Stripping and whipping

I posted recently about the marvellous production of “Oliver!” that I went to see at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. I speculated then that the musical would have been much improved by a scene featuring the birching of a female pickpocket.

And what do I then uncover? An extract from ‘The Boarding-School: or, the Sham Captain. An Opera’, written by one Charles Coffey. The song goes:

“While she is stripping to get a good whipping,
I’ll away, dance and play,
Yes I will, that I will;
While she is stripping to get a good whipping,
I’ll go and romp with the Girls and the Boys.”

And guess what? It was “Performed at the Theatre-Royal in Drury-Lane By His Majesty’s Servants. London mdccxxxiii”. (That’s 1733, to save you the trouble!).

Oh for a copy of the play to see whether said stripping and said whipping did happen on stage every night! Do any of our more theatrical readers fancy reviving the production?

On further investigation, Coffey – a schoolmaster by trade – seems to have been an interesting man. Particularly, he and a friend played Henry Higgins-like roles in the success of Peg Woffington, an Irish bricklayer’s daughter who rose to become the leading actress of the day – and mistress of the famous Garrick.

Young Peg caught Coffey’s eye as a fifteen year old when she appeared in one of his plays; he taught her to sing, then took her to London and escorted her, then aged 22, during the 1740 season. Coffey was also responsible for introducing her to a gentleman named Elrington, a theatrical producer:

“who was reluctant given her age and experience but agreed to let her come to rehearsals; Elrington noticed her attention and began to give her lessons; brought her books and encouraged her education; told her that good command of language was essential, she must read and read; she like the plays he lent, incl. Farquhar’s; discovered facility for learning parts quickly, and acted them to him to his delight; told her she must study the real Quality on every occasion”

Oh, the potential for imagining the attractive young actress being taught lessons of a more painful nature by the producer, or by her playwright companion! Anyone else thinking “stripping and whipping”?