ABSTRACT
It was in the 1880s that a fully pictorial stage was achieved in Victorian England, blending actor and crowds in the setting with a sustained atmospheric and compositional unity. Bram Stoker produces much evidence to show that Irving customarily had a fully formed visual picture in his mind of the stage scene. Stoker, watching as the rehearsals of Faust proceeded, and aware of the cost of the enterprise, became more and more concerned about its visual appeal. Irving had clear views on the role, nature and structure of scenery. Ellen Terry recalled, for instance, that Irving believed in 'front scenes', seeing how necessary they were to the swift progress of Shakespeare's plots: 'These cloths were sometimes so wonderfully painted and lighted that they constituted scenes of remarkable beauty.' Many of the greatest artists of the nineteenth century lent their support to the scenic artists as they fought to be recognised as artists in their own right rather than mere craftsmen.
