''The Poor Soldier'' is a 1783 British

pasticcio In music, a ''pasticcio'' or ''pastiche'' is an opera or other musical work composed of works by different composers who may or may not have been working together, or an adaptation or localization of an existing work that is loose, unauthorized, ...

opera with music by

William Shield William Shield (5 March 1748 – 25 January 1829) was an English composer, violinist and violist. His music earned the respect of Haydn and Beethoven. Life and musical career Shield was born in Swalwell near Gateshead, County Durham, the son ...

and a text by John O'Keeffe. It was a comedy set around Irish soldiers returning home after fighting in the British army in the

American War of Independence The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, which formally ended that year with the Peace of Paris. One of the redcoats must fight for the love of Norah with the urbane Captain Fitzroy. The events are set entirely in a small Irish village called Carton, a few miles from

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, although several versions refer to it only as "a country village". ''The Poor Soldier'' was an altered version, as an afterpiece, of the earlier '' The Shamrock, or The Anniversary of St Patrick'', first performed as a comic opera on 16 April 1777 at

Crow Street Theatre Crow Street Theatre was a theatre in Dublin, Ireland, originally opened in 1758 by the actor Spranger Barry. From 1788 until 1818 it was a patent theatre. History Spranger Barry and Henry Woodward The actor Spranger Barry (1719–1777), born ...

, Dublin, followed by a London performance on 7 April 1783 at

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist sit ...

. The first performance of ''The Poor Soldier'' took place on 4 November 1783 at Covent Garden. The work enjoyed widespread popularity in the newly independent

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, and was a favourite of

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

. The music by

Shield A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged weaponry like spears or long ranged projectiles suc ...

was mostly based on Irish traditional tunes, which had been sung to Shield by the Irishman O'Keeffe, as in many other examples of the collaboration between Shield and O'Keeffe. One exception was the Scottish tune "

Oh, whistle and I'll come to you, my lad "Oh, whistle and I'll come to you, my lad" is the title and refrain of a poem and song by Robert Burns, first written in 1787, and then expanded in 1793. Development The air called "Oh, whistle and I'll come to you, my lad" was composed around ...

", used for the song "Since love is the plan, I'll love if I can". The song "How Happy the Soldier" also featured in the opera. In 1786, O'Keeffe wrote a sequel ''

Love in a Camp ''Patrick in Prussia, or Love in a Camp'' is a 1786 comic opera with music by William Shield and a libretto by John O'Keeffe. An afterpiece, it was a sequel to the 1783 hit '' The Poor Soldier'' with the characters now serving in the Prussian ...

'', when the characters have joined the Prussian army.

References

Bibliography

* Brasmer, William & Osborne, William (eds.): ''The Poor Soldier (1783)'' (Madison, Wisconsin: A-R Editions, 1978) * Hager, Alan: ''Encyclopedia of British Writers: 16th, 17th & 18th Centuries'' (New York: Book Builders, 2005) * McLucas, Anne Dhu: ''The Musical Ear: Oral Traditions in the USA'' (Farnham, Surrey: Ashgate, 2010) * Richards, Jeffrey H.: ''Drama, Theatre and Identity in the American New Republic'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005) * Shaffer, Jason: ''Performing Patriotism: National Identity in the Colonial and Revolutionary American Theater'' (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2007)

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Poor Soldier 1783 operas English comic operas Operas set in the British Isles Plays by John O'Keeffe