Bibliograph

The young pretender, or, The dramatic return of Master Betty, Michael Arditti

Type

Label

The young pretender, or, The dramatic return of Master Betty, Michael Arditti

Language

eng

Index

no index present

Literary Form

novels

Main title

The young pretender, or, The dramatic return of Master Betty

Responsibility statement

Michael Arditti

Summary

Mobbed by the masses, lionised by the aristocracy, courted by royalty and lusted after by patrons of both sexes, the child actor William Henry West Betty was one of the most famous people in Georgian Britain. At the age of thirteen, he played leading roles, including Romeo, Macbeth and Richard III, in theatres across the country. Prime Minister William Pitt adjourned the House of Commons so that its members could attend his debut as Hamlet at Covent Garden. Then, as rivals turned on him and scandal engulfed him, he suffered a fall as merciless as his rise had been meteoric. The Young Pretender takes place during Betty's attempted comeback at the age of twenty-one. As he seeks to relaunch his career, he is forced to confront the painful truths behind his boyhood triumphs

Target audience

adult

resource.variantTitle

Dramatic return of Master Betty

Creator