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The Virtuoso
First published in 1676, The Virtuoso set a standard for theatrical satire. It was the most extensive dramatic treatment of modern science since Jonson's The Alchemist and took as its target no less than the Royal Society of London. Shadwell's barbs hit their targets often and cleanly. In 1689 he became Poet Laureate of England, a position he held until his death in 1692. The virtuoso of the title is Sir Nicholas Gimcrack, who like many after him confuses the extent of a collection with the depth of a science. Sir Gimcrack is fascinated by the geography of the moon, the worlds in his microscope, and the possibilities of human flight. More seriously and—for Shadwell's audience—more comically, his obsession with his arrays of worms and spiders proceeds at the expense of his wife and two beautiful nieces. The play also introduces Sir Formal Trifle, a pedantic ciceronian orator and coxcomb. His character established thereafter the theatrical type of the know-it-all blowhard. Famous for its wit and high-speed changes, The Virtuoso is also a display of the prestige of modern science and the pomposity of its ameteurs.
180 pages, Paperback
First published January 28, 1966
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 21, 2016
This is one of those "Restoration comedies" you occasionally hear about but probably never read. It was first published in 1676, and is regularly said to be one of the best satires of the time. And it probably was. They haven't aged so well, though, these Restoration comedies. This one is certainly no Shakespeare or Ben Jonson, from earlier, and it's no Bernard Shaw either, from later. So, what is it? Well, it's largely an unfunny and over-the-top comedy of errors about two girls and two guys and -oh no! - they each love the wrong person, and people call each other sluts and whores and very quickly enter and exit rooms and chaos ensues. If that's all there was, then this play would probably have been forgotten long ago, like so many of the other oddities from that strange period of English comedy.
Except that running through the play is an absolutely fascinating satire of the new scientist, in the form of Nicholas Gimrack. Gimrack is a "virtuoso," an amateur scientist/inventor based on real people in the Royal Society of London at the time, and this play is probably the best satire of the scientist to show up in England in the 17th century. In one scene, Gimrack ties himself by string to a frog, lies face down on a table, and attempts to better the frog at the motions of swimming. He bottles different types of air, so he can breathe whichever he prefers when the mood is right. He experiments with transfusions of blood, and once made a man think he was a sheep. Gimrack was such a popular character, he became a household name and the go-to symbol for the absurdity of scientists. It's hard to know if Shadwell is using Gimrack to mock all scientists or just the members of the Royal Society, but either way, it's compelling satire, and the rest of the plot, the courtship complications, are almost an afterthought.
So: if you're interested in the history of ideas regarding science, it's worth your time to trudge through the mindless sex shenanigans to get to the scenes involving Gimrack. He's a great character, an ancestor to the absent-minded professor of the 20th century, and he provides an entertaining and useful window into how the practice of science was perceived in the late 17th century, a time when the very idea of a scientific method was still quite new.
Except that running through the play is an absolutely fascinating satire of the new scientist, in the form of Nicholas Gimrack. Gimrack is a "virtuoso," an amateur scientist/inventor based on real people in the Royal Society of London at the time, and this play is probably the best satire of the scientist to show up in England in the 17th century. In one scene, Gimrack ties himself by string to a frog, lies face down on a table, and attempts to better the frog at the motions of swimming. He bottles different types of air, so he can breathe whichever he prefers when the mood is right. He experiments with transfusions of blood, and once made a man think he was a sheep. Gimrack was such a popular character, he became a household name and the go-to symbol for the absurdity of scientists. It's hard to know if Shadwell is using Gimrack to mock all scientists or just the members of the Royal Society, but either way, it's compelling satire, and the rest of the plot, the courtship complications, are almost an afterthought.
So: if you're interested in the history of ideas regarding science, it's worth your time to trudge through the mindless sex shenanigans to get to the scenes involving Gimrack. He's a great character, an ancestor to the absent-minded professor of the 20th century, and he provides an entertaining and useful window into how the practice of science was perceived in the late 17th century, a time when the very idea of a scientific method was still quite new.
March 6, 2023
This was a pleasant surprise! It was so much funnier than I expected; I really enjoyed reading it. It wasn't quite what I thought it would be, but in a good way. It reminded me a lot of Roman comedies, which I am very well-versed in, so that just made it even better for me. I highly recommend it, it's a well-done comedy and I think it still manages to be highly entertaining now.
January 6, 2025
*The Virtuoso* is an interesting thing to read in 2024. It is a 1676 play, whose humor around the virtuoso (a grandiose term scientists claimed for themselves at the time) character lands today, mostly. The play was written a little more than ten years after the establishment of what is arguably (though not necessarily) the first scientific journal. It comes down particularly hard against blood transfusion, which was far more understandable at the time (it was still in its infancy; we didn't even know about blood types). Not all of the humor lands, and there are some islands between interesting parts, hence it not being ranked higher for me. Still, not bad for 1676.
April 4, 2016
One of my favorites from a Restoration Comedy course I'm taking. It isn't great, but unlike all of the other plays in the course, this one isn't a courtship play. The characters are all tropes and no one really learns anything, but the titular virtuoso attempts to swim on land.
The play is an examination and satire of New Science during the era. In his examination of what seems too topical to be relevant to modern readers, Shadwell reveals a contemporary concern: fear of job loss through automation that displaces workers.
Interesting with a few laughs along the way.
The play is an examination and satire of New Science during the era. In his examination of what seems too topical to be relevant to modern readers, Shadwell reveals a contemporary concern: fear of job loss through automation that displaces workers.
Interesting with a few laughs along the way.
May 16, 2012
This was probably my least favorite play in my Restoration comedy class. It felt like slapstick and nothing else. The characters were one-dimensional and unlikable. I understand that it was written to satirize the new movement in science, but it lost something for me. I guess you had to read it in the context of the times in order to appreciate it.
March 29, 2016
The classic Restoration comedy satirizing the proponents of New Science in the seventeenth century. Sir Nicholas is constantly conducting "important" scientific experiments. Two of his followers, Bruce and Longvil are really after his nieces. A wonderful example of the drama of the era.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews