Family Quarrels is a comic opera in three acts with a libretto by Thomas Dibdin, and music principally by William Reeve. It was premiered in London at Covent Garden Theatre on 18 December 1802. [1] The singers John Braham and Charles Incledon had leading roles in the opera, in which the comedian John Fawcett took the part of the pedlar Proteus. [2]
The opera was evidently also performed in New York in 1806, where the libretto was republished. [3]
| Role [4] | Voice type | Premiere cast, 18 December 1802 |
|---|---|---|
| Sir Peppercorn Crabstick | ||
| Foxglove | tenor | Charles Incledon |
| Charles Supplejack | tenor | John Braham |
| Proteus, a pedlar | John Fawcett | |
| Argus (valet to Sir Peppercorn) | ||
| Mushroom | ||
| Mrs. Supplejack | ||
| Caroline Crabstick | ||
| Lady Selena Sugarcane | ||
| Betty Lilly, Lady Selena's servant | ||
| Susan (servant to the Crabsticks) | soprano | Nancy Storace |
| Huntsmen, gleaners, anglers | ||
Location: the village where the Supplejack and Crabstick families live.
Foxglove undertakes to reconcile the Supplejack and Crabstick families – Charles Supplejack and Caroline Crabstick wish to marry, but Caroline's parents (who are nouveaux riches) wish her to marry the clothier Mushroom, whilst Mrs. Supplejack's aristocratic pretensions lead her to class Caroline as too lowly. She intends to marry Charles to the widowed Lady Selena. The expected happy ending eventually ensues. The 'Jewish' episode (see below) is not the only 'ethnic' element of the story; at one point the maid Susan disguises herself as a gipsy, whilst Lady Selena's maid – who is sought after by Proteus – is Afro-Caribbean. [5]
In the course of the action, Proteus disguises himself at one point as ‘Aaron the Jew’, and his song in this character recounts Aaron's problems in courting Miss Levi, Miss Rachel and Miss Moses: this provoked demonstrations, including cat-calls, from Jews in the audience. [2] Some historians have claimed that Jews in the audience objected to the reference in the song to "three Jewish whores" [6] or even that the performance was " a deliberate attempt [by Dibdin] to please the government...to deflect attention away from the hardship, high taxation and repression...in Britain during the French revolutionary wars". The audience reaction has sometimes been described as a "riot", or more specifically as a "Jewish riot". [7] [8]
However the music historian David Conway has noted that there is no evidence for the latter claim, and that the descriptions in the song of Aaron's ladies is perfectly respectable. On referring to the actual music of the song, he attributes the disturbances to the use, in the song's coda, of the melody and rhythm of the synagogue Kaddish prayer. He adds "this musical parody can in fact only have been inserted by Braham himself", as Braham was Jewish and had begun his career as a meshorrer (treble) in the Great Synagogue of London. Conway comments that the use of this sacred melody "may suggest why the Jews in the gallery (who were perhaps more regularly in attendance at synagogue) were more incensed than the gentrified Jews in the boxes, as was reported by The Morning Chronicle ", [9] and notes that the song "is the very first presentation I have discovered of genuine Jewish synagogue music in the context of Gentile stage entertainment." [10]
Dibdin's autobiography, in a chapter entitled "And the Twelve Tribes Waxed Wroth", indicates that he included the song exactly in the hope of creating some sensational publicity. [11] By the fourth performance, things had calmed down: Dibdin quotes the newspaper The British Press:
It was reported...that many Jews of the lower class had formed themselves into a regular phalanx, and were to renew their opposition, under the direction of the ass, whose cruel brayings were so successfully exerted the first night. No such occurrence, however, took place...the pedler's [sic] song...was encored amongst the loudest bursts of applause. [12]
Thomas Rowlandson's cartoon "Family Quarrels" depicting Braham and Incledon does not refer explicitly to the disturbances at Covent Garden, but summarizes the rivalry of these two popular favourites, contrasting Braham's floridity (marked "Allegro squeakando") with Incledon's more stolid approach to singing. In the bottom corners are seen the Jewish fans of the former and the gentile fans of the latter. [13]
Charles Bannister (1738–1804) was an English actor, comedian and singer.
Charles Dibdin was an English composer, musician, dramatist, novelist, singer and actor. With over 600 songs to his name, for many of which he wrote both the lyrics and the music and performed them himself, he was in his time the most prolific English singer-songwriter. He is best known as the composer of "Tom Bowling", one of his many sea songs, which often features at the Last Night of the Proms. He also wrote about 30 dramatic pieces, including the operas The Waterman (1774) and The Quaker (1775), and several novels, memoirs and histories. His works were admired by Haydn and Beethoven.
Thomas John Dibdin was an English dramatist and songwriter.
John Braham was an English tenor opera singer born in London. His long career led him to become one of Europe's leading opera stars. He also wrote a number of songs, of minor importance, although "The Death of Nelson" is still remembered. His success, and that of his offspring in marrying into the British aristocracy, are also notable examples of Jewish social mobility in the early 19th century.
Charles Benjamin Incledon was a Cornish tenor singer, who became one of the foremost English singers of his time, especially in the singing of English theatre music and ballads in which he was considered without rival.
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Myer Lyon, better known by his stage name Michael Leoni, was a hazzan at the Great Synagogue of London who achieved fame as a tenor opera singer in London and Dublin, and as the mentor of the singer John Braham.
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William Reeve was an English theatre composer and organist.
John Henry Johnstone (1749–1828), also known as 'Jack' Johnstone or 'Irish' Johnstone, was an Irish actor, comedian and singer. He was a notable performer of Stage Irishman roles.
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Ralph Wewitzer (1748–1825) was an English actor. He won critical acclaim in supporting parts, but was never given leading roles. He had a 44-year acting career, and is thought to have learned over 400 speaking parts.
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