Product Description

The tale of Peachum, thief-taker and informer, conspiring to send the dashing and promiscuous highwayman Macheath to the gallows, became the theatrical sensation of the eighteenth century. In THE BEGGAR'S OPERA, John Gay turned conventions of Italian opera riotously upside-down, instead using traditional popular ballads and street tunes, while also indulging in political satire at the expense of the Prime Minister, Sir Robert Walpole. Gay's highly original depiction of the thieves, informers, prostitutes and highwaymen thronging the slums and prisons of the corrupt London underworld proved brilliantly successful in exposing the dark side of a corrupt and jaded society.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #20239 in Books
• Published on: 2003-07-31
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 128 pages

About the Author
Born in 1685, John Gay's first major success was THE SHEPHERD'S WEEK. It was followed by a number of other works, the most enduring of which is THE BEGGAR'S OPERA. Gay died in 1732, and is remembered as a popular and genial man whose self-penned epitaph reads 'Life is a jest, and all things show it, I thought it once, and now I know it'. Loughrey and Treadwell worked together at Roehampton Institute and have both published in scholarly journals.

Customer Reviews

a jutaposing of ideals
I would like to take this chance to recommend this book to everyone. This book stands head and shoulders above the rest and I bought it for only a couple of quid. A brilliant satirical parodying and ironic novel with dialogue snappier than most seinfeld episodes and which all writers should read and certainly most readers should. It was interesting to learn more about romanticism and than instilled a better knowledge and insight into the period, just untilately which all great books should do is to make the reader enthusiatic which i am certainly am after reading this, cheers amazon but my biggest thanks must go to you John Gay

A Personal Favourite
This is still one of my all time favourite plays, although it is really a ballad opera. John Gay through allegory, and most importantly satire shows us the world he lived in, taking in such characters as Walpole, and the criminals Jack Sheppard, and criminal/ thief taker, Jonathan Wild. It is so reassuring to know that whilst we complain about the actions of our politicians and the MP expenses dodges that nothing has changed. At least we can rest assured that they aren't doing anything new.

I must admit that I have always been loathe to write a review for this as I know I could never do it justice, and it is hard to write about this without giving something away that will ultimately lessen your enjoyment (perhaps that is why there is only one review here for it). All I can say is that this is something that would be impossible not to enjoy, and if anyone knows if or when it will be performed again in London, please leave a comment so that I don't miss it.

It was said that this made 'Rich gay, and Gay rich' and reading it you will soon see why.