Pictorial Shakespeare, 1880-1890 - eTheses Repository - University ...

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Between 18?4 and 1875 Godwin had printed in The Architect a
series of articles on "The Architecture and Costume of Shakespeare's
Plays" (31 October 18?4 - 26 June 18?5). The main
subject of this series is the documentation of the dress and
furniture designs of the periods appropriate to the plays, but
two theoretical assumptions emerge: archaeology is always tor'-be
put at the service of a well-developed aesthetic sense, and
accuracy in matters of historical fact will in almost every
case lead to A aesthetically pleasing stage picture. Moreover,
the productions of Charles Kean, hitherto the ne plus ultra of
stage-management and historical accuracy, must be recognised
as being superseded by recent advances in knowledge and techniques:
I refrain from comparisons, but I will venture thus
far and say that, when a theatrical manager proposes
to produce for the public a play of such a king
amongst men as Shakespeare, it would become him to
reflect on the great progress of knowledge among
his audience since the days of Kemble and even the
younger Kean.
Recent productions have assembled "a series of the most foolish
and inane pictures the historian's art has to show us", and
have been a discredit to the stage (31 October 1874) - it should
be noted that Godwin never doubted that a reincarnated Shakespeare
would approve of his endeavours or endorse his theories.
It was unfortunate that after the qualified success of
The Merchant of Venice, Godwin should become involved >jith a
manager as inept and vulgar as Coleman. Coleman's imagination
was Limilar to that of Charl e s I'ean, but by 1876 it was beginning
to appear a little out of fashion. His Henry V was conceived
as a series of grand tableaux, acconrornied by excerpts from
Shakespeare and explained by a programme only slightly less
long-winded than the playbills issued by Charles Kean. There
were twenty-nine scene-changes and the choruses were spoken by
I.iiss L eight on as Clio, the Uuve of History, who introduced such
illustrative tableaux as "An Orgie £uicjin the Dauphin's Tent".
The device and its setting ('c neo-classical "Temple of History")
were derived from Kean's production. Less didactic and completely
inexcusable, was the inclusion of tv/o : 'Ckrr.ncl Incident.? 1 Ballets"
representing "The Falcon Clirxe" and "The twelve Angels' 1 and
choreographed by M.Leon jiispinosa, to music by Mr Iseacson, -who