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About the year 1752, Mr.
Lee purchased the Canongate Theatre from the original proprietors for
the sum of £645.
Its management, however,
passed through a variety of hands. Dissensions arose amongst the
performers themselves, factions were created, and the end was reached
one evening when, during a performance of Hamlet, the auditors completed
the tragedy of disaster by wrecking the theatre and setting it afire. A
long spell of litigation followed; but at length the house was refitted,
and, amongst the first items of importance that may be cited was the
production of Douglas, by the Reverend John Home, minister of
Athelstaneford, on 14th December, 1756. The cast included
A persistent candidate
for dramatic honours, Home had, in 1749, taken up his Greek tragedy,
Agis, to the "great little Garrick," but was unsuccessful in placing it.
Six years afterwards, he renewed his application with the new play,
Douglas, and his second attempt failed to find any encouragement from
Garrick. Doubtless the fact that Roscius had then reached his fortieth
year may have had some effect in dissuading him from a portrayal of the
stripling "Douglas." With the glamour of his play fresh upon him, Home
returned to Edinburgh, and his staunchest friends advised its
performance at the Canongate Theatre. Amongst the stories in connection
with the play, there is one which tells of a private rehearsal where
several notabilities took up the different parts. The historian
Robertson played Lord Randolph; David Hume, Glenavon; Dr. Carlyle, Old
Norval; John Home, Douglas; Dr. Adam Ferguson, Lady Randolph; and Hugh
Blair, Anna, before a select audience, which included Lord Elibank,
Milton, Karnes, and the eccentric Monboddo. At its first public
performance, a crowded audience attested its welcome to the first
Scottish tragedy, amongst whom were many of the clergy, who, in the
language of the record, "skulked into corners." "The town," wrote Rev.
Dr. Carlyle, "was in an uproar of exultation that a Scotsman did write a
tragedy of the first rate, and that its merits were submitted to them."
Amongst the players, Dr. Carlyle expresses his surprise and admiration
of Mrs. Ward as Lady Randolph. The production of this play was not
without results. To the Kirk, it was a dire awakening to the condition
of mind of their people, and the popularity of the play was regarded as
a menace to the progress of religion and morality.
On the 5th of January,
1757, the Presbytery of Edinburgh issued an "Admonition and Exhortation"
to all within their bounds:-
"The Presbytery taking
into their serious consideration the declining state of religion, the
open profanation of the Lord's Day, the contempt of public worship, the
growing luxury and levity of the present age—in which so many seem
lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God—and being particularly
affected with the unprecedented countenance given of late to the
Playhouse in this place, when the state of the nation and the
circumstances of the poor, make such hurtful entertainments still more
pernicious, judged it their indispensable duty to express in the most
open and solemn manner, the deep concern they feel on this occasion. The
opinion which the Christian Church has always entertained of stage plays
and players as prejudicial to the interest of religion and morality is
well known, and the fatal influence which they commonly have on the far
greater part of mankind, particularly the younger sort, is too obvious
to be called in question. To enumerate how many servants, apprentices,
and students in different branches of literature in this city and
suburbs, have been seduced from their proper business by attending the
stage would be a painful, disagreeable task.
"The Presbytery, in
the year 1727, when consisting of many pious, prudent, and learned
ministers, whose praise is in all the Churches, being aware of these
evils, did prepare a paper, which was read from the several pulpits
within their bounds, warning their people against the dangerous
infection of the theatre then erected here. (Carruber's Close.) In
the year 1737, the legislature in their great wisdom, did, by an
Act, the 10th of George the Second, enact and declare:—'That every
person who should, for hire or reward, act or cause to be acted, any
play, or other entertainment of the stage, without the special
license and authority mentioned in the said Act, should be deemed a
rogue and vagabond, and for every such offence should forfeit the
sum of £50 sterling.' At that time a project was set on foot to
obtain a licensed theatre in this city, but the masters and
professors of the University, supported by the Magistrates, having
prepared a petition setting forth the dangerous tendency of a
playhouse here, with respect to the important interests of virtue
and learning, the project was laid aside. The players, however,
being so audacious as to continue to act in defiance of the law, the
Presbytery did at their own charge, prosecute them before the Court
of Session and prevailed in the process. The players were fined in
terms of law; and warrants being issued for apprehending them, they
fled from justice. But others came in their place, who since that
time have attempted to elude the law, by changing the name of the
playhouse into that of Concert Hall. As such a slight evasion, the
mere change of a name, could not make the smallest variation in the
nature of the thing, the Presbytery continued to do all in their
power and in their sphere, to prevent the growing evil; and think
themselves at this time loudly called upon in one body, and with one
voice, to expostulate, in the bowels of love and compassion, with
all under their care and instruction."
