The Beggar's Opera

· Bloomsbury Publishing
Libro electrónico
160
Páxinas

Acerca deste libro electrónico

Mr. and Mrs. Peachum are horrified when they learn of their daughter Polly's secret marriage to the rebellious and notorious highwayman, Macheath. However, their fear is soon mitigated when they decide to kill him for his money. When Macheath is in the tavern, surrounded by women of 'ill repute', he discovers that he has been rumbled: two of these women are in cahoots with the Peachums and plan to kill him.

He finds himself in Newgate and, worse than that, in the company of the jailer's daughter, Lucy, to whom he is also betrothed. Although Macheath is captured and destined to be hanged, Gay's action-packed and entertaining play subverts audience expectations by letting Macheath off the hook and not punishing its villains.


John Gay's satirical opera, written in 1728, was revolutionary because it took poverty and corruption as its subject, and paupers and villains as its characters. The lyrics were set to famous songs of the day making it hugely popular with audiences and a radical departure from traditional opera.


The introduction puts the play in its historical and theatrical contexts and details its stage history in modern times too. David Lindley is an expert on theatrical music and the new dramatic form of ballad opera this play created. The music for the songs is included in the text, making this an edition to be used for performance as well as for study.

Acerca do autor

David Lindley is Professor of Renaissance Literature at Leeds University. He is the author of Shakespeare and Music in the Arden Critical Companions Series and editor of The Tempest for the New Cambridge Shakespeare series.

Vivien Jones is Professor of Eighteenth-Century Gender and Culture at Leeds University. She has edited Evelina and Jane Austen: Selected Letters for Oxford World's Classics and has written widely on women in the eighteenth century.

Valora este libro electrónico

Dános a túa opinión.

Información de lectura

Smartphones e tabletas
Instala a aplicación Google Play Libros para Android e iPad/iPhone. Sincronízase automaticamente coa túa conta e permíteche ler contido en liña ou sen conexión desde calquera lugar.
Portátiles e ordenadores de escritorio
Podes escoitar os audiolibros comprados en Google Play a través do navegador web do ordenador.
Lectores de libros electrónicos e outros dispositivos
Para ler contido en dispositivos de tinta electrónica, como os lectores de libros electrónicos Kobo, é necesario descargar un ficheiro e transferilo ao dispositivo. Sigue as instrucións detalladas do Centro de Axuda para transferir ficheiros a lectores electrónicos admitidos.