Event Comment: Benefit for Suett and R. Palmer. Public Advertiser, 19 Apr.: Tickets to be had of Suett, No. 14, Broad-street, Bloomsbury; of R. Palmer, No. 23, Cecil-street, Strand. 1st piece: Never performed there. 3rd piece: Never acted there. Receipts: #247 13s. 6d. (40/15/0; 19/1/0; 0/13/6; tickets: 187/4/0) (charge: #106 4s. 8d.)

Event Comment: Benefit for Hull. Public Advertiser, 12 Apr.: Tickets to be had of Hull at his house in Duke's Court, near Dean's Yard, Westminster

Event Comment: Benefit for Mrs Ward. Public Advertiser, 22 Apr.: Tickets to be had of Mrs Ward, No. 44, corner of Broad-court, Drury-lane. Receipts: #218 2s. 6d. (50/14/0; 32/11/0; 0/9/6; tickets: 134/8/0) (charge: #105 15s.)

Event Comment: Benefit for Chapman and Wright. Public Advertiser, 2 May: Tickets to be had of Chapman, No. 47, Carey-street, Lincoln's-inn-fields; of Wright, No. 21, Berner-street, Westminster. Receipts: #224 18s. 6d. (33/19/0; 10/11/0; 0/8/6; tickets: 180/0/0) (charge: #113 9s.)

Event Comment: Benefit for Williames and Staunton. Public Advertiser, 3 May: Tickets to be had of Williames, No. 22, Gerrard Street; of Staunton, No. 9, St. Martin's Street. Receipts: #192 8s. 6d. (23/10/0; 11/9/0; 0/11/6; tickets: 156/18/0) (charge: #110 18s.)

Event Comment: Benefit for Wild [prompter]. Public Advertiser, 7 May: Tickets to be had of Wild, No. 17, Bow-street, Covent Garden. The unfortunate circumstance of breaking his leg . . . has prevented his attending the theatre the whole season [and see 18 Apr.]

Event Comment: Morigi's sudden Indisposition, together with Mlle Dorival's Illness, makes it necessary to postpone the Comic Opera [I Viaggiatori Felici, announced in Public Advertiser, 23 May] and Dances, advertised for this Evening

Event Comment: The last Time of performing this Season. [On 8 July Public Advertiser announces for 9 July I Viaggiatori Felici, by Command of Their Majesties, but on 9 July carries the statement, "There will be No Opera this Evening." The reason for the cancellation is not explained.]

Event Comment: Benefit for Bannister Jun. Public Advertiser, 22 July: Tickets to be had of Bannister Jun., No. 29, Bow Street, Covent Garden. 1st piece: In 3 acts, altered from Shakespeare [by Frederick Pilon. Prologue by the alterer (European Magazine, Aug. 1785, p. 150)]. 2nd piece: Acted but once [on 27 Aug. 1783]; with Alterations

Event Comment: Benefit for Mrs Wells. Public Advertiser, 28 July: Tickets to be had of Mrs Wells, No. 417, Strand. Afterpiece: Acted but once [at DL, 15 Apr. 1785]

Event Comment: Benefit for Miss George. Public Advertiser, 30 July: Tickets to be had of Miss George, No. 23, King-street, St. Ann's, Soho

Event Comment: of comedians [probably Davis's (Gentleman's Magazine, June 1814, p. 622)] now performing here (Public Advertiser, 16 Aug.)

Event Comment: Benefit for Edwin. Public Advertiser, 19 Aug.: Tickets to be had of Edwin, No. 19, Piazza, Covent Garden. Mainpiece: Written by Dr Goldsmith

Event Comment: [Mainpiece in place of Lord Russel, announced on playbill of 30 Aug. It was deferred on account of Miss Woollery's illness {Public Advertiser, 31 Aug.).] Afterpiece [1st time; P 1, by Carlo Antonio Delpini. MS: Larpent 706; not published]: The Overture and Music composed by Dr Arnold. The Scenes painted by Rooker

Event Comment: [In mainpiece the playbill assigns Lord Trinket to Dodd, but he "having been taken ill, Kennedy of Covent Garden Theatre performed Lord Trinket, and was favourably received" (Public Advertiser, 28 Sept.).] Receipts: #170 18s. (120/7/0; 49/11/6; 0/19/6)

