Mistress PEACHUM'S PLEASURE - The Life of Lavinia,Duchess of Bolton.
LONDON.WEIDENFELD & NICOLSON,2005.. UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.. Hardback.. FINE./NFINE.. 8vo. 0297847686. UK, 8vo HB+dw/dj, 1st edn.FINE/NFINE.No owner inscrptn, no price-clip to dw/dj.Bright, clean, colour pictorial illustrated wrap-around artwork [The Beggar's Opera - Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery/Bridgeman Art Library] with negligible shelf-wear and minimal creasing to head of spine/ backstrip and top edges and corners - no major nicks or tears present.Top+fore-edges bright and clean, contents bright, tight and near pristine - no dog-ear creases to any pages' corners.Bright, clean, publisher's original brown cloth bds with bright, stamped gilt letters to spine/backstrip and immaculate, plain off-white eps.8vo, ix-xix+1-204pp [paginated] includes illustrations list, acknowledgements, prologue, 15 chapters, an epilogue, 16pp glossy, colour+b/w contemporary illustrations/artwork, biblio, notes and an index plus [unpaginated] half-title+title pages, dedication and contents list/table. Mistress Peachum was Lavinia Fenton, an 18thC actress who was the original Polly Peachum in John Gay's smash-hit play 'The Beggar's Opera' and became the Duchess of Bolton. Raised in a Charing Cross coffee house, Lavinia nearly fell victim to the ambitions of her mother, who plotted the sale of her virginity to an elderly gentleman for two hundred pounds, but Lavinia was determined to live her life on her own terms.She became an actress, and though she was a newcomer to the stage when she was chosen to star as Polly, her combination of a sweet voice, a pretty face and a knowledge of the seamier side of London life made the role her own. Both Lavinia and the play were overnight sensations, but she enjoyed only a few months of fame before she caught the eye of the Duke of Bolton, a married, indolent and childless aristocrat.The Duke was determined to make her his mistress, and she agreed to elope with him, exchanging the rackety glamour of life as London's most celebrated actress for twenty years of retirement.Lavinia gave the Duke three sons, but when she was left a widow she chose her own way once more, and scandalously threw away their fortunes on her younger lover. Lisa Hilton's ebullient portrait of Lavinia Fenton's inspirational life is also a scintillating depiction of the age.With a cast of politicians and pickpockets, highwaymen and whores, it illuminates the relationship between the theatre and the social and political climate of eighteenth-century London.It also confirms Hilton to be one of our finest writers of narrative history. (Book ref. rja34779) £15.00
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MY LIFE WITH GROUCHO - A SON'S EYE VIEW.
LONDON.ROBSON BOOKS,1988.. UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.. Hardback.. NFINE./FINE.. 8vo. 0860514943. UK, 8vo HB+dw/dj, 1st edn.NFINE/FINE.No owner inscrptn dw/dj clipped - but price unaffected - still present! Crisp, clean, glossy laminated Groucho portrait illustrated upper wrap with white+yellow letters, son+father b/w photograph to rear wrap; with negligible shelf-wear and minimal creasing to edges or corners - no nicks or tears present.Top edge lightly aged+dust-soiled; fore-edge clean, contents bright, tight and clean also.Bright, clean, red cloth bds with bright, stamped gilt letters to spine/backstrip and plain white eps, ffe minimally thumb-marked to edge.8vo, 5-287pp [paginated] includes half-title+title pages, author preface, Pts I+II comprising 42 chapters, 12pp b/w contemporary photographs in 3 blocks of 4pp, between pp96/7, pp168/69 and pp240/41 respectively. Groucho Marx, the fast-talking, wise-cracking, cigar-weilding third of the Marx Brothers - he of the suggestive eyebrows, rimless spectacles and heavy black moustache - is well known to us through films that have become classics of comedy and a cult to generations unborn when they were made: Animal Crackers, Monkey Business, Horsefeathers, Duck Soup, A Night at the Opera, A Day at the Races. However, there was another Groucho behind the public image, and here his son Arthur shows us the warm and loving family man, the loyal friend, the extravagant spender and the prudent spendthrift, the unpredictable, inconsistent non-conformist who never lost his eye for a pretty girl. My Life with Groucho charts the long career of a man who, born into an impoverished immigrant family, became one of the world's