Introduction

Sir Thomas Beecham was quick to point out that he was far from the first to complain about the injustice of Fletcher’s individual achievements’ having been subsumed into those of one of his many collaborators. Beecham’s interest in Fletcher dated at least as far back as 1923, when he was musical director of the Phoenix Society’s production of The Faithful Shepherdess. Increasing interest in Fletcher’s plays has prompted a variety of critical studies in books and scholarly journals. In the context of a prevailing critical failure to recognize the extent of Fletcher’s achievements, it has been heartening to discover so many early twentieth-century commentators offering unstinting admiration of his work. Both the Times writer in 1925 and Beecham in his 1956 Oxford lecture also give consideration to Fletcher’s distinctive verse style. The Times correspondent praised his ‘flowing, free-moving’ verse, with its actor-friendly, naturalistic rhythms.