Eighteen minitures of characters from the Drury Lane theatre including seven of David Garrick (1717-1779) five inscribed respectively 'Theatre in Drury Lane Mr. Garrick.' (on the cover sheet) and further inscribed respectively 'MR GARRICK. in the Character of King RICHARD the IIId. Act. III.' (lower centre) (illustrated a); 'MR GARRICK. in BENEDICT in Much ado about nothing'(lower centre) (illustrated b); 'MR GARRICK. in the Character of LUSIGNAN, in Zara' (lower centre, illustrated c); 'MR GARRICK/in the Character of King RICHARD. the III d.' (lower centre) (illustrated d); 'MR GARRICK in ABEL DRUGGER/in the Alchemist. Act.1.' (lower centre); one inscribed 'Theatre in Drury Lane/Mr. Garrick and Mr Weston.' (on the cover sheet) and 'Mr WESTON & Mr GARRICK./in the Character of SCRUB and ARCHER, in the Stratagem.' (lower centre) (illustrated e); one inscribed 'Theatre in Drury Lane./Mr. Garrick and Miss. Bellamy.' (on the cover sheet) and 'MR GARRICK and Miss BELLAMY./in RANGER and CLARINDA. in the suspicious Husband.' (lower centre) (illustrated f); one inscribed 'Theatre in Drury Lane/Mr. King.' (on the cover sheet) and 'Mr. King in Lord OGLEBE [sic]/in the clandestine Marriage.' (lower centre); one inscribed 'Theatre in D[rury Lane]/Mrs. Yar[d]' (on the cover sheet) and 'MRS. YATES/in the Character of MANBANE, in Cyrus.' (lower centre); one inscribed 'Theatre in Drury Lane/Mrs. Abingdon.' (on the cover sheet) and 'MRS ABINGTON in MRS FORD. in the Merrywifes of Windsor.' (lower centre); one inscribed 'Comedie Italienne/Mr. Caillot et Me. Laruette.' (on the cover sheet) and 'Tu gardes le Silence, et tu pleures.' (inside the cover sheet) and further inscribed 'HELENE et LE BARON./Dans l'amoureux de quinze ans.'(lower centre); one inscribed 'Comedie Italienne/Mr. Clairval et Me Laruette' (on the cover sheet) and 'Zemire./Ah! je me meurs. Eloignez vous,/Si vous ne voulez que j'expire./Azor./Vivez: c'est a moi d'expirer/Si vous refusez de m'entendre.' (inside the cover sheet) and further inscribed 'ZEMIRE et AZOR' (lower centre); one inscribed 'Comedie Italienne/Mrs. Trial et Clairval.' (on the cover sheet) and 'BETRAND et MONTREAUCIEL/dans le Deserteur.' (lower centre); one inscribed 'Comedie Italienne/Mr. Clerval et Me. Laruette' (on the cover sheet) and 'CATAU LUCAS/dans Julie. Acte 2.' (lower centre); one inscribed 'Comedie Itali[enne]/Mrs. Caillo[t]' (on the cover sheet) and 'SANDER ALI/dans Zemire et Azor.' (lower centre); one inscribed 'Comedie Italienne./Mad. Trial et Mad. Laruette.' (on the cover sheet) and 'ISABELLE COLOMBINE/dans le Tableau parlant.' (lower centre); one inscribed 'Comedie Italienne/Mr. Caillot' (on the cover sheet) and 'LE DESERTEUR' (lower centre); one inscribed 'Comedie Italienne./Mr. Laruette.' (on the cover sheet) and 'JEAN LOUIS/dans the Deserteur. Acte.I.' (lower centre) pencil, watercolour and bodycolour, with gum arabic, eleven heightened with touches of gold, within the artist's black-line border, on vellum, unframed 3 7/8 x 3 1/2 in. (10 x 9 cm.) (18)
PROPERTY OF THE LATE OLIVER GOLLANCZ SOLD BY ORDER OF THE EXECUTORS
The present group of watercolours are an important, contemporary record of the theatre at Drury Lane. Little is known of the artist, he was born in Basel and worked as a miniaturist and designer chiefly in Paris and London. It seems probable that his works inspired the design of the portraits in Bell's Shakespeare (editions published in 1773, and 1775-8) (see K.A. Burnim and P.H. Highfil Jun., John Bell Patron of British Theatrical Portraiture: A Catalogue of the Theatrical Portraits in His Editions of Bell's Shakespeare and Bell's British Theatre, Southern Illinois, 1998). His style is distinctive and his work is of high quality, being executed on vellum and heightened with gold, with pen and ink inscriptions. The portraits of actors published in Bell's Shakespeare and British Theatre (1776-1778) were hugely influential, in Liverpool a series of delft tiles were made with theatrical subjects drawn from Bell's and Lownde's New English Theatre (1775), see Property from Two Ducal Collections; Christie's, London, 20 September 2004, lot 869.
