ABSTRACT

Henry Irving made numerous cuts to The Merchant of Venice, first performed on 1 November 1879. He dispensed with the Prince of Arragon, eliminated deprecatory comments about Shylock by the Christians along with lines by Portia that might offend her audience's sensibilities, and abbreviated lyrically ornate passages in Bassanio's casket scene. In the piano transcription the music for the 'serenade in a gondola' is followed immediately by the masquers' music. The CD recording adheres to this sequence, but in performance the 'serenade', as we have seen, was sung twice. The life span of a musical score in the nineteenth century was generally limited to the length of the production run. Apart from musical 'flourishes' accompanying the entries and exits of the Prince of Morocco and the Doge, all the music belongs to Belmont and Venice carnival. With song and instrument forbidden, no instances arise for diagetic music. The chapter also examines the interpolated scene.