best-loved comedians.With his brothers Chico and Harpo, Groucho progressed from vaudeville tours to Broadway shows to Hollywood films; and when the Marx Brothers finally disbanded, he made a whole new, highly successful career for himself on radio and television. Master of the ad lib, his wit was legendary. Sadly, far from bringing the serene and contented retirement he had always hoped for, Groucho's last years were clouded by estrangement (albeit temporary) from his three children, stress and domestic turmoil when he fell under the influence of a young woman determined to dominate his personal and professional life.Arthur Marx tells the whole story here for the first time. (Book ref. rja24427) £22.00
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KIRI - A Biography of Kiri Te Kanawa.[Author+subject SIGNED copy.]**
LONDON.COLLINS,1982.. UK,8vo HB+dw/dj,SIGNED,1st edn.. Hardback.. NFINE./NFINE.. 8vo. 0002163659. Artist+Author SIGNED copy. UK, 8vo HB+dw/dj, subject+author SIGNED, 1st edn.NFINE/NFINE.No owner inscrptn, but price- clipped dw/dj.Signed+dedicated by Kiri, in gold ink, to half-title page: "To Will (?) from Kiri" and also signed+dedicated by author to title-page: "Best wishes D Fingleton".SIGNED by both the author + subject.Bright, glossy laminated, subject colour photographic portrait upper wrap, with b/w subject photographic rear wrap.Negligible shelf-wear and minimal creasing to edges - no major nicks or tears present.Top edge lightly dust-soiled/spotted;fore-edge less and therefore cleaner, contents bright, tight and clean also.Clean, apart from one small grease spot/stain to rear bds bottom edge, brown paper-covered bds with bright, stamped gilt letters to spine/backstrip and immaculate, plain white eps. 8vo, 11-192pp (paginated), includes artist/subject SIGNED half-title page, author SIGNED title-page, contents+illus lists, foreword by Colin Davis, preface, 12 chapters, 32pp b/w contemporary photographs,16pp apiece, between pp64/5 and pp128/29 respectively, acknowledgements and an index. The story of Kiri Te Kanawa's rise to fame from a Maori background in New Zealand to the world of international opera - now acclaimed as one of the great operatic stars, she is also known to millions for her singing at the royal wedding in 1981.Kiri Te Kanawa is the great operatic discovery of our time.In 1971 when, as an unknown singer from New Zealand, she sang the role of the Countess in The Marriage of Figaro at Covent Garden, it was clear that a star of immense talent had been revealed. This biography traces her life from early days as a Maori girl from New Zealand's North Island, the struggles and difficulties of her operatic training when she came to Britain having abandoned a flourishing Antipodean career as a popular singer and recording artist.Then came her eventual overnight success, first at Covent Garden, then at New York's Metropolitan Opera in Othello, and her subsequent successes in the world's great opera houses.It also looks at her widely admired performance in Joseph Losey's controversial film of Mozart's Don Giovanni.The people who were instrumental in helping her are well known names - Joan Sutherland, Richard Boynge, George Solti, Peter Hall, John Tooley.The honour paid to her in being invited to sing at the marriage of Prince Charles and the Lady Diana Spencer in St Paul's Cathedral brought her to the notice and admiration of countless television viewers throughout the world. Kiri Te Kanawa is not only beautiful in voice and appearance; she has an irresistable vivacity and sense of humour offstage.She is married, the devoted mother of two young children and is a keen enthusiast on the golf course.This book follows the musical development of her voice but also tells the human story behind the career of an exceptional singer who has won the hearts of millions.In the Queen's Birthday Honours List in 1982, Kiri Te Kanawa was created a Dame of the British Empire. Please contact rpaxtonden@blueyonder.co.uk, because of the value of this item, for correct, insured shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas buyers - BEFORE ordering through the order page! (Book ref. rja22516) £55.00
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THE THIEVES' OPERA.
London. Penguin. 1998. Paperback. 304 pages. B.w. illustrations. Fine in a fine papercover. Ex shop stock. Unread book. ISBN: 0140261648. (Book ref. 8353) £7.99
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The Days Grow Short: The Life And Times Of Kurt Weill.
