Event Comment: Forty-eighth Day

Event Comment: As my Monkeys and me and my Dogs am promised to go to L'Haye and Vienna after some Days more, the grand Noblemans and Gentlemans of this Nation England do desire me to perform every Night, and so me shall do with Mrs Midnight at the Haymarket Playhouse this Thursday Night. Ballard Mango, my big Monkey, will talk the Prologue

Event Comment: Fiftieth Day

Event Comment: This is the last time of the Animal Comedians performing in England. Fifty-first Day

Event Comment: Fifty-second Day

Event Comment: Afterpiece: An Interlude. Pit and Boxes to be put together, and no person to be admitted without tickets, which will be deliver'd this day, at the office in Covent Garden theatre at half a guinea each. First Gallery 5s. Second Gallery 3s. 6d. Galleries to be opened at half an hour after Four O'clock. Pit and Boxes at Five. To begin at half an hour after Si(

Event Comment: [Fifty-third Day

Event Comment: Fifty-fourth Day

Event Comment: Fifty-fifth Day. [Postponed.

Event Comment: For a Publick Benefaction ye Day not put or 8th or Ninth (Cross). Receipts: #150 (Cross)

Event Comment: The Dr New Dress'd & in a New Manner with a Prologue by ye old Dr to introduce the New by the Author of the Hilliad. The Prologue was forbid by the Licencer, & struck out of the bills, but by Mistake was left in ye News; a great noise for it, Woodward said; as he had face to study, he had not time to do it--more Noise--I went on--& told 'em the Prologue was forbid--Noise still--Woodward went on & said it was forbid by L@or@d Chamberlain--it cool'd a little but when he came on dress'd like Dr Hill, it began again, & so ye farce ended (Cross). Benefit for Mr Woodward. Part of Pit laid into Boxes, and Stage commodiously built in form of an Amphitheatre. Boxes and Stage 5s. Ladies send servants by 3. Tickets to be had of Woodward in Great Piazza, Covent Garden; and at Stage Door. This day publish'd The Chaplet at 6d. a Musical entertainment as performed at Drury Lane. Receipts: #330 (Cross)

Event Comment: Mainpiece: Not acted in 5 years. [See 12 March 1747.] This day publish'd The Oracle, a comedy of one act as it is acted at Covent Garden. By Mrs Cibber

Event Comment: [Fifty-sixth Day. Benefit Sig Piantofugo. Tickets for the 15th will be taken

Event Comment: Towards a fund for ye Support of a publick Charity-(ye Lock Hospl.). King Lear & Duke & no Duke given out for Wed., 23 & bills put up, but not play'd on account of Mr Havard's illness, at 12 at noon, bills were dispers'd saying--the Play of King Lear, design'd for to Night is oblig'd to be defer'd on Account of Mr Havard's sudden illness. N.B--It was a very hot day (Cross). Tickets to be had at the following Coffee Houses: The St James, in St James's St.; The Mount, in Grosvenor St.; George's the upper end of the Haymarket; the Bedford and Tom's in Covent Garden; Garraway's in Cornhill; and at the Stage Door of the Theatre. Tickets deliver'd out for 16 April will be taken. [Cross lists no Receipts.

Event Comment: For Mrs Horton (a Gift Day). So ended ye Season. [185th performance.] Receipts: #120 (Cross)

Event Comment: To begin exactly at 6:00 o'clock. Boxes 5s. Pit 3s. Gallery 2s. Upper Gallery 1s. Places for the Boxes to be had of Mr Varney at the Stage door. [Repeated throughout the season.] Ye Naturalizing Bill having made some Noise against the Jews, some people call'd out for ye Merchant of Venice, & a Letter was thrown upon ye Stage desiring that play instead of the Opera, but we took no Notice of it, some little hissing but it dy'd away (Cross). [Sometime in the calendar year 1753, Lacy and Garrick drew up a mortgage on the Drury Lane property for #10,000, to be amortized to James Clutterbuck over a period of twenty-one years at the rate of #4 per acting night, and permission to grant free seats in any part of the theatre (except the stage, scenes and orchestra) to forty persons. These latter to be named and seats assigned ten days prior to the opening of any season. This thirteen-page document, which describes accurately the bounds of the 13,134 square feet of land on which the ten buildings comprising Drury Lane Theatre stood, contains protective clauses for Clutterbuck, to the effect that Garrick and Lacy will exhibit nowhere else in London without the #4 nightly payment and for Garrick and Lacy, to the effect that arrears in payment could be collected solely from Drury Lane property, and not from the individual incomes of the mortgagees. It was not signed, so apprently was not executed. (See Havard, Collection of Documents dealing with affairs of Drury Lane, No 2, fMS, Thr 12.)] Receipts: #150 (Cross)