Then follows the usual
exhortation against the "infection of the stage and its illegal and
dangerous entertainments."
On the 12th January, Mr.
White, minister of Liberton, was called before the Presbytery on this
charge. He confessed his guilt, but pleaded that he had "endeavoured to
conceal himself in a corner." (The defence is so beautiful that comment
is unnecessary.) In respect of this circumstance, some members moved
that only a solemn rebuke should be administered, but Mr. White was
suspended till 2nd February.
The Presbytery of Dunse,
after rebuking two of their members in accordance with the tenor of the
aforesaid exhortation, proceeded to characterise this as arbitrary,
pointing out that no mention is made of any Scriptural passages or Acts
of General Assembly "to which the conduct of our brethren was repugnant;
Whilst admitting that certain Acts of the Edinburgh Presbytery in 1737
were quoted," they do not regard that these should be regarded as
standards by the Dunse Presbytery. According to information, the only
Church law relating to the theatre read: —
"That no comedies or
tragedies or such plays, should be made on any subject of canonical
Scripture, nor on the Sabbath day. If any minister be the writer of
such a play, he shall be deprived of his ministry. As 'for plays of
another subject, they also should be examined before they be
propounded publicly." (Acts of Assembly, 1574.)
One of the arguments used
in this famous controversy by the Church was "the dissolute lives and
infamous characters of the players." As a specimen of vituperation, the
following, taken from a pamphlet of the period, is interesting: —
"It is agreed upon by
sober pagans themselves that playactors are the most profligate
wretches and vilest vermin that hell ever vomited out: that they are
the filth and garbage of the earth, the scum and stain of human
nature, the excrement and refuse of all mankind: the pests and
plagues of human society; the debauchers of men's minds and morals,
unclean beasts, idolatrous papists or atheists, and the most horrid
and abandoned; villains that ever the sun shone upon."
In the storm of ridicule
that followed, Dr. Adam Ferguson produced a pamphlet entitled The
Morality 0/ Stage Plays Considered, in which he defended the dramatic
corps, from the Scriptural examples of Joseph and his brethren, and
pointed out that the only prohibition was against the use of Canonical
Scriptures and performances on Sunday. Another contributor to the
satirical side of the question was Dr. Carlyle, minister of Inverness,
who published his Reasons Why the Tragedy of Douglas should be burned by
the Hands of the Common Hangman, and a second one for the delectation of
the lower classes, A History of the Bloody Tragedy of Douglas as it is
now performed at the Theatre in the Canon gate.
The only ostensible
purpose this clerical opposition served was to advertise the play so
extensively that full houses became the order of the day (or rather,
evening) at the Canon-gate.
Five ministers, who were
auditors at the first performance, were called up before their several
Presbyteries, and, having made their submission, were accordingly
rebuked. The excuse made by Mr. Steele, the minister of Stair, was that
the theatre was so far distant from his house, that lie considered he
would not he known, and his presence would therefore give no offence.