The most famous depictions of Garrick are those painted by Johann Zoffany (1733-1810), in which he paints the actor frozen at a moment of tension in the story. In theatrical portraits the artist supplies the dramatic gesture or attitude deemed appropriate for demonstrating the line of dialogue depicted, for further information on the depiction of theatrical poses see K.A. Burnim and P.H. Highfil Jun., op.cit. pp. 26-29. The present watercolours, although traditional in their poses, appear not to follow the paintings of Garrick by Zoffany, the closest we find is Garrick as Richard III (illustrated d) appearing in the same costume as a portrait by Nathaniel Dance, exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1771 and in Mr King as Lord Ogleby he also wears the same costume as in a painting by Zoffany, engraved by Richard Earldom and published in 1772.
Garrick played Richard III throughout his career, but as he matured he found the role an increasing challenge. Garrick told his friend Craddock, 'I can play Richard, but I dread the fight and fall. I am afterwards in agonies'. Zoffany also painted Garrick in the character of Abel Drugger with Mr Burton and Mr Palmer in the characters of Subtle and Face, in Ben Jonson's The Alchemist, exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1770. The part of Abel Drugger is the epitome of low comedy even though the character is only on stage for a short period. Garrick's aim in his portrayal of the character was to create, 'the completest low picture of grotesque terror that can be imagined by a Dutch painter'. Of Garrick's performance, one critic asserted 'nothing but his [Garrick's] singular excellence in Drugger, has kept the comedy on the stage for many years past'. He played the role more than eighty times throughout his career.
Mrs Frances Abington was born Frances Barton in 1737. Her father had served in the Guards and kept a cobbler's stall near Drury Lane Theatre. She sold flowers before first appearing at the Haymarket Theatre in 1755 and at Drury lane in 1756. She was painted by Reynolds (Waddesdon Manor) and died in 1815.
One of George-Anne Bellamy's most famous roles was as Juliet with David Garrick at Drury Lane in 1750.
Thomas King was born in 1730 in Mayfair, where his father was a tradesman. He was articled to a solictor, but ran away to join a travelling company in 1748, where he was spotted by Garrick and engaged at Drury Lane. Lord Ogleby was his most acclaimed role, his performance reputably equaling Garrick's success as Hamlet.
Thomas Weston was born in 1737 and went out sea as a midshipman. In the summer of 1761, he was playing at Drury Lane under Foote and Murphy. He was a heavy drinker and his extravagance legendary. One one occasion 'between the play and farce at Drury-lane theatre, a disturbance arose, which continued a full hour. Mr Weston it appeared was in debt to the Managers a sum of money, on which account they had impounded all the cash he received on his benefit night; this the Comedian did not like and there-fore yeterday sent word that he could not play, as he was arrested and detained in a Spunging-house' The London Chronicle, 28 December 1773. It was announced that Weston would be unable to play due to 'suddenly being taken ill'; at this moment, Weston, released on bail for the evening popped up from his position and attempted to explain the situation from his point of view. He was eventually persuaded to come down and play the part of Sneak.
Mary Ann Yates was born in 1728, the daughter of a captain's steward. She was hired by Richard Sheridan in Dublin, where she appeared for the first time in 1753. She appeared for the first time in Drury Lane the following December, where she was encouraged by Garrick and Richard Yates, whom she later married. She was one of the great comic actresses of the 18th Century.
The Comèdie Italienne was a group of exiled Italian performers, who had set up in Paris in 1716 and based their repertoire on the stock characters and scenarios of the commedia dell' arte. They had first performed in Italian, then silently in pantomime, until they decided that to attract a French audience, they needed to commission a French playwright to produce texts for them. The twenty-two year old Pierre Marivaux was quick to oblige, and generated more than a play a year for the Italian company over the next twenty years. The British director and translator Neil Bartlett describes the theatrical genius of the Comèdie-Italienne as 'the art of making a great deal out of almost nothing... of ringing subtle and complex changes on the familiar Italian characters and narratives, on the recognizable stage personalities of a fixed acting company'.
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