Not currently on display at the V&A

The Beggar's Opera

Plaque
ca.1920 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This plaque shows a scene featuring Polly Peachum, Lucy Lockit and Macheath, in Nigel Playfair's celebrated revival of John Gay's The Beggar's Opera which opened at the Lyric Theatre Hammersmith in June 1920, designed by Claud Lovat Fraser. With music re-written and supplemented by Frederic Austin, Gay's 18th century ballad opera featuring traditional tunes took London by storm and put Hammersmith firmly on the theatrical map.

The huge popularity of The Beggar's Opera revival, which ran for over three years, spawned a surprising quantity of souvenirs, especially figurines in porcelain and wax. They are an indication of the impact that the production made on designers and artists. The highly simplified, almost illustrative, quality of the designs was characteristic of British theatrical design in the wake of the impact of the Diaghilev Ballets Russes and in reaction against the detailed 19th century tradition of realism and historicism.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleThe Beggar's Opera (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Moulded plaster
Brief description
Plaque featuring Polly Peachum, Lucy Lockit and Macheath in a scene from John Gay's The Beggar's Opera, Lyric Theatre Hammersmith, 5 June 1920. Plaster, maker unknown, ca.1920
Physical description
Small oblong plaster plaque with relief figures of Polly Peachum, Lucy Lockitt and Macheath decorated in pink, yellow, ochre and black with grey background and flesh tints.
Dimensions
  • Height: 5.4cm
  • Width: 8.5cm
  • Depth: 0.8cm
Marks and inscriptions
'Beggar's Opera' (Incised lower right)
Credit line
Given by Elizabeth Aitken
Literary referenceBeggar's Opera, The
Summary
This plaque shows a scene featuring Polly Peachum, Lucy Lockit and Macheath, in Nigel Playfair's celebrated revival of John Gay's The Beggar's Opera which opened at the Lyric Theatre Hammersmith in June 1920, designed by Claud Lovat Fraser. With music re-written and supplemented by Frederic Austin, Gay's 18th century ballad opera featuring traditional tunes took London by storm and put Hammersmith firmly on the theatrical map.

The huge popularity of The Beggar's Opera revival, which ran for over three years, spawned a surprising quantity of souvenirs, especially figurines in porcelain and wax. They are an indication of the impact that the production made on designers and artists. The highly simplified, almost illustrative, quality of the designs was characteristic of British theatrical design in the wake of the impact of the Diaghilev Ballets Russes and in reaction against the detailed 19th century tradition of realism and historicism.
Collection
Accession number
S.1067-1983

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Record createdNovember 22, 2005
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