Triumph followed triumph over the next several years: among them Chamont in The Orphan (1741), Pierre in Venice Preserv’d (1742), and King Lear (1742), at Goodman’s Fields Hamlet (1742) at Dublin, and Abel Drugger in The Alchemist (1743), Macbeth and Sir John Brute in The Provok’d Wife in 1744 at Drury Lane. He could alter his expressions and emotions in an instant, and often in parlor games ran through a series of faces and characters. Within months, he was hailed by William Pitt as “ye best Actor ye English Stage had produc’d.” He was not tall-even short-but he was lithe and agile when he burst upon the stage, with a melodious and commanding voice and brilliant and penetrating eyes. Carriages created a traffic gridlock as they made their way in droves to the little theater in London’s East End. He was a tremendous success in a performance which displayed an exciting and revolutionary style of acting that, in the words of his early biographer and sometime colleague, “threw a new light on elocution and action he banished ranting, bombast and grimace and restored nature, ease, simplicity, and genuine humour.” It is said that women shrieked and fainted because of his portrayal of a terrible villain. The evening of October 19, 1741, became one of those memorable events in theatrical history when Garrick made his London debut at the outlaw theater in Goodman’s Fields as Richard III. For a while, Garrick was enrolled at Lincoln’s Inn, then he dabbled in the family wine business, but soon turned to writing and acting. In 1737, together, they went off to London to seek their destinies. David resided with his family at Lichfield and for several years received a classical education at Edial Hall School under the instruction of Samuel Johnson, who became his friend and traveling companion. He was born on February 19, 1717, at the Angel Inn in Hereford, where his father Peter Garrick, of Huguenot stock and a lieutenant in a regiment of Dragoons, was on recruiting duty. Indeed, he was one of the most astonishing British personalities in a time and country brimming with them. As displayed in the exhibition and in these articles, his predominance in his spheres of influence and achievement seems astonishing. Prominent among the splendid treasures of the Folger Shakespeare Library are extensive materials relating to David Garrick, numbering about 50,000 items, which make him the second most dominating figure, after Shakespeare, to emerge from that great collection. 4.4.2 Bibliography and Online Resources for David Garrick.4.4.1 Guide to the Folger's David Garrick Playbills.4.3.1 Talks and Screenings at the Folger.3.2 David Garrick, 1717–1779: A Theatrical Life children's exhibition.3.1 David Garrick, 1717–1779: A Theatrical Life exhibition material. The expanded online treatment of the exhibition includes a timeline, essays, resource lists, and over one hundred images from the Folger collection of Garrick-related holdings. The exhibition coincided with a rare revival of The Clandestine Marriage in the Folger Theatre (April 15 – May 22, 2005), directed by Richard Clifford. The exhibition concluded with a glimpse of Garrick’s farewell performance, final years, and an assessment of his artistic and personal legacy. Taking a thematic approach, the exhibition opened with an overview of Garrick’s personal life and achievements, then explored Garrick as an acting phenomenon, theater manager and entrepreneur, Shakespearean, dramatist, and international celebrity. Folger Digital Image 3009.ĭavid Garrick, 1717–1779: A Theatrical Life, part of the Exhibitions at the Folger ran from April 22 through August 28, 2005, and included the Folger Shakespeare Library's extraordinary wealth of Garrick-related printed texts, playbills, manuscripts, images, and objects that capture the story of Garrick's remarkable life and enduring accomplishments.Īctor, writer, theater manager, entrepreneur, and international celebrity, David Garrick revolutionized acting and the English stage in the eighteenth century. Sir Nathaniel Dance's 1774 portrait of Garrick.
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