Arcadia; or, the shepherd's wedding: A dramatic pastoral. As it is performed at the Theatre-Royal in Drury-Lane. The music composed by Mr. Stanley.

Table of contents

- [titlepage]

- DRAMATIS PERSONAE.

- SCENE I. A View of the Country.

- SCENE II. Opens to a Prospect of Rocks.

- SCENE III. A View of the Sea, with the Vessel at a Distance.

ARCADIA; OR, THE SHEPHERD's WEDDING. A DRAMATIC PASTORAL.

The END.

ARCADIA; OR, THE SHEPHERD's WEDDING. A DRAMATIC PASTORAL. As it is Performed at the THEATRE-ROYAL in Drury-Lane.

The Music Composed by Mr. STANLEY.

Dîs equidem auspicibus reor, & Junone secundâ
Virg.

LONDON: Printed for J. and R. TONSON in the Strand. M DCC LXI.

[Price Six-pence.]

DRAMATIS PERSONAE.

- DAMAETAS, Mr. Champness.

- DAMON, Mr. Lowe.

- PRIEST, Mr. Fawcett.

- SYLVIA, Mrs. Vincent.

- PHOEBE, the Huntress, Miss Young.

- DELIA, Miss Young.

ARCADIANS, by the Singers, Dancers, and Comedians.

SCENE I. A View of the Country.

SHEPHERDS and SHEPHERDESSES.

CHORUS.

SHepherds, buxom, blith and free,

Now's the Time for Jollity.

SYLVIA. AIR.

Hither haste, and bring along

Merry Tale and jocund Song.

To the Pipe and Tabor beat,

Frolick Measures with your Feet.

Ev'ry Gift of Time employ;

Make the most of proffer'd Joy.

Pleasure hates the scanty Rules

Portion'd out by dreaming Fools.

CHORUS.

Shepherds buxom, blith and free,

Now's the Time for Jollity.

A Dance of Shepherds, &c.

SYLVIA. RECITATIVE.

Rejoice, ye happy Swains, rejoice;

It is the Heart that prompts the Voice.

Be sorrow banish'd far away;

Thyrsis shall make it Holy-day.

Who at his Name can Joy suppress?

Arcadian born to rule and bless.

DAMON.

And hark! from Rock to Rock the Sound

Of winding Horn, and deep-mouth'd Hound,

Breaking with Rapture on the Ear,

Proclaims the blithsome Phoebe near:

See where she hastes with eager Pace,

To speak the Joys that paint her Face.

SCENE II. Opens to a Prospect of Rocks.

Huntsmen, Huntresses, &c. coming down from them.

PHOEBE.

Hither I speed with honest Glee,

Such as befits the Mind that's free;

Your chearful Troop, blith Youth, to join,

And mix my social Joys with thine.

Now may each Nymph, and frolick Swain,

O'er Mountain steep, or level Plain,

Court buxom Health, while jocund Horn

Bids Echo wake the Sluggard Morn.

AIR.

When the Morning peeps forth, and the Zephyr's cool Gale,

Carries Fragrance and Health over Mountain and Dale;

Up, ye Nymphs, and ye Swains, and together we'll rove,

Up Hill, down the Valley, by Thicket or Grove:

Then follow with me, where the Welkin resounds

With the Notes of the Horn, and the Cry of the Hounds.

Let the wretched be Slaves to Ambition and Wealth;

All the Blessing we ask, is the Blessing of Health.

So shall Innocence' Self give a Warrant to Joys

No Envy disturbs, no Dependence destroys.

Then follow with me, where the Welkin resounds

With the Notes of the Horn, and the Cry of the Hounds.

O'er Hill, Dale, and Woodland, with Rapture we roam;

Yet returning, still find the dear Pleasures at Home;

Where the chearful good Humour gives Honesty grace,

And the Heart speaks Content in the Smiles of the Face.

Then follow with me, where the Welkin resounds

With the Notes of the Horn, and the Cry of the Hounds.

A Dance of Huntsmen and Huntresses.

DAMAETAS. RECITATIVE.

Small Care, my Friends, your Youth annoys,

Which only looks to present Joys.

SYLVIA.

Though the white Locks of silver'd Age,

And long Experience hail thee Sage;

Ill suits it in this Joy, to wear

A Brow so over-hung with Care.

Better with us thy Voice to raise,

And join a whole Arcadia's Praise.

DAMAETAS.

With you I joy that Thyrsis reigns

The Guardian o'er his native Plains:

But Praise is scanty to reveal

The speaking Blessings all must feel.

DAMON.

True, all must feel—but thankless too?

Nor give to Virtue, Virtue's due?

My grateful Heart shall ever shew

The Debt I need not blush to owe.

DAMON. AIR.

That I go where I list, that I sing what I please,

That my Labour's the Price of Contentment and Ease,

That no Care from abroad my Retirement annoys,

That at home I can taste the true Family Joys,

That my Kids wanton safely o'er Meadows and Rocks,

That my Sheep graze secure from the Robber or Fox;

These are Blessings I share with the rest of the Swains,

For it's Thyrsis who gave them, and Thyrsis maintains.

DAMAETAS. RECITATIVE:

Perish my Voice, if e'er I blame

Thy Duty to our Guardian's Name!

His active Talents I revere,

But eye them with a jealous Fear.

Intent to form our Bliss alone,

The generous Youth forgets his own;

Nor e'er his busy Mind employs

To find a Partner of his Joys.

So might his happy Offspring own

The Virtues which their Sire hath shewn.

AIR.