London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1980. 0297777831. First edition hardback with dust wrapper, the book measures 9½" x 6¼", it has viii +469 pages and is illustrated with b/w photographs. The wrapper has 2 neatly closed tears + 3 minor scuffs, the foredge has a 1 cm blemish, the binding is tight and sound and contents are in very good condition. VG/G. (Book ref. 15907) £8.50
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John Christie of Glyndebourne, a biography.
London, Geoffrey Bles, 1968. 8vo, cloth, original coloured illustrated dustwrapper, with a double-page family tree and 16 illustrations, signature on fly-leaf, a very good copy. (Book ref. 33024) £4.50
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WOMEN AND SOAP OPERA A Study of Prime-Time Soaps
Polity Press, 1990. 8vo. Original pictorial card covers (softback) (near Fine). Pp. 211 (no inscriptions). (Book ref. 56524) £4.00
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SANCTI BERNARDI, ABBATIS CLARAE-VALLENSIS, OPERA OMNIA. Post horstium denuo recognita, repurgata, et in meliorem digesta ordinem, necnon novis praefationibus, admonitionibus, notis et observationibus, indicibusque copiosissimis locupletata et illustrata.
Gaume Fratres, Bibliopolas 1839. Complete in 4 vols. Latin text. Lightly browned, occasional light thumbing, bound in full vellum, gilt to sl. worn leather title label to spine, sl. soiled. US$199 (Book ref. 155353) £125.00
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NOUUM TESAMENTUM IESV CHRISTI Ex D. Erasmi Roterodami Translatione Latina: Cvie’ Regione Apposita est Germanica Translatio D. Mart. Lutheri, Propter Stvdiosos. et Exterarum Nationum homines, qui per hancvtriusq; linguæ collationem simul Christianæ nostræ Religionis fundamenta discere, & vulgarem nostram linguam assequi poterunt: ex eadem Opera duplicem fructum reportantes: Adiectis Argumentis, cum concordantijs in margine necessarijs, nunc denuò magna diigentia tali typo quali antè non, expressum.
Ioannes V. Scrutamini ... Franckfurt am, Mayn ... Peter Schmid im Jar 1570. Sm. 4to. Parallel texts in Latin/German. ([*]-[*4]) + (A-[tt4]). Rubricated t.p., intricate dec. initial letters throughout. Faint ink stamp to t.p., some browning, sm. bookplate, front f.e.ps. partially detached, intricate blind tooled figurative vellum depicting heads, figures, ‘Fides’ [Faith] Armorial shields in borders, remains of clasps, some soiling and wear with loss to corners, some minor cracking to spine with a later? gilt lettered title label, superb example of C16th workmanship in very good order. US$2385 (Book ref. 211109) £1500.00
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MEMORIE E LETTERE INEDITE FINORA O DISPERSE DI GALILEO GALILEI Ordinate ed Illustrate con Annotazioni ... Opera destinata per servire di supplemento alle principali Collezioni sin qui stampate degli scritti di quell’ insigne Fiolosofo.
Modena Per G. Vincenzi e Comp. 1818. 2 vols. in 1. Sm. 4to. 280pp. + [iv]. + 367pp. + [iii]. Port. frontiss., 8 folding plates, 4 un-numbered plates. Some mainly marginal staining, some browning, rebound in modern half calf with marbled boards, gilt rule edged raised bands with gilt lettering to spine. US$763 (Book ref. 193332) £480.00
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EURIPIDOU TRAGODIAE Teleiai dpiii apospasmatia, kai epistolai, cioe?, Tragedie di Euripide intere XIX. frammenti, ed epistole : Greco-Italiane in versi, illustrate dei annotazionei ... con la vita di Euripide : con un trattato sopra la utilita?, ed il pregio delle tragedie del medisino : e con la storica narrazione di ciascuna tragedia / opera del ...
Padova Nella stamperia del Seminario, appresso G. Manfre 1743-54. 20 parts in 7 vols. T.p. devices, dec. initial letters. Each tragedy has special t.p. (except Ecuba). Some very light browning, full mottled calf with dec gilt fillet to edges, intricate gilt scalloped compartments with gilt lettered title labels to spines, minor signs of wear, a handsome set. Michelangelo Carmeli (1706-1766).Ecuba, Oreste, Le Fenisse, Medea, Ippolito Coronato, Alceste, Andromaca, Le Supplici, Ifigenia in Aulide, Ifigenia in Tauri, Reso, Pro Euripide et novo ejus italico interprete dissertatio P. Carmeli, Le Trojane, Le Baccaniti, Il Ciclope, Gli Eraclidi, Elena, Gione, Ercole Furioso, Carmeli, Elettra, Frammenti, ed Epistole. US$636 (Book ref. 211218) £400.00
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BELL’S BRITISH THEATRE, Consisting of the most esteemed English Plays. Volume the Ninth. Containing The Beggar’s Opera by Mr Gay, Achilles by Mr Gay, Polly by Mr Gay, The Gentle Shepherd by Allan Ramsay, Comus by John Milton.
