Saturday 17 March 2012

The Coffee House: an Afterpiece



Mr Harpie, a Scrivener & Kitty
The Coffee House is an "Afterpiece" written by James Miller (1706-1744).  Miller was educated at Oxford, and was ordained soon after. He turned playwright when a satire published at university offended the bishop from whom he had expectations of advancement. The Coffee-House reflects his interest in satirising the fashionable delusions of society. 

All of life passes through the Widow's Coffee-House; hacks, politicians, fops, drunkards and of course, a dashing young officer courting the Widow's daughter Kitty. The play is a farce, revolving around young lovers attempting to elude the clutches of a scheming parent, mistaken identities, various deceptions and misunderstandings, all leading to a happy resolution.  

The Widow - owner of the Coffee-House
The pace is frenetic, the whole play lasting no more than 40 minutes - a perfect dramatic arc achieved in a third of the time of a full-length play. We performed the Coffee House in 2009 in the North East and at Fairfax House in York
Bays the Poet

Harpie and Gaywood

Puzzle the Politician & Bays the Poet



 
 

1 comment:

  1. There is much more percolating in your Wig, than I thought possible, Mr. M. I raise a Pug's Mug to this fine piece & will spread ye word upon it!

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