Event Comment: [L+Letter to Miss Nossiter on Her First Appearance, pub. at 1s. praises her "natural acting" and analyses the character of Juliet as a most appropriate one for beginners: "In the First act she hath scarce anything to say; which affords her some breathing time to recover the confusion, into which her first appearance, before so awful an assembly must naturally throw her." Criticizes a supposed rival for planting herself full against her, as if with an intent by the superior force of her effrontery to stare away the little degree of Courage" Miss Nossiter had left. Her youth and freshness required no paint, so her color came and went as the passion required it, no small addition to the impression of natural acting. She is never inattentive on stage. She feels what others say as much as what she speaks herself. The Author gives practically a speech by speech account of her part, describing her gesture, action, and modulation of voice minutely. Concludes by pointing the reader's attention to Otway's contribution to the Garrick version which was played then at both houses. Praises Barry for instructing Miss Nossiter and bringing her to the stage. Hopes Garrick will refrain from attacking her in his papers, The Craftsman and Gray's Inn Journal, because she will one day become such an ornament to the stage, that I shall be proud to own myself the first who publicly displayed her merit.' Hers is the greatest real first attempt made by man or Woman on the stage, within these 40 years." See also 1 Nov.

Event Comment: Two days ago a Letter [price 1s.] came out to Miss Nossiter in which Mrs Cibber is abu'd & tother greatly extoll'd. The Author has also fell foul upon Mr Murphy author of Gray's Inn Journal. It is wrote by one Morgan an Irish Gent: High words has pass'd at ye Bedford Coff. H. between him and Murphy & 'tis thought a Duel will be ye Consequence (Cross). [See The Authorship of a Letter to Miss Nossiter, Shakespeare Quarterly, January 1952, p. 69.

Event Comment: Printed books of the opera will be sold at the theatre. Published this day at 1s. Lo Studente A La Moda, dramma comicogiocoso, as it is acted at the Theatre Royal in Covent Garden. With an English Translation. Sold by H. Woodfall...Where may be had Gli Amanti Gelosi, with an English translation. [Opera in there acts in Italian and French. Larpent MS 103. Altered from A. Polomba La Violante. Music by G. B. Pergolesi. Rich applied to the Duke of Grafton (9 Jan.) for license to perform it.

Event Comment: MMr Garrick better in his health (Cross). [Gray's Inn Journal contained this day two full pages of satiric comment upon pantomimes inprogress at both houses, nothing Blakes' entrance in Fortunatus with a hare and a brace of partriges, and Cook's use of a hare and a gun at Covent Garden, as encouragements to poaching and in violation of the game laws.

Event Comment: Benefit for Signora Nicolina Giordani [By Command of] the Duke and Princess Amelia (Cross). The Manager of Covent Garden being under a necessity of interrupting the run of the new Tragedy of Philoclea by a Command, and a Benefit for Sga Nicolina Giordini (which was settled before the coming out of that play) has been so obliging as to give the Author the choice of a day for his second benefit; and many of his friends having taken places for Tuesday, as that would have been his sixth night in course, the Author, lest they should be disappointed, has chosen Tuesday for his second benefit

Event Comment: Comic Opera in Italian and French, 3 Acts (Larpent MS 107). Subtitle, O Sia, Il Finto Femmina. La Musica e del Sig Leonardo Leo, Maestro di Capella Napolitano (Edition of 1752, Amsterdam). [Rich had applied for license to Duke of Grafton 8 Feb.] This day at Noon will be publish'd at 1s. L'Amor Costante, Dramma Comico, pe Musica, as it is acted at Covent Garden. With an English translation. Sold by H. Woodfall

Event Comment: Box and Pit 10s. 6d. 1st Gallery 5s. Upper Gallery 3s. 6d. Pit and Boxes will be put together and no persons to be admitted without tickets, which will be delivered this day at the Office in the Theatre. Galleries opened at half an hour after Four. Pit and Boxes at Five. To begin at Half past Six

Event Comment: This day publish'd at 6d. The Story on which the new tragedy call'd Virginia, now performing at Drury Lane, is founded. Sold by W. Reeve in Fleet St. Receipts: #170 (Cross)

Event Comment: Benefit for Sga Marina Giordani. Full Prices (Cross). A new Italian Comic Opera. The Music composed by Balthazar Galuppi. Ladies desired to send servants by Half an Hour after Three. This day publish'd at 1s. La Cameriera Accorta, Opera Comico, per Musica, as it is acted at Covent Garden. With an English Translation. Sold by H. Woodfall