Rich, John

ACHIEVEMENT(S): Pantomime at Covent Garden theater.

NICKNAME/ALIAS: None

DATE AND PLACE OF BIRTH: c. 1682, London, England

DATE/PLACE OF DEATH/AGE AT DEATH: November 26, 1761, London, England. Aged about 79

DISCIPLINE: Pantomimist/Theater manager

FIELD: Theater

LANGUAGE: English

PARENTS: Christopher Rich; Mother's name unknown

SIBLINGS: Christopher Mosyer

SPOUSE: 1) Unknown 2) Stevens (first name unknown)

CHILDREN: Four

EDUCATION: Little or no formal education

MAJOR WORK:

LIFE AND TIMES:

Rich's father, Christopher Rich, an attorney, held rights in the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, in 1688, but was "silenced" by the Lord Chamberlain and ousted from the theater in 1709. The elder Rich then built the third Lincoln's Inn Fields theater but died in 1714 before it opened. Rich and his brother, Christopher Mosyer Rich, inherited the theater and opened it in December, 1714, with the "Recruiting Officer" by Irish playwright George Farquhar. Rich ran the theater for 18 years, although it always was second in popularity to the Drury Lane theater, run by actor Cibber*.

In 1716, in an attempt to boost attendance, Rich began to stage "pantomime", a relatively new type of entertainment, based on the Italian "commedia dell'arte". It had its British beginnings about 15 years earlier, when French actors brought it to Drury Lane, where Rich's father was manager.

It was taken up by Drury Lane's dancing master Weaver*, whose first effort, "The Tavern Bilkers", was produced in 1702. Pantomime was a form of dramatic entertainment that included improvisation, dance and knockabout comedy, built around simple stories involving romantic intrigues, servants outwitting masters, and old men lusting after pretty girls. Most important, it introduced the famous character of Harlequin.

In 1717, Rich staged the first of his pantomimes, "The Harlequin Sorcerer.” It combined scenes of classical mythology with silent scenes telling comic stories of the lovers Harlequin (played by Rich himself) and Columbine. With songs and dances thrown in, it was considered the first "Harlequinade". The same year, Rich arranged to put on Weaver's 15-year-old "The Tavern Bilkers", and revived it again in 1727 calling it "The Cheats". With none of Cibber's scruples about catering to low taste, Rich became the dominant figure in pantomime presentation in England.

Rich himself was a splendid mimic, but was poor with the spoken word. So he turned Harlequin, originally a speaking character, into a mute one and used action and gesture to do the talking. As time went on Rich's pantomimes became more elaborate. He added rope dancers, contortionists, musical entertainments, and processions.

Soon the theaters vied with each other in producing pantomimes, and pantomime became one of the stock attractions of the 18th century stage. Using the stage name John Lun, Rich played Harlequin from 1717 until 1760, the year before his death. He staged a new pantomime at Lincoln's Inn Fields annually, and altogether created about 120 pantomimes, many of which were performed elsewhere.

In January ,1728, Rich dropped pantomime briefly to put on Gay*'s ballad-opera "The Beggar’s Opera", a hugely successful production which ran for a record 62 performances. The work, which combined popular song, underworld comedy and political and social satire, effectively launched ballad opera as a genre.

The success of "The Beggar's Opera" inspired dozens of imitations. But in spite of its success, Rich did not aggressively pursue the ballad-opera form, perhaps because he preferred pantomime.

In 1730, Rich began work on the designs for a new theater and in 1732, opened the Theatre Royal in Covent Garden, an event celebrated in Hogarth's* painting "Rich's Glory, or the Triumphant Entry into Covent Garden" (1732).

In 1734, when the "Opera of the Nobility" took over Handel*'s King's Theatre, Haymarket, Rich allowed the great composer to mount operas and oratorios at Covent Garden for three seasons. Handel willed to Rich his "Great Organ," which was installed at Covent Garden in 1759.

In the same year, Rich's daughter Charlotte married Handel's favorite tenor, John Beard, who succeeded Rich as principal manager at Covent Garden when Rich died. After Rich's death, Garrick* paid tribute to the "matchless expressiveness" of his miming.

ASSESSMENT: Though illiterate and rampantly anti-intellectual, Rich dominated early 18th century London theater with his bawdy productions and pantomime

EXTRA CONNECTIONS: Arnold* composed music for the pantomime in the 1790's.

Turned down a play by Smollett*

He employed Eliza Haywood*

ONELINER: John Rich, who introduced pantomime to England

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

EB, DNB

Cambridge History of English and American Literature: Volume X. The Age of Johnson.

Sawyer, P., The New Theater in Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London, 1979