The Presbytery of Haddington dealt with Mr. Home, the head and front of
the offending. At first he asked for a delay, and subsequently he
tendered his resignation. Dalkeith Presbytery brought Dr. Carlyle before
them, but the worthy Doctor would neither admit his sin, nor submit his
penitence. A libel was served upon him, charging him with being in
company with players who were, in the eyes of the law, of bad fame: with
rehearsing Douglas: with appearing openly in a box at Canongate
playhouse, and having turned a gentleman out of it. (Needless to say,
the gent referred to had been "twining the vine-leaves too freely in his
hair.") The matter was discussed for some months, and terminated with a
rebuke being administered by the Synod of Lothian and Tweedale.
Curiously enough, the Doctor was selected, two years afterwards, to
preach before the High Commissioner: about eleven years later, he
occupied the Moderator's chair, and at his death he had attained one of
the highest positions in the Church.
A quotation from
Cunningham's History on this question may not be altogether inapropos:
"The termination of the
proceedings before the Church courts did not end the controversy they
originated — nor is it terminated yet. The one party declared that,
never since the day when Galileo was thrown into the prison of the
Inquisition for saying the earth revolved round the sun, had anything so
disgraceful in the Church occurred. Home had written the noblest drama
of which his country could boast, and for this he was compelled to
evacuate his parish by the terrors of deposition. The Church had
degraded the man whom all ages would delight to honour. Was there
anything essentially sinful in dramatic composition? If there were bad
plays, might there not be good plays, and was it not so with Douglas?
Was not its morality faultless, and were not the feelings it delineated
the noblest that can fill the breast—the love of a mother for a lost
child, and the ambition of a youth to excel? And why this horror for the
Theatre; is not a man so framed by God that he must have amusement? And,
if he is denied the amusement resulting from theatrical representation,
is it not certain that he will seek for excitement of a coarser and more
ruinous kind? Has it not been proved by experience, is it not written in
the reports of the Police-Courts, that when theatres are shut, crime
increases? It was agreed on the other side that the playhouse had ever
been the favourite haunt of vice. The question was...
What was the duty of
Christians looking at the stage simply as it was, notoriously
immoral? Were not the great majority of the plays, even those of
Shakespeare himself, confessedly obscene? Were not things spouted on
the stage that could not be repeated in the parlour? Were not many
pure minds first familiarised with vice by seeing it represented on
the boards of a theatre, many consciences so stunned that they never
after recovered their tenderness? And how is the play of Douglas to
be defended on high Christian principles? Did it not use language
which looked very like swearing? Did it not give its sanction to
something very like suicide?"
As exhibiting the great
advance in clerical opinion, a noteworthy fact is recorded by Scott, who
states that, when the General Assembly sat in t 784, they experienced
considerable difficulty in procuring a full attendance of members on the
evenings upon which Mrs. Siddons performed.
The sequel to Garrick's
second refusal of Douglas, consequent upon its Northern success,
happened when "silver-toned" Barry produced it at Covent Garden, where
the play met with instant recognition. Garrick's choice of this author's
work fell upon Agis, which proved a sorry failure, its rhetoric
fulsomeness being fatal to any measure of success.
In 1759 a dromedary and
camel were exhibited at Craig's Close, where, according to the Edinburgh
Herald and Chronicle, they were deemed "the two wonders of the world."
In this Close was the tavern, the Isle of Man Arms, where foregathered
those early Bohemians, "The Cape Club." Tom Lancashire, the comedian,
was the first sovereign of the Club, as Sir Cape, about the year 1764.
Amongst its list of members were included the names of Ferguson, the
poet; David Herd, Walter Ross, Sir Henry Raeburn, and the notorious
Deacon Brodie.
With the erection of the
New Theatre Royal, the old Canongate house was deserted in 1767. Of it,
Mr. James Grant says: --
"The front land,
though which an access gives to the old Playhouse Close, is a fine
specimen of Scotch Street architecture in the time of Charles the
First. It has a row of dormer windows, with another of storm windows
in a steep roof that reminds one of those in Bruges and Antwerp.
