Thomas Duffet
Encyclopedia
Thomas Duffet or Duffett, was an Irish playwright and songwriter active in England in the 1670s. He is remembered for his popular songs and his burlesques of the serious plays of John Dryden
, Thomas Shadwell
, Elkanah Settle
, and Sir William Davenant
.
By profession, Duffet was a milliner; he maintained a shop in the New Exchange in London. Virtually nothing is known of his life apart from his surviving works. A Thomas Duffet confessed to forgery in 1677; this may have been the author. (Duffet's plays show a close familiarity with the lower and criminal classes of London society, perhaps suggesting first-hand knowledge.)
(The plays were first printed in the same years they were staged, except where noted.)
Duffet started out as a conventional dramatist; his earliest two works were comedies. The market steered him in a different direction. The Spanish Rogue has been called "the best of all this author's dramatic works, yet it met with very indifferent success." Upon publication, the play was dedicated to Nell Gwyn
.
Duffet had much greater success in mocking other men's plays. Burlesque was a new development in English theatre in Duffet's generation; Sir William Davenant
's The Playhouse to Be Let
(1663; printed 1673) has been called the first burlesque in English drama. Duffett was the one author who took the greatest advantage of this new development in theatrical fashion, prior to Henry Fielding
and other writers of the following century.
Like other practitioners of farce
and burlesque, Duffet often responded quickly to developments in contemporary society. The Tempest, or the Enchanted Island
, Dryden and Davenant's 1667 adaptation of Shakespeare's
The Tempest
, was first staged in Thomas Shadwell's "opera" version in 1674; Duffet's parody of it was on the stage before the end of the year. Duffet also parodied Settle's The Empress of Morocco (1673) and Shadwell's opera Psyche (1675).
As a dramatist, Duffet worked primarily for the King's Company
; the plays he parodied were works staged by the rival Duke's Company
. The King's Company was in major difficulty in the years after their grand venue, the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
, burned down in 1672. Duffet's burlesques show the King's Company determination to compete with their rivals despite this immediate disadvantage.
Subsequent generations of critics, who took their drama very seriously, did not look kindly upon Duffet's effusions. "As pearls before swine, so were Shakspere's plays in the eyes of the hog Duffet" — is one of many hostile comments in the relevant literature. Much of this reaction is a response to the abundant sexual humor in Duffet's work; modern critics with a greater tolerance for such material have taken a less harsh view of Duffet.
In contrast to most of Duffet's drama, Beauty's Triumph was a masque
, staged, it title page attests, "by the Scholars of Mr. Jeffrey Banister and Mr. James Hart, at their new Boarding School for Young Ladies and Gentlewomen...at Chelsea."
and Thomas Arne in style. "Come All You Pale Lovers," "To Francelia," "The Mistake," "Uncertain Love," and "Since Cœlia's My Foe" are considered among his best. Duffet's collection New Poems, Songs, Prologues and Epilogues was published in 1676 by the bookseller Nicholas Wolfe. The title page of the collection states that the musical arrangements for the songs were "set by the most eminent musicians about the town."
John Dryden
John Dryden was an influential English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who dominated the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the period came to be known in literary circles as the Age of Dryden.Walter Scott called him "Glorious John." He was made Poet...
, 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...
, Elkanah Settle
Elkanah Settle
Elkanah Settle was an English poet and playwright.He was born at Dunstable, and entered Trinity College, Oxford, in 1666, but left without taking a degree. His first tragedy, Cambyses, King of Persia, was produced at Lincoln's Inn Fields in 1667...
, and Sir William Davenant
William Davenant
Sir William Davenant , also spelled D'Avenant, was an English poet and playwright. Along with Thomas Killigrew, Davenant was one of the rare figures in English Renaissance theatre whose career spanned both the Caroline and Restoration eras and who was active both before and after the English Civil...
.
By profession, Duffet was a milliner; he maintained a shop in the New Exchange in London. Virtually nothing is known of his life apart from his surviving works. A Thomas Duffet confessed to forgery in 1677; this may have been the author. (Duffet's plays show a close familiarity with the lower and criminal classes of London society, perhaps suggesting first-hand knowledge.)
Plays
Duffet's dramatic canon is uncertain and in dispute among scholars and critics. Six plays are generally attributed to him with a fair degree of certainty:- The Spanish Rogue, 1673 (printed 1674)
- The Amorous Old Woman, or 'Tis Well If It Take, 1674
- The Mock Tempest, or the Enchanted CastleThe Mock TempestThe Mock Tempest, or the Enchanted Castle is a Restoration era stage play, a parody by Thomas Duffet; it premiered in 1674, and was first printed in 1675 by the bookseller William Cademan...
, 1674 (1675) - The Empress of Morocco: a Farce, 1674
- Psyche Debauch'd, 1675 (1678)
- Beauty's Triumph, 1676.
(The plays were first printed in the same years they were staged, except where noted.)
