Portraying Madness: Anne Bracegirdle’s Journey in Restoration Theatre
Anne Bracegirdle (c. 1671-1748) was a renowned actress of the late 17th and early 18th centuries, celebrated for her portrayal of virginal characters on stage. This was particularly striking given that her offstage life was tinged with scandal and violence. The fascinating contrast between her public persona and private reality captivated audiences and fueled her immense popularity, especially in her performances of ⏵︎ Mad songs.
Admired for her beauty, Bracegirdle became the subject of numerous poems and songs. Known for her “passionate postures,” stunning entrances, and dramatic exits, Bracegirdle earned titles such as “the darling of the stage” and “the celebrated Virgin,” revered for her purity. She was tutored by the prominent actor Thomas Betterton and his wife, actress Mistress Saunderson, who acted as father figures in her development. Betterton imparted invaluable knowledge of stagecraft, including voice production, posture, gesture, and singing. Her performances revolutionized expressive representation, captivating audiences with her ability to convey a wide range of emotions while seamlessly transitioning between stillness and action in both body and voice.
Anthony Rooley highlights that Bracegirdle's songs were at the forefront of music-theatre innovation, encompassing mad songs, seduction songs, and deceptively simple pieces like Eccles' ⏵︎ Still I’m grieving. This particular song hinges on the word "still" and its multiple meanings, exploring each one as the word recurs 22 times throughout the piece.
'An Indian Queen' (possibly Anne Bracegirdle) published by Bernard Lens (II) mezzotint, late 17th or early 18th century © National Portrait Gallery, London
In her early career, she frequently portrayed helpless heroines subjected to the brutality and violence of others, but her performances infused them with a subtle strength, contributing to her widespread acclaim. This blend of innocence and resilience also characterized her public image, where she cultivated a persona of “unmarked” virginity, despite rumors of a romantic relationship with fellow actor William Mountfort.
William Congreve's poem ⏵︎ Pious Celinda goes to pray'rs became a well-known song set by Henry Purcell, appearing in two contemporary collections, Thesaurus Musicus and Deliciae Musicae, volume 1. “Pious Celinda” was in fact Mrs. Anne Bracegirdle, the “Darling of the Stage,” who was rumored to be the lover of Congreve.
In the first volume of Delicae Musicae, three of the eleven songs are addressed to Anne Bracegirdle, and the title page includes what appears to be her portrait. It depicts a woman with a feathered headdress and a beauty spot singing, with a man (perhaps her music master John Eccles) playing the lute, alongside an oboe and music on a table between them.
From Deliciae Musicae, London: J. Heptinstall for Henry Playford, 1695-96
On March 26, 1701, Congreve wrote an excited letter to his friend Joseph Keally about the performance of Eccles' setting of The Judgement of Paris:
“Our friend Venus [Anne Bracegirdle] performed to a miracle; so did Mrs. Hodgson as Juno. Mrs. Bowman was not quite so well approved in Pallas.”
It is highly likely that Congreve envisioned Anne Bracegirdle as Venus when crafting his libretto. She had played a leading role in all of his plays, and both she and her mother were his neighbors and friends.
Her stage persona was eagerly exploited by theatre hacks and gossips. Tom Brown reveled in it:
“He (Congreve) dines with her almost every day, yet she's a maid; he rides out with her and visits her almost every day, yet she's a maid; if I had not a particular respect for her, I should go near to say he lies with her, yet she's a maid.”
Bracegirdle's stage image often blurred with her personal life, most notably during the obsessive pursuit of her admirer, Captain Richard Hill, who attempted to kidnap her in 1692. The resulting scandal, which led to Hill's trial following the murder of Mountfort, heightened her status as both a victim and an object of public fascination. This incident reinforced her reputation as a symbol of both purity and scandal.
The scandalous novel The Player's Tragedy or, Fatal Love (1693), based on actor William Mountfort’s death, accuses Bracegirdle (referred to as Bracilla) of secretly loving him, suggesting her virtue was a façade, depicting her as someone who merely performs acts of morality, both in her public and private life, without true substance.
Bracegirdle was particularly known for her performances of mad songs, which were immensely popular during the period and often served as centerpieces of plays. She was so in demand that playwrights and composers frequently created these songs specifically for her talents. For instance, her rendition of ⏵︎ I burn, I burn in Don Quixote became a significant success. Mad songs played a vital role in Restoration theater, providing actresses like Bracegirdle the opportunity to explore turbulent emotional states of female characters. These pieces often depicted women driven to madness by love, loss, or betrayal, offering a rich platform for actresses to showcase their vocal and emotional range. The song became an overnight success, setting a new standard for dramatic song and solidifying Bracegirdle's status as one of the foremost performers of mad songs.
