This fantastic collection of theatrical figures dating from the 1880s are precisely drawn in ink and vividly coloured in watercolour and gouache. The paintings are initialled by various artists, GHB, FAB, VB, who were possibly siblings. Subjects include the costumes a host of popular characters from productions such as Gilbert & Sullivan, as well as elaborate imaginative dresses on decorative themes, such as Belle of the Racecourse, Union Jack and Backgammon. They are a vibrant record of the mass popularity of Victorian theatre—at a time when the improving quality of stage production, sets, costumes and stage management, were bringing new levels of professionalism to the theatre and its design.
These paintings evidence the popularity of individual stars of the stage in the late 19th century, such as Connie Gilchrist (1865–1946) and Ethel Maude Millett (1867–1920). Their subjects also show the increasing sophistication of audiences by the 1880s, who enjoyed parodies of Shakespeare and Greek mythology, and appreciated the wit and cultured allusions in Gilbert & Sullivan’s comic operas. Focusing on female figures in a wide variety of characters, they celebrate the importance of strong female roles in the theatre and—by extension—the unusual degree of financial and expressive independence that women actresses had in the late Victorian period.
