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Description: | Comic critique of a popular theatrical performance.This song is a light-hearted look at a trip to the theatre by a local pitman. Indoor entertainment in Newcastle during this time would have been focused on theatres and music-halls. Theatres had become increasingly popular in Newcastle and the surrounding area throughout the eighteenth century, spurred on by those such as the Kemble family, who managed theatres at North and South Shields, along with the Theatre Royal in Newcastle.The nature of theatres and theatre audiences in the early nineteenth century was dramatically different than that of today. Until the Theatres Act of 1843, only a small handful of theatres were licensed to perform 'straight' drama. Most theatres therefore made concessions to popular taste. It was extremely rowdy and unruly (as described in the song), and performances usually consisted of a mixture of drama and music, with the emphasis almost always on comedy and farce.This song is part of the John Bell Collection. ; A collection of broadsheets on various subjects, with accompanying press cuttings and manuscript notes in the hand of John Bell. | Publisher: | unknown | Rights holder: | rights holder : Newcastle University | Subjects: | entertainment and sport Leisure Theatre | Temporal: | start=1801;end=1840; | Source: | Folk Archive Resource North East | Identifier: | farne:N0100101 | Go to resource |
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