In pantomime, a principal boy role is the young male protagonist of the play, traditionally played by a young actress in boy's clothes.
Vesta Tilley as a principal boyActress Nan Hearne as Jack in the pantomime The House That Jack Built
The earliest example is Miss Ellington who in 1852 appeared in The Good Woman in the Wood by James Planché to the consternation of a reviewer.[1] She was followed by other music hall and burlesque entertainers, such as Harriet Vernon[2] described as "a magnificent creature, who was willing to show her ample figure as generously as the conventional tights and trunks of the day allowed" and thus setting the standard of good legs on display and nominally male costume which emphasized her figure.[1]
The tradition grew out of laws restricting the use of child actors in London theatre, and the responsibility carried by such lead roles. A Breeches role was also a rare opportunity for an early 20th-century actress to wear a costume revealing the legs covered only in tights, potentially increasing the size of the audience.[3] The practice of having a female play the principal boy has become less common,[4] as further outlets are sought for the talents of young male popular stars and actors.[citation needed]
principal, pantomime, principal, role, young, male, protagonist, play, traditionally, played, young, actress, clothes, vesta, tilley, principal, boyactress, hearne, jack, pantomime, house, that, jack, builtthe, earliest, example, miss, ellington, 1852, appeare. In pantomime a principal boy role is the young male protagonist of the play traditionally played by a young actress in boy s clothes Vesta Tilley as a principal boyActress Nan Hearne as Jack in the pantomime The House That Jack BuiltThe earliest example is Miss Ellington who in 1852 appeared in The Good Woman in the Wood by James Planche to the consternation of a reviewer 1 She was followed by other music hall and burlesque entertainers such as Harriet Vernon 2 described as a magnificent creature who was willing to show her ample figure as generously as the conventional tights and trunks of the day allowed and thus setting the standard of good legs on display and nominally male costume which emphasized her figure 1 The tradition grew out of laws restricting the use of child actors in London theatre and the responsibility carried by such lead roles A Breeches role was also a rare opportunity for an early 20th century actress to wear a costume revealing the legs covered only in tights potentially increasing the size of the audience 3 The practice of having a female play the principal boy has become less common 4 as further outlets are sought for the talents of young male popular stars and actors citation needed Although not written as a pantomime Peter Pan or The Boy Who Wouldn t Grow Up is often produced as one with the tradition of a female principal boy continuing List of notable principal boys editMaud Boyd Kate Everleigh Nellie Farren Lil Hawthorne Hy Hazell Queenie Leighton Madge Lessing Marie Loftus Ouida MacDermott Nellie Navette Nellie Stewart Vesta Tilley Harriet Vernon Dorothy WardSee also editCross gender acting Breeches role Pantomime dame Drag kingReferences edit a b Kaplan Charles 1984 The Only Native British Art Form The Antioch Review 42 3 266 276 doi 10 2307 4611362 JSTOR 4611362 Howard and Wyndham Limited 1888 1948 60 Years of Pantomime and Beyond anon 2005 History of British Pantomime Limelight Scripts Archived from the original on 21 April 2011 Retrieved 18 May 2011 Copping Jaspar 1 December 2013 Curtain falls on traditional panto oh yes it does The Telegraph Retrieved 8 September 2015 nbsp This British theatre related article is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Principal boy amp oldid 1137444374, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
