The Virtuoso
Encyclopedia
Thomas Shadwell’s The Virtuoso is a Restoration comedy
first produced at Dorset Garden Theatre
in 1676 by The Duke’s Company. Well received in its original production, it was revived several times over the next thirty years and “always found Success.”
Thomas Shadwell
is acknowledged as the most topical of the major Restoration
playwright
s and the uniqueness of The Virtuoso lies primarily in its highly relevant satire on contemporary science and on the Royal Society
, which, founded in 1660, was of great interest to Restoration audiences.
Shadwell was also known as the Restoration’s leading advocate of Ben Jonson
’s style of humor comedy, in which each humors character displays one unique and excessive folly. In his Dedication to The Virtuoso, Shadwell claimed that he had created four entirely new humors characters, by which he meant the titular virtuoso Sir Nicholas Gimcrack, Sir Formal Trifle (described in the cast list as “the Orator, a florid coxcomb”), Sir Samuel Hearty (“a brisk, amorous, adventurous, unfortunate coxcomb; one that by the help of humorous, nonsensical bywords takes himself to be a wit”), and Sir Nicholas’s uncle Snarl (“an old, pettish fellow, a great admirer of the last age and a declaimer against the vices of this, and privately very vicious himself.”) Though some critics believe that Sir Nicholas is an inconsistent character, of the four, his is the character with the most significant literary legacy. Scholars have discerned the influence of Sir Nicholas in the works of numerous subsequent playwrights, including Thomas d'Urfey
, Lawrence Maidwell, Susanna Centlivre
, Aphra Behn
, and Peter Pindar.
, Sir Nicholas Gimcrack. Bruce is in love with Clarinda and Longvil with Miranda. Unfortunately, Clarinda is in love with Longvil and Miranda with Bruce. Each lady also has a rival suitor. Clarinda is wooed by her uncle’s best friend, the absurd orator Sir Formal Trifle, and Miranda by a gallant fool, Sir Samuel Hearty.
In order to gain admittance to Sir Nicholas’s house where they can see their beloveds, Bruce and Longvil feign an interest in Sir Nicholas’s absurd experiments, which include learning to swim on dry land by imitating a frog, transfusing the blood of a sheep into a man
(resulting in a sheep’s tail growing out of the man’s anus), and bottling air from various parts of the country to be stored in his cellar like wine.
While they attempt to pay their court the Miranda and Clarinda, Bruce and Longvil are in turn courted by Sir Nicholas’s promiscuous wife, Lady Gimcrack, who also keeps a lover, Hazard, on the side. Sir Nicholas similarly keeps a lover by the name of Mrs. Flirt, who in turn is having an affair with Hazard.
The cast is rounded out by Sir Nicholas’s curmudgeonly uncle Snarl, whose money Sir Nicholas hopes to inherit, and Snarl’s whore Mrs. Figgup.
There follow various contrivances and convolutions, including the seduction of both Bruce and Longvil by Lady Gimcrack, the attempted rape of Sir Samuel (disguised as a woman) by Sir Formal, the discovery that Snarl has a fetish for being beaten with rods, and an uprising of ribbon-weavers, upset because they fear Sir Nicholas has invented a machine that will put them out of business.
Ultimately, Bruce and Longvil pragmatically conclude that Bruce should transfer his affections to Miranda (who loves him) and Longvil should transfer his to Clarinda (who loves him.) Meanwhile, Sir Nicholas receives the terrible news that his estates have been seized to pay off debts incurred in his scientific pursuits. He first turns to his wife for help, but she abandons him in favor of Hazard, taking her money with her, then to his uncle Snarl, but Snarl reveals that he has married Mrs. Figgup and Sir Nicholas’s hopes of inheriting his money are dashed. Last, Sir Nicholas begs his nieces for their fortunes, but they reveal that they have settled guardianship of their estates with Bruce and Longvil. Hoping at least for continuing love from Mrs. Flirt, Sir Nicholas is once again disappointed, as she informs him that she “love(s) men but as far as their money goes.”
Sir Nicholas is left a ruined man, yet still hoping to discover the philosopher's stone
, and Bruce and Longvil are happy in their hopes of eventual marriages to Miranda and Clarinda, respectively.
’s Micrographia
or Philosophical Transactions
of the Royal Society
. Hooke himself actually attended a performance of the original production and, humiliated, identified himself as the specific target of Shadwell’s satire
.