Event Comment: By Command of Their Majesties. [In mainpiece the playbill assigns Stockwell to Aickin, but "Fearon, in consequence of Aickin's illness, took the part of Stockwell at a short notice and upon the whole acquitted himself respectably" (Morning Chronicle, 6 Oct.).] "There is an infinite combination in Mrs Abington, a power of making everything new yet conformable to the character (Public Advertiser, 14 Oct.). Receipts: #328 11s. 6d. (326/11/0; 2/0/6)

Event Comment: [As mainpiece the playbill announces The Way to Keep Him, but it "was postponed on account of the sudden indisposition of King and Miss Farren" (Public Advertiser, 7 Nov.). Its substitute is listed in the Account-Book.] Receipts: #225 8s. (195/8/0; 29/12/6; 0/5/0; ticket not come in: 0/2/6)

Event Comment: "The great powers of Mrs Jordan cannot be better displayed than in the wonderful contrast of her Country Girl and Viola. In one all archness and vivacity; in the other serious, gentle, tender and sentimental" (Public Advertiser, 16 Nov.). [In afterpiece the playbill retains Parsons as Sir Anthony Halfwit, but on the Kemble playbill his name is deleted and a MS annotation substitutes Wilson's. "Parsons was taken suddenly ill & J. Wilson read his part" (MS annotation on British Museum playbill, in Harris, 11).] Receipts: #108 12s. (79/11/0; 28/13/6; 0/7/6)

Event Comment: "Of [Holman's] faults his manner after the death of Tybalt was the most censurable: horror and concern for an action should not be expressed by appearing out of breath" (Public Advertiser, 29 Nov.). Receipts: #204 11s. (203/5; 1/6)

Event Comment: [For changes in the cast of afterpiece see Public Advertiser, 6 Dec., which does not state who took Miss Kemble's place as Lady Macbeth.] Receipts: #285 4s. (262/9; 21/14; 1/1)

Event Comment: "Of the low comedy of Mrs Jordan ... we cannot say too much in its praise. Let her avoid an indulgence, however, in too much buffoonery" (Public Advertiser, 5 Dec). Receipts: #259 11s. (221/17/0; 36/11/6; 0/12/6; tickets not come in: 0/10/0)

Event Comment: Afterpiece: Not acted these 4 years [acted 28 May 1784]. "We see the present rising theatrical generation swinging back with a vengeance to rant and mouthing. The natural and just medium introduced by Garrick seems already forgotten, and speaking no longer deemed a requisite for the stage . . . But last night in Richard Holman was not more violent than the character required him to be" (Public Advertiser, 6 Dec). Receipts: #147 1s. 6d. (143/14/6; 3/7/0)

Event Comment: Mainpiece: Not acted these 3 years. [Mrs Warren is identified by MS annotation on Kemble playbill. In afterpiece "Mrs Inchbald had the satisfaction of speaking, vice Mrs Morton, her own neat dialogue" (Public Advertiser, 12 Dec.).] Receipts: #203 16s. 6d. (200/10/6; 3/6/0)

Event Comment: Benefit for Mrs Abington. Pit and Boxes will be laid together. Ladies and Gentlemen are most earnestly requested to come early, to prevent Inconvenience in getting to their Places, and to send their Servants to keep them by Four o'clock. "At the close of the entertainment Mrs Abington came forward, and delivered a short poetical address to her fashionable auditory [written by Maurice Morgann (Monthly Mirror, Nov. 1797, p. 263)], apposite to her feelings on the present occasion" (Morning Herald, 11 Feb.). "The character [of Scrub] throughout was well conceived, and executed with a sprightliness and degree of humour that kept the house in a continual roar of laughter" (Public Advertiser, 11 Feb.) "Mrs Abington's voice was in its usual tone; her manners and deportment were inattentive and torpid, rather than active and interesting" (Morning Post, 11 Feb.). "With all her endeavours to give new points to the character, she entirely failed. Her appearance en culottes, so preposterously padded, exceeded nature. Her gestures to look comical could not get the least hold of the audience, though they had seen her before in men's clothes, when playing Portia in The Merchant of Venice, where her figure, dressed as a lawyer in his gown, gave effect to her excellent delivery on mercy, and the audience had been always delighted. But this leu de benefice, comparatively speaking, was disgusting and absurd as she dressed the character ... However, I have heard it originated in a bet she had previously made" (Henry Angelo, Reminiscenes, 11, 281-82). Receipts: #406 13s. 6d. (249/9/6; 1/9/0; tickets: 155/15/0) (charge: free)