Over a doorway within the Close is an ornamental tablet, the
inscription of which has become defaced, and the old theatre itself
has long since given place to private dwellings. In one of those
lived in 1784 a plan named Wilson Gavin whose name appears in Peter
Williamson's Directory as an 'Excellent Shoemaker and Leather
Tormentor.' "
The new theatre was
erected in Shakespeare Square, which, at that time, formed part of the
Orphan Hospitals Park, where George Whitfield used to preach, and where
the General Post Office now stands. The famous Methodist, finding, upon
his return to the scene of former labours, that a theatre had been
erected thereon, was full of indignation to think that a place, which he
had deemed to be rendered sacred by reason of the sermons he had
delivered, should be turned to such base uses. In his judgment, "the
ground was appropriated to the service of Satan." It was a positive
indication of the increasing wickedness of society, "a plucking up of
God's standard, and a planting of the devil's in its place."
The Act for the New Town
of Edinburgh contained a clause, which empowered the Crown to grant
Royal Letters Patent for a Theatre. Prior to the reign of George the
Third, not one of these houses was countenanced by the law of the land.
On the 16th March, 1768, the foundation stone of the Theatre Royal was
laid, and for ninety years it formed the scene of some of the most
notable triumphs in Scots drama. Engraved on a silver plate of the stone
was the inscription: ---
"The first stone of
this new theatre was laid on the 16th day of March in the year of
our Lord 1768 by David Ross, patentee and first proprietor of a
licensed stage in Scotland. May this theatre tend to promote every
moral and every virtuous principle, and may the representation be
such
To make mankind in
conscious virtue bold
Live on each scene, and be what they behold."
Ross was the late
proprietor of the Canongate Theatre. The Scots Magazine for 1768 gives
some details as to the financial position of the new house.
"Mr. Ross had to
raise £2500 by 25 £100 shares, for which the subscribers were to
receive 3% and free access to all performances and every part of the
house, except behind the scenes. The house is to be 100 feet in
length by 5o broad. To furnish new scenes, wardrobe, and necessary
decorations will, it is computed cost £1500 more and the whole
building is to be insured for £4000 and mortgaged in security to pay
the interest. As it would be impossible to procure good performers
should the tickets continue at the low prices now paid, it is
proposed to make the boxes 4s., the pit 3s., the first gallery 2s.,
and the upper 1s. 'For these prices,' says Mr. Ross, 'shall vie with
those of London and Dublin.' There shall be five capital men actors,
one good man singer, one second singer, three capital women singers,
one capital man dancer, and one woman dancer; the rest as good as
can be had: the orchestra shall be conducted with a good first
fiddle' as a leader, a harpsichord, and the rest of the band persons
of merit."
The total cost of the
building was £5,000, and, with the ruling prices of 3s., 2s., and is.,
it held £140, the Canongate holding about £80 at prices of 2s. 6d., 1s.
6d., and is. The first two seasons at the new house were in the nature
of a failure, one cause being that the theatre was so difficult of
access. During the next three years it was leased by Samuel Foote, of
the London Haymarket, at an annual rental of 500 guineas. Opening in the
year 1770, with Woodward and Weston in the caste, in his own comedy, The
Commissary, he had a splendid season, rumour stating that he succeeded
in clearing £1,000 for that period. Here, too, on the 24th November, he
produced his comedy, The Minor, in which a burlesque of Whitfield and
the other evangelists was given to an audience that included Robert
Dundas of Arniston, Lord President of the Court. The following day Dr.
Walker, at the High Church, made a bitter attack upon Foote for "the
gross profanation of the theatre on the preceding evening."
Towards the end of the
year, Foote, finding it difficult to manage two theatres satisfactorily,
conveyed his lease of the Royal to West Digges and Bland. Starting with
the beautiful Mrs. Hartley in their company, they managed to clear
£1,400 in the first season. Digges and Bland were both ex-army men. The
former had been a favourite at the Canongate house, and the latter was
equally well known, having remained in public favour for over
twenty-three years. Bland had the honour to be the uncle of the famous
Mrs. Jordan, and was also related to Edmund Glover.