Duffet started out as a conventional dramatist; his earliest two works were comedies. The market steered him in a different direction. The Spanish Rogue has been called "the best of all this author's dramatic works, yet it met with very indifferent success." Upon publication, the play was dedicated to Nell Gwyn
Nell Gwyn
Eleanor "Nell" Gwyn was a long-time mistress of King Charles II of England. Called "pretty, witty Nell" by Samuel Pepys, she has been regarded as a living embodiment of the spirit of Restoration England and has come to be considered a folk heroine, with a story echoing the rags-to-royalty tale of...
.
Duffet had much greater success in mocking other men's plays. Burlesque was a new development in English theatre in Duffet's generation; Sir William Davenant
William Davenant
Sir William Davenant , also spelled D'Avenant, was an English poet and playwright. Along with Thomas Killigrew, Davenant was one of the rare figures in English Renaissance theatre whose career spanned both the Caroline and Restoration eras and who was active both before and after the English Civil...
's The Playhouse to Be Let
The Playhouse to Be Let
The Playhouse to be Let is a Restoration stage play, a dramatic anthology of short pieces by Sir William Davenant that was acted in August 1663 at the theatre at Lincoln's Inn Fields, and first published in the 1673 collected edition of Davenant's works...
(1663; printed 1673) has been called the first burlesque in English drama. Duffett was the one author who took the greatest advantage of this new development in theatrical fashion, prior to Henry Fielding
Henry Fielding
Henry Fielding was an English novelist and dramatist known for his rich earthy humour and satirical prowess, and as the author of the novel Tom Jones....
and other writers of the following century.
Like other practitioners of farce
Farce
In theatre, a farce is a comedy which aims at entertaining the audience by means of unlikely, extravagant, and improbable situations, disguise and mistaken identity, verbal humour of varying degrees of sophistication, which may include word play, and a fast-paced plot whose speed usually increases,...
and burlesque, Duffet often responded quickly to developments in contemporary society. The Tempest, or the Enchanted Island
The Tempest (Dryden)
The Tempest, or The Enchanted Island is a comedy adapted by John Dryden and William D'Avenant from Shakespeare's comedy The Tempest. The musical setting, previously attributed to Henry Purcell, and probably for the London revival of 1712, was very probably by John Weldon.The Dryden/Davenant...
, Dryden and Davenant's 1667 adaptation of Shakespeare's
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
The Tempest
The Tempest
The Tempest is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1610–11, and thought by many critics to be the last play that Shakespeare wrote alone. It is set on a remote island, where Prospero, the exiled Duke of Milan, plots to restore his daughter Miranda to her rightful place,...
, was first staged in Thomas Shadwell's "opera" version in 1674; Duffet's parody of it was on the stage before the end of the year. Duffet also parodied Settle's The Empress of Morocco (1673) and Shadwell's opera Psyche (1675).
As a dramatist, Duffet worked primarily for the King's Company
King's Company
The King's Company was one of two enterprises granted the rights to mount theatrical productions in London at the start of the English Restoration. It existed from 1660 to 1682.-History:...
; the plays he parodied were works staged by the rival Duke's Company
Duke's Company
The Duke's Company was one of the two theatre companies that were chartered by King Charles II at the start of the English Restoration era, when the London theatres re-opened after their eighteen-year closure during the English Civil War and the Interregnum.The Duke's Company had the patronage of...
. The King's Company was in major difficulty in the years after their grand venue, the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane is a West End theatre in Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster, a borough of London. The building faces Catherine Street and backs onto Drury Lane. The building standing today is the most recent in a line of four theatres at the same location dating back to 1663,...
, burned down in 1672. Duffet's burlesques show the King's Company determination to compete with their rivals despite this immediate disadvantage.
Subsequent generations of critics, who took their drama very seriously, did not look kindly upon Duffet's effusions. "As pearls before swine, so were Shakspere's plays in the eyes of the hog Duffet" — is one of many hostile comments in the relevant literature. Much of this reaction is a response to the abundant sexual humor in Duffet's work; modern critics with a greater tolerance for such material have taken a less harsh view of Duffet.
In contrast to most of Duffet's drama, Beauty's Triumph was a masque
Masque
The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment which flourished in 16th and early 17th century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio...
, staged, it title page attests, "by the Scholars of Mr. Jeffrey Banister and Mr. James Hart, at their new Boarding School for Young Ladies and Gentlewomen...at Chelsea."
Songs
Duffet's songs have been compared to the songs of Henry PurcellHenry Purcell
Henry Purcell – 21 November 1695), was an English organist and Baroque composer of secular and sacred music. Although Purcell incorporated Italian and French stylistic elements into his compositions, his legacy was a uniquely English form of Baroque music...
and Thomas Arne in style. "Come All You Pale Lovers," "To Francelia," "The Mistake," "Uncertain Love," and "Since Cœlia's My Foe" are considered among his best. Duffet's collection New Poems, Songs, Prologues and Epilogues was published in 1676 by the bookseller Nicholas Wolfe. The title page of the collection states that the musical arrangements for the songs were "set by the most eminent musicians about the town."