The Spouters' Revenge: Apprentice Actors and the Imitation of London's Theatrical Celebrities

Spouters were tradesmen and apprentices who met in public houses to act favorite dramatic speeches and scenes in imitation of famous London actors. Not only did spouters' imitations foster theatric celebrity, but charting the speeches in their manuals, or "spouting companions," locates the moments of striking expression, wit, gesture, and sympathy which late eighteenth-century British audiences most valued. This paper uncovers fresh information about spouters' practices, tastes, and engagement with professional actors and acting techniques. It situates spouting as contemporaneous to the growth of illegitimate theatre and genteel country-house dramatics, and as revelatory of techniques for representing theatrical sentiment.