In 1774, Foote came over
from Dublin for a seven night engagement, for which he received the sum
of £250, a not inconsiderable salary for a star in those clays. During
the management of the above, most of the London stars, including
Bellamy, Sheridan, Barry, and Mr. and Mrs. Yates, appeared at the
Theatre Royal. Although of London birth, Mrs. Yates was of Scottish
parentage. If one may judge from a pecuniary point of view, her talents
were regarded as being upon a high level, for her husband and herself
were paid 700 guineas at the end of one season by Digges, whilst the
next lessee, Mr. Jackson, paid her too guineas per night. At this
period, the profession enjoyed the patronage of the legal circles. The
fashion had been set, and gradually the aristocracy moulded their
customs to suit their taste for the drama: indeed, dinner was usually
served at 4 o'clock to enable the bon ton to attend the theatre, where
the performance commenced at 6.30.
The assumption of the
managerial reins by Mr. John Jackson in 1781 brought the advent of Mrs.
Siddons in Edinburgh. Her first appearance was made on 22nd May, 1784,
in Venice Preserved, where she played Belvidera to the Jaffier of Wood,
an Edinburgh man. That the engagement was a successful one is confirmed
by an excerpt from the Edinburgh Weekly Magazine of that date:—
"The manager took the
precaution after the first night to have an officer and Guard of
Soldiers at the principal door. But several scuffles having ensued
through the eagerness of the people to get places, and the soldiers
having been rash enough to use their bayonets, it was thought
advisable to withdraw the guards on the third night, lest any
accident had happened from the pressure of the crowd, who began to
assemble round the doors at 11 in the forenoon."
Her first performance was
not without its trials. The undemonstrative character of her audience
was not an inspiring spectacle. Thomas Campbell, in speaking of her
reception, and its apparent coldness, tells how Mrs. Siddons, having
summoned all her powers in an effort to electrify the audience, she
paused and looked at the sea of stony faces. The deep silence was at
length broken by a voice exclaiming, "That's no' bad!" The ludicrous
parsimony of praise at once convulsed the audience with laughter. But
the laugh was followed by such thunders of applause "that, amidst her
stunned and nervous agitation, she was not without fear of the galleries
coming down."
For this first visit her
repertoire included The Gamester, Mourning Bride, Douglas, Isabella,
Jane Shore, and The Grecian Daughter. Her earnings for the ten nights
were £50 nightly, with an additional sum of £350 which she received on
the night of her benefit, as well as a magnificent presentation of
plate. On the second visit in 1785 there was a decided increase: in the
figures, £120 per night being the average earning, with £200 for a
performance of The Gamester. As an example of the furore her appearance
created, "a certain set of gents, by subscribing £200 as a guarantee
beforehand, considered themselves very fortunate in securing private and
early entrance to the pit." On one day alone, 2,557 applications were
made for 630 places. Amongst the many alleged incidents which happened
during her Edinburgh visit, there is one which may appeal largely to the
superstitious. A young Aberdeenshire heiress, Miss Gordon of Gicht, was
borne out of her box in hysterics, screaming the last words she had
caught from the great actress, "Oh! my Biron, my Biron! " In the course
of a short time, she was married to the Hon. John Byron, and came down
to posterity as the mother of Lord Byron.
In 1788, a new patent was
procured in the names of the Duke of Hamilton and Henry Dundas
(afterwards Viscount Melville), with the consent of Mr. Jackson, at
whose expense it was taken out. Jackson becoming bankrupt, Stephen
Kemble secured a one year's lease of the theatre, his principal
performances therein being Macbeth and Douglas.
That the rigorous
attention to archaeological details, which is now the rule, was not so
marked in those days is evident from a perusal of Donaldson's
Recollections of an Actor (1815), where he remarks, "I have seen Macbeth
dressed in a red officer's coat, sash, blue pants. Hessian boots and
cocked hat."
The following year, Mrs.
