THE RECRUITING OFFICER

Opis produktu

George Farquhar (16781707) was an Irishborn playwright of the Restoration period. During his tenyear career he produced two brilliant comedies The Recruiting Officer in 1706 and The Beaux Stratagem the following year. The son of a clergyman he studied at Trinity College Dublin before briefly working as an actor at the Smock Alley Theatre in that city. Following an accident during a stage fight when he mistakenly used a real sword and wounded a fellow actor so badly that he almost died Farquhar renounced acting. Encouraged by his fellow actor Robert Wilks he took up the pen and settled in London. His first play Love and a Bottle was well received at Drury Lane in 1698. The following year The Constant Couple: or A Trip to the Jubilee was an even greater hit with Wilks in the lead. After Sir Harry Wildair (1701) a sequel to The Constant Couple and The TwinRivals (1702) he wrote his first great play. The first production of The Recruiting Officer starred Anne Oldfield with whom Farquhar supposedly had an affair. The following year Farquhar with not one shilling in his pocket was encouraged by Wilks to produce a hastily written play. The next day Farquhar delivered the plot for The Beaux Stratagem which was presented on stage within six weeks. He died from tuberculosis after the third performance.Farquhars last two plays The Recruiting Officer and The BeauxStratagem have been called śthe last worthwhile comedies of theRestoration tradition. Written during Farquhars stint in Shrewsburyas part of a recruiting mission in 17045 The Recruiting Officer is abuoyant whimsical piece stocked by a fairly conventional cast ofcharacters: the rakehero and his spirited lady (who dons breeches inthe course of the action) his sober friend and the heroines seriousfriend the buffoon/coxcomb and his illfated amorous or heroicventures. What makes the play entertaining is Farquhars light humanetouch: what makes it original is his depiction of a reallifeprovincial town and the impact that ongoing warfare (in this case theWar of the Spanish Succession) had on its civilian society.Revisions to this edition of The Recruiting Officer include new notesbased on recent scholarly material and the editors further study ofthe text and an uptodate reading list.Revisions to this edition of The Recruiting Officer include new notesbased on recent scholarly material and the editors further study ofthe text and an uptodate reading list.New Mermaids is a series of over 50 modernized and fully annotated classic plays with an active programme of new editions. New Mermaids are edited and updated by experienced teachers who are internationally recognized as authorities in their field. They are ideal for and accessible to actors theatregoers and students and are printed in a clear easytouse format with

Wymiary: 198 mm 126 mm 14 mm 218 gr