| The Indian Queen | |
|---|---|
| Semi-opera by Henry Purcell | |
&sq=Facebook&lang=en&file=File:Henry_Purcell_by_John_Closterman.jpg) The composer, portrait by John Closterman, c. 1695 | |
| Based on | The Indian Queen (play) by Sir Robert Howard |
| Premiere | 1695 Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London |
The Indian Queen (Z. 630) is a largely unfinished semi-opera with music by Henry Purcell, first performed at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London, in 1695. The exact date is unknown, but Peter Holman surmises it may have been in June.[1]
It was created as a revised version of the 1664 play The Indian Queen, in a prologue and five acts, by John Dryden and his brother-in-law Sir Robert Howard. More specifically, in 1694, Thomas Betterton was given £50 to transform the play into an opera, and he commissioned Purcell to compose the music.[2][3] Purcell, who died in November 1695, left music only for the Prologue and Acts II and III. His brother Daniel completed a masque for Act V.[4]
The Indian Queen is one of Purcell's less often performed stage works. This is probably more a reflection of the incomplete state of the score than of its quality.
- ^ Peter Holman Henry Purcell (Oxford University Press, 1994) p.219
- ^ King, Robert (1994), Henry Purcell, London: Thames and Hudson Ltd, p. 219, ISBN 9780500016251
- ^ C.A. Price. Henry Purcell and the London Stage
- ^ Peter Holman Henry Purcell (Oxford University Press, 1994) p.219