John Bell 1780. 1st Ed. Sm. 8vo. 5 copper plates [without additional t.p.] Some light browning, marbled e.ps., contemporary tree calf edged with gilt fillet, dec. gilt compartments with gilt lettered title labels to spine, rubbed, joints cracked, spine chipped with loss, vertical crack through spine thus in two portions. US$48 (Book ref. 214897) £30.00
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L’OPERA DEI PUPI Prefazione di Antonino Buttitta.
Sellerio editore Palermo 1977. 4to. 237pp. + [i]. 90 cold. plates, over 140 b/w. ills. including many from photos. Good in sl. rubbed and chipped d/w. with sl. loss along lower edge. Puppet theatre. US$239 (Book ref. 212210) £150.00
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GUARDI L’opera completa: I dipinti; I disegni.
Alfieri Gruppo Editoriale Electa, Milano 1984. 2 works in 3 vols. 4to. 78 cold. plates, 1616 b/w. ills., several figures. Italian text. Very good in d/ws. sl. rubbed to corners and spines with sm. closed tear repaired to spine of vol. 2, together in cold. pictorial slipcase sl. splitting along lower edges. US$477 (Book ref. 212274) £300.00
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GASPARE DIZIANI. Tutta l’opera.
Alfieri, Venezia 1971. 4to. 363pp. 16 tipped in cold. plates, 371 b/w. ills., 13 figures. Italian text. Good in sl. chipped d/w. lightly faded to spine. US$795 (Book ref. 211938) £500.00
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After The Tempest.: The Tempest, or The Enchanted Island (1670); The Tempest, or The Enchanted Island (1674); The Mock-Tempest: The Enchanted Castle (1675): The Tempest. An Opera (1756). Introduction by George Robert Guffey. NEAR FINE COPY
William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, University of California, Los Angeles CA, 1969 8vo., First Edition thus; original buff wrappers printed in black, a near fine copy. Issued as a Special Publication of the Augustan Reprint Society. This facsimile is a high-quality photographic reprint of copies in the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library. Scarce. (Book ref. 19380) £30.00
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Cosima Wagner's Diaries An Abridgement.
London: Pimlico, 1994. 0712659528. Large format paperback, 9¼" x 6". xi + 524 pages. Illustrated with black + white photographs. Slight browning to pages otherwise a nice, clean, sound copy. VG. (Book ref. 15897) £6.50
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POSTER advertising the Spectacular Comic Pantomime Robinson Crusoe, at the Opera House, Wakefield.
c1954. On stiff card, size 12" x 8", holes at top which were to hold thread for hanging, picture of Crusoe and Friday on the beach. --- Please e-mail for one of my FREE CATALOGUES which include YORKSHIRE [ Manuscripts, Maps, Ephemera, Views, etc., etc. ] --- (Book ref. UK48-2204) £12.00
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The Metropolitan Opera House - New York
Harper's New Monthly Magazine - June to November 1883 extracted article on the new opera house, 14pp., with architectural drawings and photographs of the building. Very good condition. (Book ref. 15241) £16.00
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THE BABY’S BOUQUET. A Fresh Bunch of Old Rhymes & Tunes. A companion to the “Baby’s Opera.” The Tunes collected & arranged by L.C. Arranged and decorated by ... cut & printed in colours by Edmund Evans.
London: Frederick Warne & Co. N.d. c.[1880]. Slim sq. 8vo. 56pp. Cold. frontis., dec. t.p., 10 cold. plates, text decorated throughout. Hinges tender and sl. shaken, some sl. marginal thumbing, closed tear to lower f.e.p., sl. rubbed original cloth backed dec. boards with sl. wear to corners, spine sl. rubbed. US$32 (Book ref. 214699) £20.00
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