The Fashionable Lady Explained

The Fashionable Lady
Date Of Premiere:	2 April 1730^[1]
Original Language:	English
Place:	Goodman's Fields Theatre
Genre:	Comedy

The Fashionable Lady is a 1730 comedy play by James Ralph.

It premiered at the Goodman's Fields Theatre in Whitechapel with a cast that included William Giffard as Meanwell, James Lacy as Drama, Thomas Smith as Whim and Anna Marcella Giffard as Mrs Sprightly. The play has been described as "a hyperbolic take-off on The Beggar's Opera." ^[2] It was a moderate success and poked fun at the sorry state of English drama, uncritical acceptance of Italian opera, and the stupidity of theater managers.^[3]

Bibliography

• Burling, William J. A Checklist of New Plays and Entertainments on the London Stage, 1700-1737. Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press, 1992.
• Nicoll, Allardyce. A History of Early Eighteenth Century Drama: 1700-1750. CUP Archive, 1927.

Notes and References

1. Burling p.134
2. McKinsey . Elizabeth R. . James Ralph: The Professional Writer Comes of Age . Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society . February 16, 1973 . 117 . 1 . 67 . 985948 . 16 September 2021.
3. Kenny . Robert . James Ralph: An Eighteenth Century Philadelpian on Grub Street . The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography . April 1, 1940 . 64 . 2 . 222 . 20087279 . September 15, 2021.