Esten, a favourite actress, came into possession of the lease. Kemble,
disappointed at having missed his opportunity, erected a rival house
facing Leith Walk, at the junction of Little King Street with Broughton
Street, which he called "The Circus." An injunction was obtained against
Kemble to prevent his producing plays, but, although afterwards the
house confined itself to equestrian displays, nevertheless it proved a
somewhat serious rival. Latterly "The Circus" adopted the title of "The
Adelphi Theatre," and then occupied a site identical with that of the
present Theatre Royal. The Scots Magazine for 1793 states that, on
January 21st, the New Theatre of Edinburgh (formerly "The Circus") was
opened under the management of Mr. Stephen Kemble with the comedy of The
Rivals, Mr. Lee Lewes, a well-known comedian and entertainer, appearing
as Sir Anthony Absolute and Mrs. Kemble as Julia. At the end of this
season, Kemble managed again to secure the Theatre Royal, which he held
till the year 1800. An Italian named Corri took up "The Circus," but not
with very gratifying results. A run of The School for Scandal gave him a
fillip, but that was of too temporary a character to recoup his already
heavy losses.
The Theatre Royal became
the scene of a memorable riot in 1794. The occasion was a performance of
Charles the First. Some of the occupants of the boxes insisted that the
orchestra should play "God Save The King," and that, during its
performance, the audience should stand and uncover. To do this, the more
democratic of the auditors flatly refused, with the result that a tumult
of a serious character ensued. The row was continued next Saturday, when
the rival factions, having collected additional adherents, attended the
theatre in force. Upon the refusal of the democrats to uncover during
the National Anthem, the signal was given for the attack, which was
chiefly made by the officers of the Argyllshire Fencibles. The upshot of
the melee was a profusion of broken heads and smashed jaws, many of the
audience being carried home in a sanguinary condition. Sir Walter Scott,
then a young man newly called to the bar, was one of the interested
combatants in this riot.
Amongst the star actors
who appeared at this house was Henry Erskine Johnstone, "The Scottish
Roscius," who occupied the boards in 1797. He was the son of a High
Street barber, enjoying a certain measure of distinction. From the post
of lawyer's clerk, he had drifted into the profession. His favourite
parts were Hamlet and Douglas. As an example of his versatility, he
appeared on the same evening as Hamlet, completing the night's work by a
performance as Harlequin. But that was in the clays when the dramatic
habitue expected value for his money.
At the close of the
eighteenth century, manners had become pretty loose. For a gentleman to
give a dinner which did not end in his guests being rendered hors de
combat, was considered a breach of hospitality. It was unfortunate that
amongst many of these guests were members of the clergy, who seemed
unable to rise above the prevailing tone of the society in which they
lived. The scenes at Sacrament were nothing short of being disgraceful.
In the various districts the Sacrament was celebrated in the market
town, to which the people thronged from the country. around. For this
function, as many as half a dozen clergymen were invited to take up the
day's services, the sermonic rivalry between them forming a ready excuse
for refreshment. intervals. An account of one of these may be found in
Burns' " Holy Fair," in which the Bard finds a ready excuse for his
keenest shafts of satire:-
``How mony hearts this day
converts,
O' sinners an' o' lasses!
Their hearts o' stane, gin night, are gane
As salt as ony flesh is.
There's some are fou o' love divine;
There's some are fou o' brandy
An' mony jobs that day begin,
May end in houghmagandy
Some itber day."
A spot opposite the
Botanic Gardens, known as the Lover's Loan, Leith Walk, in 1802 formed
the site of "Barker's Famous Panorama" from Leicester Square, London,
"wherein might be witnessed views of Dover, the Downs, and the coast of
France, with the embarkation of troops, horse and foot, t o till (tusk,
admission Is. per head."
Meantime, the Theatre
Royal was passing through all the vicissitudes of theatrical life,
success following fast upon the footsteps of failure, and failure upon
that of success. About the year 1805 the notable boy prodigy, Master
Betty, "Young Roscius," occupied its boards. His performance of Norval
elicited the testimony from Home that, until now, his conception of the
character of Douglas had never been realised.