With Joy the Parent loves to trace

Resemblance in his Children's Face:

And as he forms their docil Youth,

To walk the steady Paths of Truth,

Observes them shooting into Men,

And lives in them Life o'er again.

While active Sons, with eager Flame,

Catch Virtue at their Father's Name;

When full of Glory, full of Age,

The Parent quits this busy Stage,

What in the Sons we most admire,

Calls to new Life the honour'd Sire.

SYLVIA. RECITATIVE.

O prudent Sage, forgive the Zeal

Of thoughtless Youth▪ With thee I feel,

The Glories now Arcadia shares

May but embitter future Cares.

Oh mighty Pan! attend Arcadia's Voice,

Inspire, direct, and sanctify his Choice.

SYLVIA. AIR.

So may all thy Sylvan Train,

Dryad Nymph, and rustic Faun,

To the Pipe and merry Strain,

Trip it o'er the russet Lawn.

May no Thorn or bearded Grass

Hurt their Footsteps as they pass,

Whilst in Gambols round and round

They sport it o'er the shaven Ground.

Though thy Syrinx, like a Dream,

Flying at the Face of Day,

Vanish'd in the limpid Stream,

Bearing all thy Hopes away,

If again thy Heart should burn,

In caressing,

Blest, and Blessing

May'st thou find a wish'd Return.

CHORUS.

O mighty Pan! attend Arcadia's Voice,

Inspire, direct, and sanctify his Choice.

A Dance of Huntsmen and Huntresses.

DAMAETAS. RECITATIVE.

Peace, Shepherds, peace, with jocund Air

Which speaks a Heart unknown to Care,

Young Delia hastes. The glad Surprize

Of Rapture flashing from her Eyes.

Enter DELIA.

DELIA. AIR.

Shepherds, Shepherds, come away;

Sadness were a Sin To-day.

Let the Pipe's merry Notes aid the Skill of the Voice;

For our Wishes are crown'd, and our Hearts shall rejoice.

Rejoice, and be glad;

For sure he is mad

Who, where Mirth and good Humour, and Harmony's found,

Never catches the Smile, nor lets Pleasure go round.

Let the stupid be grave,

'Tis the Vice of the Slave;

But can never agree

With a Maiden like me,

Who is born in a Country that's happy and free.

DAMAETAS. RECITATIVE.

What means this Rapture, Delia? shew

Th' Event our Bosoms burn to know.

DELIA.

Now as I trod yon verdant Side,

Where Ladon rolls its Silver Tide,

All gayly deck'd in gorgeous State,

Sail'd a proud Barge, of richest Freight:

Where sat a Nymph, more fresh and fair

Than Blossoms which the Morning Air

Steals Perfume from; the modest Grace

Of Maiden Blush bespread her Face.

Hither it made, and on this Strand

Pour'd its rich Freight for Shepherds' Land.

Ladon, for this, smooth flow thy Tide!

The precious Freight was Thyrsis' Bride.

DAMAETAS. RECITATIVE.

Stop, Shepherds, if aright I hear,

The Sounds of Joy proclaim them near:

Lets meet them, Friends, I'll lead the way;

Joy makes me young again to-day.

SCENE III. A View of the Sea, with the Vessel at a Distance.

Here follows a PASTORAL PROCESSION to the Wedding of THYRSIS.

PRIEST. RECITATIVE.

Mighty Pan! with tender Care,

View this Swain and Virgin fair;

May they ever thus impart

Just Return of Heart for Heart.

May the Pledges of their Bliss

Climb their Knees to share the Kiss.

May their steady blooming Youth,

While they tread the Paths of Truth,

Virtues catch from either Side,

From the Bridegroom and the Bride.

CHORUS.

May their steady blooming Youth,

While they tread the Paths of Truth,

Virtues catch from either Side,

From the Bridegroom and the Bride.

Information about this book

Title statement

Arcadia; or, the shepherd's wedding: A dramatic pastoral. As it is performed at the Theatre-Royal in Drury-Lane. The music composed by Mr. Stanley.

Lloyd, Robert, 1733-1764.

Publication

Distributor

University of Oxford Text Archive
Oxford University Computing Services
13 Banbury Road
Oxford
OX2 6NN
ota@oucs.ox.ac.uk

ID [ota]

http://ota.ox.ac.uk/id/3849

ID [isbn10]

1106008480

ID [isbn13]

9781106008480

ID [TCP]

K031010.000

ID [BIBNO]

CW3314347290

ID [ECLL]

0608200300

Availability

Distributed by the University of Oxford under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

Source

— Arcadia; or, the shepherd's wedding: A dramatic pastoral. As it is performed at the Theatre-Royal in Drury-Lane. The music composed by Mr. Stanley., Lloyd, Robert, 1733-1764.. 20,[2]p. ; 8⁰. London :: printed for J. and R. Tonson,. 1761.. [Anonymous. By Robert Lloyd.] [With a half-title and a final advertisement leaf.] [Reproduction of original from the British Library.] [English Short Title Catalog, ESTCT22351.] [Electronic data. Farmington Hills, Mich. : Thomson Gale, 2003. Page image (PNG). Digitized image of the microfilm version produced in Woodbridge, CT by Research Publications, 1982-2002 (later known as Primary Source Microfilm, an imprint of the Gale Group).]

Creation

Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2p5.xsl, TEI @ Oxford.

Editorial practices

This electronic text file was keyed from page images and partially proofread for accuracy. Character capture and encoding have been done following the guidelines of the ECCO Text Creation Partnership, which correspond roughly to the recommendations found in Level 4 of the TEI in Libraries Guidelines. Digital page images are linked to the text file.