While many critics interpret the play as a direct attack on the Royal Society, others argue that, far from satirizing the Royal Society, Shadwell was actually focusing on specific follies that the Royal Society expressly rejected, or that, as members of the Royal Society at that time included both serious scientists and amateur virtuosos, Shadwell was striking a deathblow against the virtuosos specifically, but that the serious scientists were above attack and thus unharmed by Shadwell’s satire.
Restoration comedy
Restoration comedy refers to English comedies written and performed in the Restoration period from 1660 to 1710. After public stage performances had been banned for 18 years by the Puritan regime, the re-opening of the theatres in 1660 signalled a renaissance of English drama...
first produced at Dorset Garden Theatre
Dorset Garden Theatre
The Dorset Garden Theatre in London, built in 1671, was in its early years also known as the Duke of York's Theatre, or the Duke's Theatre. In 1685, King Charles II died and his brother, the Duke of York, was crowned as James II. When the Duke became King, the theatre became the Queen's Theatre in...
in 1676 by The Duke’s Company. Well received in its original production, it was revived several times over the next thirty years and “always found Success.”
Thomas Shadwell
Thomas Shadwell
Thomas Shadwell was an English poet and playwright who was appointed poet laureate in 1689.-Life:Shadwell was born at Stanton Hall, Norfolk, and educated at Bury St Edmunds School, and at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, which he entered in 1656. He left the university without a degree, and...
is acknowledged as the most topical of the major Restoration
Restoration (1660)
The term Restoration in reference to the year 1660 refers to the restoration of Charles II to his realms across the British Empire at that time.-England:...
playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
s and the uniqueness of The Virtuoso lies primarily in its highly relevant satire on contemporary science and on the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
, which, founded in 1660, was of great interest to Restoration audiences.
Shadwell was also known as the Restoration’s leading advocate of Ben Jonson
Ben Jonson
Benjamin Jonson was an English Renaissance dramatist, poet and actor. A contemporary of William Shakespeare, he is best known for his satirical plays, particularly Volpone, The Alchemist, and Bartholomew Fair, which are considered his best, and his lyric poems...
’s style of humor comedy, in which each humors character displays one unique and excessive folly. In his Dedication to The Virtuoso, Shadwell claimed that he had created four entirely new humors characters, by which he meant the titular virtuoso Sir Nicholas Gimcrack, Sir Formal Trifle (described in the cast list as “the Orator, a florid coxcomb”), Sir Samuel Hearty (“a brisk, amorous, adventurous, unfortunate coxcomb; one that by the help of humorous, nonsensical bywords takes himself to be a wit”), and Sir Nicholas’s uncle Snarl (“an old, pettish fellow, a great admirer of the last age and a declaimer against the vices of this, and privately very vicious himself.”) Though some critics believe that Sir Nicholas is an inconsistent character, of the four, his is the character with the most significant literary legacy. Scholars have discerned the influence of Sir Nicholas in the works of numerous subsequent playwrights, including Thomas d'Urfey
Thomas d'Urfey
Thomas D'Urfey was an English writer and wit. He composed plays, songs, and poetry, in addition to writing jokes. He was an important innovator and contributor in the evolution of the Ballad opera....
, Lawrence Maidwell, Susanna Centlivre
Susanna Centlivre
Susanna Centlivre born Susanna Freeman, also known professionally as Susanna Carroll, was an English poet, actress and one of the premier dramatists of the 18th century. During her long career at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, she became known as the Second Woman of the English Stage after Aphra Behn...
, Aphra Behn
Aphra Behn
Aphra Behn was a prolific dramatist of the English Restoration and was one of the first English professional female writers. Her writing contributed to the amatory fiction genre of British literature.-Early life:...
, and Peter Pindar.
Plot summary
Bruce and Longvil, two young men-about-town, described by Shadwell in the cast list as “Gentlemen of wit and sense,” have fallen in love with the two nieces of the virtuosoVirtuoso
A virtuoso is an individual who possesses outstanding technical ability in the fine arts, at singing or playing a musical instrument. The plural form is either virtuosi or the Anglicisation, virtuosos, and the feminine form sometimes used is virtuosa...
