The Masque of Beauty
Encyclopedia
The Masque of Beauty was a courtly masque
composed by Ben Jonson
, and performed to inaugurate the refurbished banqueting hall of Whitehall Palace on January 10, 1608
. It was a sequel to the preceding Masque of Blackness
, which had been performed three years earlier, on January 6, 1605
. In The Masque of Beauty, the "daughters of Niger" of the earlier piece were shown cleansed of the black pigment they had worn on the prior occasion.
and ladies of her court, and witnessed by King James
. The number of court ladies included was increased from the twelve in Blackness to sixteen. In addition to Queen Anne, the participants were the Countesses of Arundel
, Bedford, Derby, and Montgomery, and the Ladies Chichester, Walsingham, Windsor, Anne Clifford
, Elizabeth Girrard, Elizabeth Guilford, Elizabeth Hatton
, Mary Neville, Katherine Petre, Anne Winter, and Arbella Stuart
. Gossip held that the women chosen were largely Roman Catholic.
The masquers wore costumes of orange-tawny and silver or sea-green and silver; the torchbearers were dressed as Cupids; the presenters of the masque were styled as Januarius, Boreas, Vulturnus, and Thamesis, and the musicians as "echoes and shades of old poets." A black curtain representing Night was withdrawn to display the masquers, assembled on a "Throne of Beauty" borne upon a floating island. The sixteen masquers executed two dances, which the King liked enough to see repeated; then they danced with male courtiers, in "galliards and corantoes." The final dances returned them to the Throne of Beauty. The choreography was by Thomas Giles, who also played Thamesis.
A diplomatic controversy developed around the masque, as to which foreign ambassadors were or were not invited to attend the performance. The French Ambassador was notably irate at being omitted while the Spanish Ambassador was included. The Venetian
Ambassador, who was invited, was among the spectators who left descriptions of the "great golden masque" they'd seen, the jewels the ladies wore (estimated in one case at a value of £100,000 — and that for a single woman), and the marvels of the stage machinery employed.
on April 21, 1608, and published later that year by the bookseller Thomas Thorpe
, in the same volume as The Masque of Blackness. Both masques were repirnted in the first folio collection of Jonson's works in 1616
.
Masque
The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment which flourished in 16th and early 17th century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio...
composed by Ben Jonson
Ben Jonson
Benjamin Jonson was an English Renaissance dramatist, poet and actor. A contemporary of William Shakespeare, he is best known for his satirical plays, particularly Volpone, The Alchemist, and Bartholomew Fair, which are considered his best, and his lyric poems...
, and performed to inaugurate the refurbished banqueting hall of Whitehall Palace on January 10, 1608
1608 in literature
The year 1608 in literature involved some significant events.-Events:*January 10 - Ben Jonson's The Masque of Beauty is performed by Queen Anne and her retinue at the Banqueting House, Whitehall, a sequel to The Masque of Blackness....
. It was a sequel to the preceding Masque of Blackness
The Masque of Blackness
The Masque of Blackness was an early Jacobean era masque, first performed at the Stuart Court in the Banqueting Hall of Whitehall Palace on Twelfth Night, January 6, 1605. The masque was written by Ben Jonson at the request of Anne of Denmark, the queen consort of King James I, who wished the...
, which had been performed three years earlier, on January 6, 1605
1605 in literature
The year 1605 in literature involved some significant events.-Events:*January 1 - The Queen's Revels Children perform George Chapman's All Fools at Court....
. In The Masque of Beauty, the "daughters of Niger" of the earlier piece were shown cleansed of the black pigment they had worn on the prior occasion.
The show
Like its earlier companion piece, The Masque of Beauty was performed by Queen AnneAnne of Denmark
Anne of Denmark was queen consort of Scotland, England, and Ireland as the wife of King James VI and I.The second daughter of King Frederick II of Denmark, Anne married James in 1589 at the age of fourteen and bore him three children who survived infancy, including the future Charles I...
and ladies of her court, and witnessed by King James
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...
. The number of court ladies included was increased from the twelve in Blackness to sixteen. In addition to Queen Anne, the participants were the Countesses of Arundel
Alethea Howard, Countess of Arundel
Alethea Howard, 13th Baroness Furnivall, Countess of Arundel , née Lady Alethea Talbot, was the wife of Thomas Howard, 21st Earl of Arundel...
, Bedford, Derby, and Montgomery, and the Ladies Chichester, Walsingham, Windsor, Anne Clifford
Lady Anne Clifford
Lady Anne Clifford, 14th Baroness de Clifford was the only surviving child of George Clifford, 3rd Earl of Cumberland by his wife Lady Margaret Russell, daughter of Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford...
, Elizabeth Girrard, Elizabeth Guilford, Elizabeth Hatton
Elizabeth Hatton
Elizabeth Hatton was the second wife of Sir William Hatton, the nephew and heir of Sir Christopher Hatton ....
, Mary Neville, Katherine Petre, Anne Winter, and Arbella Stuart
Arbella Stuart
Lady Arbella Stuart was an English Renaissance noblewoman who was for some time considered a possible successor to Queen Elizabeth I on the English throne....
. Gossip held that the women chosen were largely Roman Catholic.
The masquers wore costumes of orange-tawny and silver or sea-green and silver; the torchbearers were dressed as Cupids; the presenters of the masque were styled as Januarius, Boreas, Vulturnus, and Thamesis, and the musicians as "echoes and shades of old poets." A black curtain representing Night was withdrawn to display the masquers, assembled on a "Throne of Beauty" borne upon a floating island. The sixteen masquers executed two dances, which the King liked enough to see repeated; then they danced with male courtiers, in "galliards and corantoes." The final dances returned them to the Throne of Beauty. The choreography was by Thomas Giles, who also played Thamesis.
A diplomatic controversy developed around the masque, as to which foreign ambassadors were or were not invited to attend the performance. The French Ambassador was notably irate at being omitted while the Spanish Ambassador was included. The Venetian
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
Ambassador, who was invited, was among the spectators who left descriptions of the "great golden masque" they'd seen, the jewels the ladies wore (estimated in one case at a value of £100,000 — and that for a single woman), and the marvels of the stage machinery employed.
Costs
The total cost of producing the masque was £4000. The House of Stuart was running an annual budget deficit of £140,000 in this era; the cost of the masque represented about 3% of the annual deficit, an enormous sum to spend on a single event.Publication
The Masque of Beauty was entered into the Stationers' RegisterStationers' Register
The Stationers' Register was a record book maintained by the Stationers' Company of London. The company is a trade guild given a royal charter in 1557 to regulate the various professions associated with the publishing industry, including printers, bookbinders, booksellers, and publishers in England...
on April 21, 1608, and published later that year by the bookseller Thomas Thorpe
Thomas Thorpe
Thomas Thorpe was an English publisher, most famous for publishing Shakespeare's sonnets and several works by Christopher Marlowe and Ben Jonson. His publication of the sonnets has long been controversial...
, in the same volume as The Masque of Blackness. Both masques were repirnted in the first folio collection of Jonson's works in 1616
1616 in literature
The year 1616 in literature involved some significant events.-Events:*Nicolaus Copernicus' De revolutionibus is placed on the Index of Forbidden Books by the Roman Catholic Church....
.