When the twenty-one
years' patent of the theatre expired, it was transferred to certain
assignees, two of whom were Walter Scott and Henry Mackenzie, author of
The Man of Feeling.
In 1809, Henry Siddons,
the son of Mrs. Siddons, refitted Corn's Rooms as a theatre, at an
expense of £4,000. After spending two seasons there, at the suggestion
of Scott, he applied for, and obtained, the patent of the Theatre Royal,
where he transferred his company. The list of members included Henry
Siddons (Belvoir, Archer, Charles Surface); Terry (Sir Peter Teazle, Sir
Anthony Absolute, and Lord Ogilvy); William Murray, character actor;
Berry, low comedian; and the three actresses, Mrs. Henry Siddons, Mrs.
Nicol, and Mrs. W. Pierson. It was during Siddon's term that Joanna
Baillie's play, The Fancily Legend (January 29, 1810) was produced, the
prologue being provided by Henry Mackenzie and the epilogue by Sir
Walter Scott. In the month of March, 1810, Mrs. Siddons appeared in a
round of her favourite parts. John Kemble followed in July with the
Handsome Johnston, then Emery had a short season, and last, though not
least, the beautiful Mrs. Jordan.
When Henry Siddons died
(1815), the house was carried on by his widow and her brother, William
H. Murray. Under their management, Miss Elizabeth O'Neil appeared, her
greatest successes being achieved in the parts of Juliet, Mrs. Haller,
Jane Shore, and Mrs. Beverley. In the words of the historian, "she
seemed designed by nature to catch the tragic mantle as it fell from
Mrs. Siddon's shoulders." The simile, for theatre-goers unfortunately,
reached, no higher degree than that of seeming. The year 1816 brought
Edmund Kean to the city, who appeared in Richard the Third, Othello, and
Merchant of Venice.
During the next three
years, the stars who visited were the elder Mathews, Miss Stephens,
Charles and Mrs. Kemble. Even those attractions were not sufficiently
strong to keep the wolf from the door, for in 1819 we find a form of
arrestment being put in by a number of clamorous creditors. The saving
of the situation lay in the hands of Scott. Rob Roy had already attained
a gratifying success at Covent Garden. An excellent cast was rehearsed,
special scenery provided, and on the 15th February the opening night
came. The result over-reached the most extravagant hopes, public opinion
declaring it one of the greatest theatrical hits of the times, and
indeed, in Scotland, it may still he regarded as such, if the testimony
of perennial revivals be the ultimate criterion. The piece ran for
forty-one nights, which, although apparently a short run according to
modern experience, was considered a record in these days.
The principals in the
cast were:-
The remainder of the
Waverley dramas followed upon the heels of this success, with excellent
pecuniary results, financial troubles having now ceased. As an instance
of the popularity of Rob Roy, it is worthy of mention that, up till
1851, it had been acted about four hundred times at the Theatre Royal,
and there is a record of its having had a fifty nights' run with Ryder's
company at Perth in 1829. It was Rob Roy which George the Fourth chose
for interpretation on his visit to Edinburgh in 1822, when it was played
by command at the Theatre Royal on 27th August. The occasion was a
memorable one and spoke volumes for the loyalty of the Edinburgh
citizens. In the early morning, the audience commenced to assemble at
the doors, and at the opening hour it was feared the tremendous crush
might end in a serious loss of life. But the good sense of the crowd
asserted itself, and everyone managed to enter the theatre in safety. As
a record of the period says:—"All the wealth, rank, and beauty of
Scotland filled the boxes, and the waving of tartan plaids and plumed
bonnets produced hurricanes of acclamation long before the arrival of
the King, who occupied a species of throne in the centre box, and behind
him stood the Marquis of Montrose, the Earl of Fife, and other nobles.
