Glen Collection of printed music > Printed text > Companion to the play-house, or, An historical account of all the dramatic writers (and their works) that have appeared in Great Britain and Ireland, from the commencement of our theatrical exhibitions, down to the present year 1764 > Volume 2

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Pieces, under the Title of the
Duke% Theatre in Lincoln s-Inn-
jrie/^s.—Tha firft Opening of this
Theatre was with a new Play of
his own, entitled the Siege of
Rhodes, in which he introduced
a great Variety of fine Scenes and
beautiful Machinery. — And here
it is neceflary to obferve, that
Sir William D" A'venant was the
firft Peifon to whom the Englifi
Stage is indebted for thofe Deco-
rations J which he brought over
the Idea of from the Theatres in
France, his long Refidence in
which Country had greatly im-
proved his Tafte, and induced
him to endeavour at a greater Re-
gularity in the Conduft, and a
greater Correftnefs in the Lan-
guage of his Pieces, than the
Manner of the dramatic Writers
of his own Country had hitherto
attained. — Nor could he, among
other Improvements, omit thofe
of Decoration and Scenery, fo ne-
cefTary for heightening the De-
ception, on which fo great a Part
of our Pleafure in this Kind of
Entertainments confiantly de-
pends 5 in which we now e-
ven greatly exceed our Neigh -
fcours; but which at that Time
the Englijh Stage was fo barba-
roufly deficient in ; for altho' it
is true that, in the Reign of King
Charles I. we read of many dra-
matic Entertainments , which
were accompanied with very rich
Sceneiy, curious Machines and
other elegant Embellifliments,
.and the greateft Part of them
even conducted by that great Ar-
chitect Inigo Jones, yet thefe were
employed only in the Mofques and
Plays reprefented at Court, and
were much ioo expenfive for the
little Theatres in which Plays
■were then aded for Hire. — Thafe
Theatres were fo numerous, there
Ifedng generally fix or kstz open
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at once, and, (if I miftake not,
we are fomewhere told, that there
were at one Time no Icfs than fe-
venteen Playhoufes fubfifting in
London, fmall as it then was in
Comparifon to it's prefent Extent)
and the Prices fo extremely low,
that they could afford no farther'
Decorations to affift the Adlor's
Performance, or elevate the Spec-
tator's Imagination, than bare
Walls, coarfely matted, or at the
beft covered with Tapeftry, and
nothing njore than a Blanket or
a Piece of coarfe Cloth by Way
of a Curtain, — In this Situation
were they in Shake fpeare^ Time,
vvho,infomeofhisChoruffes,feems
to have had an apparent Reference
to it ; and not much better does
it appear to have been at any
Period before the Reftoration, at
which Time Taffe and Luxury,
Genius and Gallantry, Elegance
and Licentioufnefs, feem to have
made a mingled Entry into thefe
Kingdoms, under the Aufpices
of a witty and wicked, a merry
and mifchievous, Monarch.-^
But to quit this Digreffion.
Sir William D^Avenant conti
nued at the Head of his Compa^
ny, which he afterwards removed
to a ftill larger and more magni-
ficent Theatre bUilt in Dorji.t
Gardens, till the Time of his
Death, which happened on the
17th oi April, 1668, in the 64th
Year of his Age ; and in tw^o
Days afterwards was interred- in
Wejlinir.fi er- Abbey, very near . his
Rival for the Laurel, Tho. May,
leaving his Son Dr. Charles D^A"
•venant, mentioned in the laft
Article, his SucccfTor in the Ma-
nagement of the Theatre. — On
his Grave-Stone is infcribed, in
Imitation of Ben Jonfons flic^t
Epitaph, the following Words,
rare Sir William Davenant !
[I3I
Thus^