, Sir Nicholas Gimcrack. Bruce is in love with Clarinda and Longvil with Miranda. Unfortunately, Clarinda is in love with Longvil and Miranda with Bruce. Each lady also has a rival suitor. Clarinda is wooed by her uncle’s best friend, the absurd orator Sir Formal Trifle, and Miranda by a gallant fool, Sir Samuel Hearty.
In order to gain admittance to Sir Nicholas’s house where they can see their beloveds, Bruce and Longvil feign an interest in Sir Nicholas’s absurd experiments, which include learning to swim on dry land by imitating a frog, transfusing the blood of a sheep into a man
Xenotransplantation
Xenotransplantation , is the transplantation of living cells, tissues or organs from one species to another. Such cells, tissues or organs are called xenografts or xenotransplants...
(resulting in a sheep’s tail growing out of the man’s anus), and bottling air from various parts of the country to be stored in his cellar like wine.
While they attempt to pay their court the Miranda and Clarinda, Bruce and Longvil are in turn courted by Sir Nicholas’s promiscuous wife, Lady Gimcrack, who also keeps a lover, Hazard, on the side. Sir Nicholas similarly keeps a lover by the name of Mrs. Flirt, who in turn is having an affair with Hazard.
The cast is rounded out by Sir Nicholas’s curmudgeonly uncle Snarl, whose money Sir Nicholas hopes to inherit, and Snarl’s whore Mrs. Figgup.
There follow various contrivances and convolutions, including the seduction of both Bruce and Longvil by Lady Gimcrack, the attempted rape of Sir Samuel (disguised as a woman) by Sir Formal, the discovery that Snarl has a fetish for being beaten with rods, and an uprising of ribbon-weavers, upset because they fear Sir Nicholas has invented a machine that will put them out of business.
Ultimately, Bruce and Longvil pragmatically conclude that Bruce should transfer his affections to Miranda (who loves him) and Longvil should transfer his to Clarinda (who loves him.) Meanwhile, Sir Nicholas receives the terrible news that his estates have been seized to pay off debts incurred in his scientific pursuits. He first turns to his wife for help, but she abandons him in favor of Hazard, taking her money with her, then to his uncle Snarl, but Snarl reveals that he has married Mrs. Figgup and Sir Nicholas’s hopes of inheriting his money are dashed. Last, Sir Nicholas begs his nieces for their fortunes, but they reveal that they have settled guardianship of their estates with Bruce and Longvil. Hoping at least for continuing love from Mrs. Flirt, Sir Nicholas is once again disappointed, as she informs him that she “love(s) men but as far as their money goes.”
Sir Nicholas is left a ruined man, yet still hoping to discover the philosopher's stone
Philosopher's stone
The philosopher's stone is a legendary alchemical substance said to be capable of turning base metals into gold or silver. It was also sometimes believed to be an elixir of life, useful for rejuvenation and possibly for achieving immortality. For many centuries, it was the most sought-after goal...
, and Bruce and Longvil are happy in their hopes of eventual marriages to Miranda and Clarinda, respectively.
Scientific Satire
As Claude Lloyd has demonstrated, virtually all of the experiments that Sir Nicholas Gimcrack performs can be traced directly to a real scientific experiment of the day, most reported either in Robert HookeRobert Hooke
Robert Hooke FRS was an English natural philosopher, architect and polymath.His adult life comprised three distinct periods: as a scientific inquirer lacking money; achieving great wealth and standing through his reputation for hard work and scrupulous honesty following the great fire of 1666, but...
’s Micrographia
Micrographia
Micrographia is a historic book by Robert Hooke, detailing the then thirty year-old Hooke's observations through various lenses. Published in September 1665, the first major publication of the Royal Society, it was the first scientific best-seller, inspiring a wide public interest in the new...
or Philosophical Transactions
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society
The Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society is a scientific journal published by the Royal Society of London. It was established in 1665, making it the first journal in the world exclusively devoted to science, and it has remained in continuous publication ever since, making it the world's...
of the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
. Hooke himself actually attended a performance of the original production and, humiliated, identified himself as the specific target of Shadwell’s satire
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
.
While many critics interpret the play as a direct attack on the Royal Society, others argue that, far from satirizing the Royal Society, Shadwell was actually focusing on specific follies that the Royal Society expressly rejected, or that, as members of the Royal Society at that time included both serious scientists and amateur virtuosos, Shadwell was striking a deathblow against the virtuosos specifically, but that the serious scientists were above attack and thus unharmed by Shadwell’s satire.