Thomas D'Urfey composed a laudatory poem celebrating actress Bracegirdle's performance in his play. This poem was later set to music by two composers, Gottfried Finger and Henry Purcell. Finger’s setting of ⏵︎ While I with wounding grief did look was published in the fourth volume of Thesaurus Musicus (1695). These songs by Finger and Purcell offer a glimpse into how male audiences responded to the portrayal of female madness on stage.
The composer John Eccles (c. 1668-1735) composed numerous songs specifically for Bracegirdle throughout her career. This collaboration proved mutually beneficial: Eccles, a savvy figure in the theater, composed accessible music that pleased audiences, particularly when delivered by the talented actress-singer; in return, Bracegirdle enjoyed heightened success due to the songs tailored to her vocal and dramatic abilities.
In The Mad Lover, Bracegirdle played Acis. The song ⏵︎ Must then a faithful lover go, sung by Acis in response to Galatea's perceived betrayal, forms the emotional heart of the masque. Much like in ⏵︎ I burn, I burn, Eccles opens with a brief declamatory phrase, followed by straightforward scalar runs, especially on the word “rave.” This piece exemplifies Eccles' lighter style, featuring four time changes, with the final shift into a lively tarantella-like 6/4, reflecting Acis's growing frenzy.
Another of Bracegirdle's solos, ⏵︎ Cease of Cupid to complain, begins in the manner of a chaconne, though the ground bass breaks its pattern after the second repetition. The song revolves around the theme of love, with Cupid making an appearance.
Banks's Cyrus the Great; or, The Tragedy of Love, featured a standout mad song by Eccles for Bracegirdle as Lausaria, ⏵︎ Oh! take him gently from the pile. The song gained popularity quickly, being printed in Deliciae Musicae (1696) and engraved by Thomas Cross as a standalone songsheet.
"Oh! take him gently from the pile" from Deliciae Musicae, 1696
In Act 4, Lausaria, daughter of the King of Lydia, becomes madly infatuated with Cyrus the Great—a role perfectly suited to Bracegirdle’s talents. Her earlier performance of Eccles' ⏵︎ I burn, I burn in Don Quixote had already popularized the mad song genre, and Lausaria’s song follows in this tradition. The piece is divided into two parts, with dialogue interspersed between them.
The first part of the song opens with expressive descending “Oh”s, full of aspiration, accompanied by delicate dissonant harmonies on the line “take him gently.” As the song progresses, the intensity builds, incorporating words often linked with Bracegirdle’s previous roles—“scorch,” “burn,” and “fire.”
Another of Bracegirdle’s mad songs, ⏵︎ Haste, give me wings, became highly popular, as evidenced by its numerous reprints. The text, by an anonymous playwright, presents a fresh take on the mad song genre, steering clear of its typical misogynistic overtones. Unlike male mad songs that often degrade women with derogatory language, this one combines overt longing with restraint. Musically, the song is dynamic and unpredictable, moving through a range of emotions and irrational ideas with shifting meters and motives. Eccles masterfully conveys the urgency of the song through a sequence of breathless, rapid passages.
Anne Bracegirdle after William Vincent mezzotint, early 18th century © National Portrait Gallery, London
Bracegirdle's mad song performances subverted the expectations of her established stage persona. Audiences accustomed to seeing her as an innocent victim were confronted with characters who were angry, expressive, and even dangerous.
Bracegirdle not only entertained but also challenged societal norms surrounding female representation and emotional expression, paving the way for future generations of actresses to explore their craft.
She retired from the stage in 1706, after a competition with the young Anne Oldfield, and may have had reservations about playing younger roles as she aged.
References:
Concepts of Creativity in Seventeenth-century England. (2013). United Kingdom: Boydell Press.
Keating, E. M. (2013). Envious Productions: Actresses, Audiences, and Affect in the Restoration Playhouse. Restoration: Studies in English Literary Culture, 1660-1700, 37(2), 37–53. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43293897
Rooley, A. (2021). Aspects of English Song: Essays. Switzerland: Schola Cantorum Basiliensis.
Rosenthal, L. J. (1993). “Counterfeit Scrubbado”: Women Actors in the Restoration. The Eighteenth Century, 34(1), 3–22. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41467546
Solomon, D. (2011). From Infamy to Intimacy: Anne Bracegirdle’s Mad Songs. Restoration: Studies in English Literary Culture, 1660-1700, 35(1), 1–20. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43293866
The Lively Arts of the London Stage, 1675–1725. (2016). United Kingdom: Taylor & Francis.
Youell, A. (2009). Anne Bracegirdle On Fire: Historical and Contemporary Performance of a Seventeenth-Century Mad-Song. Early Modern Women, 4, 101–133. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23541573
