Aaron Hill (10 February 1685 – 8 February 1750) was an English

dramatist A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between characters and is intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. Ben Jonson coined the term "playwri ...

and

miscellany A miscellany (, ) is a collection of various pieces of writing by different authors. Meaning a mixture, medley, or assortment, a miscellany can include pieces on many subjects and in a variety of different forms. In contrast to anthologies, w ...

writer.

Biography

The son of a country gentleman of

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

, Hill was educated at

Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...

, and afterwards travelled in the East. He was the author of 17 plays, some of them, such as his versions of

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778), known by his ''Pen name, nom de plume'' Voltaire (, ; ), was a French Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment writer, philosopher (''philosophe''), satirist, and historian. Famous for his wit ...

's ''

Zaire Zaire, officially the Republic of Zaire, was the name of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1971 to 18 May 1997. Located in Central Africa, it was, by area, the third-largest country in Africa after Sudan and Algeria, and the 11th-la ...

'' and ''

Mérope ''Mérope'' (original French title: ''La Mérope Française'') is a tragedy in five acts by Voltaire. The text is a reworking by Voltaire of the Italian tragedy ''Merope'' (1713) by Scipione Maffei, dating from 1736/1737. The play premiered in ...

'', being adaptations. He also wrote poetry, which is of variable quality. Having written some satiric lines on

Alexander Pope Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early ...

, he received in return a mention in ''

The Dunciad ''The Dunciad'' () is a landmark, mock-heroic, narrative poem by Alexander Pope published in three different versions at different times from 1728 to 1743. The poem celebrates a goddess, Dulness, and the progress of her chosen agents as they ...

'', which led to a controversy between the two writers. Afterwards a reconciliation took place. He was a friend and correspondent of

Samuel Richardson Samuel Richardson (baptised 19 August 1689 – 4 July 1761) was an English writer and printer known for three epistolary novels: '' Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded'' (1740), '' Clarissa: Or the History of a Young Lady'' (1748) and '' The Histo ...

, whose '' Pamela'' he highly praised. In addition to his literary pursuits Hill was involved in many commercial schemes, usually unsuccessful. Hill was the manager of the

Theatre Royal, Drury Lane The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and listed building, Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) an ...

when he was 24 years old, and before being summarily fired for reasons unknown, he staged the premier of

George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti. Born in Halle, Germany, H ...

's '' Rinaldo,'' the first

Italian opera Italian opera is both the art of opera in Italy and opera in the Italian language. Opera was in Italy around the year 1600 and Italian opera has continued to play a dominant role in the history of the form until the present day. Many famous ope ...

designed for a London audience. The composer was very involved in the production, and Hill collaborated on the

libretto A libretto (From the Italian word , ) is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to th ...

, although it is disputed what his actual contributions were.Robert D. Hume. "Aaron Hill", ''

Grove Music Online ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language '' Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and t ...

'', ed. L. Macy (accessed 20 May 2006)
grovemusic.com
(subscription access). In 1724 he founded the bi-weekly periodical ''

The Plain Dealer ''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio; it is a major national newspaper. In the fall of 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily an ...

''. A posthumous collection of Hill's essays, letters and poems was published in 1753. His ''Dramatic Works'' were published in 1760. His biography was recorded in ''Lives of the Poets of Great Britain and Ireland, to the Time of Dean Swift'', volume 5 (ostensibly by

Theophilus Cibber Theophilus Cibber (25 or 26 November 1703 – October 1758) was an English actor, playwright, author, and son of the actor-manager Colley Cibber. He began acting at an early age, and followed his father into theatrical management. In 1727, Alex ...

but generally accepted to be of anonymous authorship).

Selected works

*''A Full and Just Account of the Present State of the Ottoman Empire'' (1709) *''

Elfrid ''Elfrid: or The Fair Inconstant'', generally shortened to ''Elfrid'', is a 1710 tragedy by the British writer Aaron Hill. Hill wrote the work in less than a fortnight. Set in Saxon England it featured Barton Booth as Athelwold, Charles Powell ...

'' (1710) play *'' The Walking Statue; Or, the Devil in the Wine Cellar'' (1710) a farce * ''Squire Brainless'' (1710) Farce * ''

The Fatal Vision ''The Fatal Vision'' is a 1716 tragedy by the British writer Aaron Hill. It is also known as ''The Fatal Vision: Or, the Fall of Siam''. It is set at the Chinese imperial court in an unspecified time, and features the Chinese Emperor, his wife ...

'' (1716) play * ''

Fatal Extravagance ''Fatal Extravagance'' is a 1721 tragedy by the British writer Aaron Hill. It was presented by another writer Joseph Mitchell, a friend of Hill, at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre in London. The original cast included James Quin as Bellmour, An ...

'' (1721) play *''King Henry the Fifth: Or, the Conquest of France, By the English. A Tragedy.'' (1723) *''

Athelwold ''Elfrid: or The Fair Inconstant'', generally shortened to ''Elfrid'', is a 1710 tragedy by the British writer Aaron Hill. Hill wrote the work in less than a fortnight. Set in Saxon England it featured Barton Booth as Athelwold, Charles Powell ...

'' (1731) a revision of ''Elfrid'' *''The Plain Dealer'' (1724) essays with William Bond *''The Progress of Wit, being a caveat for the use of an Eminent Writer'' (1730) *''The Prompter'' (1735) essays *''

Zara Zara may refer to: Businesses * Zara (retailer), a fashion retail company based in Spain * Zara Investment Holding, a Jordanian holding company * Continental Hotel Zara, Budapest, Hungary People and fictional characters * Zara (name), primari ...

'' (produced 1736) after

*''Mérope'' (1749), after Voltaire *''The Roman Revenge'' (1754), after Voltaire *''The Insolvent, or Filial Piety'' (1758) *''Daraxes'' (published 1760) a pastoral opera *''Merlin in Love'' (published 1760) a pantomime opera *''The Muses in Mourning'' (published 1760) an opera *''Saul'' (published 1760) a tragedy *''A Snake in the Grass'' (published 1760) a burlesque

References

* *Aaron Hill, ''The Art of Acting: An Essay'', 1753 *Brestoff, Richard, ''The Great Acting Teachers and their Methods'', A Smith and Kraus Book, Lyme, NH, 1995

Notes

External links

Aaron Hill
at th
Eighteenth-Century Poetry Archive (ECPA)
* *
''The Works of the Late Aaron Hill'', 4 vols (1753)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Aaron English dramatists and playwrights English essayists 1685 births 1750 deaths Writers from Wiltshire People educated at Westminster School, London British male essayists English male dramatists and playwrights English male poets English male non-fiction writers