[+] Kephart, Carolyn. "An Unnoticed Forerunner of The Beggar's Opera." Music and Letters 61 (July/October 1980): 266-71.
It is suggested that the Duke of Newcastle's play, The Triumphant Widow (1674), may be a significant forerunner to John Gay's The Beggar's Opera. Apparently The Triumphant Widow was an unusual play for its time, and it introduced a number of ballad opera characteristics (such as provincial comedy, or abundance of song and spoken verse) that may have influenced the creation of The Beggar's Opera. Similarities between plots, characters, tone, and structure in these two works are discussed.
Works: John Gay: The Beggars' Opera.
Index Classifications: 1600s
Contributed by: Lee Ann Roripaugh
