Aaron Hill (writer)
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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 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'', 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'', which led to a controversy between the two writers. Afterwards a reconciliation took place. He was a friend and correspondent of Samuel Richardson, 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'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'' (1710) play *'' The Walking Statue; Or, the Devil in the Wine Cellar'' (1710) a farce * ''Squire Brainless'' (1710) Farce * '' The Fatal Vision'' (1716) play * '' Fatal Extravagance'' (1721) play *''King Henry the Fifth: Or, the Conquest of France, By the English. A Tragedy.'' (1723) *'' Athelwold'' (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'' (produced 1736) after
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 ...
*''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