart in a golden cup-he offers it to Leonora, as a present from her father—hence the name of the play-the Hermit discovers himself to be the Duke of Milan, and the father of Lorenzo-the King is sorry that he has killed Lorenzo-Learchus brings in Lorenzo, whose life he had preserved he is rewarded with the hand of Antimora-this is an uninteresting T. by Mrs. Centlivre-she has borrowed her plot from Boccace Day 4. Novel 1., but has made considerable alterations-in the original story the Princess is not married to her lover-his heart is really presented to her, and she takes poison-see Tancred and Gismunda in the 11th vol. of Dodsley 1744-Mrs. Centlivre has added an Episode. Mills 27. Tamerlane. Tamerlane Booth: Bajazet= Moneses Wilks: Axalla Walker: Prince of Tanais Ryan: Dervise Quin: Arpasia=Mrs. Oldfield Selima Mrs. Santlow. = 29. Maid's Tragedy. = Jan. 1. Richard the 3d-2. Recruiting Officer. 5. King Lear. Gloster=Quin: Kent=Bickerstaffe. 9. Oronooko. Widow Lackit Mrs. Saunders. 11. Soldier's Fortune-12. Hamlet. Fop = Bowen. = = = = = = 16. Never acted, Three Hours after Marriage. Dr. Fossile Johnson: Plotwell Cibber: Underplot = Pinkethman: Sir Tremendous Bowman: Dr. Possum Norris: Dr. Nautilus Leigh: Ptisan Miller: 1st Player Walker: 2d Player Quin : Sailor Bickerstaffe: Mrs. Townley Mrs. Oldfield: Mrs. Phoebe Clinket Mrs. Bicknell; Sarsnet - Mrs. Hunt: Prue Mrs. Willis :-acted 7 times-Fossile enters in the 1st scene with Mrs. Townley whom he had just married-he intercepts a letter to her from Plotwell, which makes him jealous-she explains the words of the letter in such a manner as to pacify him -his niece, Mrs. Phoebe Clinket, has an itch for writing plays—as her pieces had been rejected at the theatre, she gets Plotwell to father a Tragedy for VOL. II. = Q Q - her-some parts of it are read-Sir Tremendous and the two Players find so much fault with it, that she faints-when Plotwell enters, Mrs. Townley affects not to know him-Plotwell and Underplot had laid a wager who should first make Fossile a cuckold-in the 2d act, Plotwell is disguised as a physician, and Underplot as a patient-in the 3d act, Plotwell is disguised as a Mummy, and Underplot as a Crocodile -Fossile enters with Possum and Nautilus-Nautilus is about to try if he can pierce the skin of the Crocodile with his sword-Possum wants to make an experiment on the Mummy with a knife-Plotwell and Underplot leap from their places the Doctors are frightened-Mrs. Townley prevails on Mrs. Clinket to own that Plotwell and Underplot came in masquerade by her desire--a sailor enters with Mrs. Townley's child which his wife had nursed-Mrs. Townley affects to take the child for a bastard of Fossile's--at the conclusion, it appears that Mrs. Townley's husband had returned from the Indies, and claimed his wife-this is on the whole a tolerably good C.-some parts of it are well written-it is printed in 3 acts, but was divided on the stage into 5-Gay says he wrote it with the assistance of two friends he does not name them, but they have always been considered as Pope and Dr. Arbuthnot-it has been supposed that Pope's dislike to the players was occasioned by the cool reception of this play-but this may be doubted, as in the play itself it is said "a Parrot and a Player can utter human sounds, "but we allow neither of them to be a judge of wit" -a Player is sometimes a bad Critic for an obvious reason the nature of his profession tempts him to |