At his entrance the entire audience joined the orchestra in the '
National Anthem.' "
Reverting to Corn's
Rooms, which survived under the name of "The Pantheon" for many years,
the house again made a bid for public favour in December, 1823, opening
up as the Caledonian Theatre under the management of Henry Johnston, who
produced a series of melodramas, amongst others being The Orphan of
Geneva. The former ill-fate pursued it, however, and after a
sufficiently tiresome share of losses, Johnston was forced to resign
himself to the inevitable, after which he left Edinburgh. Seven years
afterwards he returned, playing four nights at this theatre, then under
the management of Mr. C. Bass. After fulfilling this engagement, he
acted for several years at the London theatres, but, fortune failing to
shine too consistently upon his efforts, in 1838 he sailed for America,
adopting that more congenial clime as his home. This theatre underwent
all the vicissitudes of dramatic fortune. For some time it was under the
management of R. H. Wyndham, with the designation of the Adelphi
Theatre, but it was ultimately burned down in 1853. On its site was
built the Queen's Theatre and Opera House. Again in 1865 the fire
claimed it as a victim, several lives being lost by the fall of the
walls. A third time it was re-constructed, and a third time it was
burned down (1874). In January, 1876, the present Theatre Royal was
opened, the architect being Mr. C. J. Phipps.
To the old Theatre Royal
in Shakespeare Square many stars had come. Here Vandenhoff the elder
(circa 1825) appeared as Sir Giles Overreach, and as Sir William Wallace
in The Baffle of Falkirk; Denham, who played James VI. to Murray's
"Jingling Geordie"; Mrs. Renaud, tragedienne; Mrs. Nicol as leading old
lady; Miss Paton; and Miss Noel. The scene painter was David Roberts,
and the leader of orchestra, T. Fraser.
The first dinner of the
Edinburgh Theatrical f" und, instituted for the relief of decayed
actors, took place in February, 1827. It is rendered all the more
memorable from the fact that it is asserted that there Sir Walter Scott
avowed himself the author of the Waverley Novels.
The twenty-one year lease
taken by Mrs. Henry Siddons expired in 1830, when she gave a farewell
performance as Lady Townley in The Provoked Husband. After this, she
retired into private life, carrying with her "the good wishes of all in
Edinburgh, for many had recognised in her not merely the accomplished
actress, but the good mother, the refined lady, and the irreproachable
member of society."
Her brother, William
Murray, leased the house for another twenty-one years, retiring in 1851
after a period of indifferent success. Lloyd, the comedian, Robinson,
and Leslie had a spell of management, but, failing to make the theatre a
paying concern, it fell into the hands of R. H. Wyndham. The last-named,
a gentleman by birth and education, came to Edinburgh in 1845 in support
of Helen Faucit. He had previously managed the Adelphi, until its
destruction in 1853, when he assumed the reins at the Theatre Royal, and
under his able conduct it speedily became one of the best known houses
in the three kingdoms. As an actor, he was at his best in light comedy.
Mrs. Wyndham played with distinction such parts as Peg Woffington, Mrs.
Haller, and Lady Macbeth.
Under Wyndham's regime,
all the leading members of the profession appeared, including also the
Italian operatic stars.
Here are some names
picked at random from a long and interesting list. Kean, Helen Faucit,
Paul Bedford, Wright, J. L. Toole, Gustavus Brooke, Madame\ Celeste, Alf
Wigan, Mrs. Stirling, Sothern, Mesdames Ristori, Titiens, Mario, and
Guiglini.
The Government having
purchased the site for £5,000 upon which to erect the General Post
Office, after a career of ninety years the farewell performance was
given, Lord Neaves contributing the valedictory address. Here is the
programme:---
One of the most notable
items in this programme, to a dramatic student, is the appearance of
young Henry Irving, then nineteen years of age. He had just migrated
from the stock company at the Lyceum Theatre, Sunderland, and joined up
Wyndham's stock company in Edinburgh, where, during his sojourn, he
played the parts of Horatio, Banquo, Macduff, Catesby, Pisanio, and
Claudius. He also appeared in burlesque and pantomime. The local critics
praised him for his "gentlemanly" air, his earnest ways, and the care he
bestowed on his make-up and costume, and occasionally chided him for
some of those mannerisms which afterwards became historical. |
