John Rich was born in 1692 and baptised at St Andrew’s, Holborn on May 19 of that year (Sawyer 1986, 6). He went on to become manager of the theatre at Lincoln’s Inn Fields in London from 1714-1732, and in 1732 he built the Theatre Royal at Covent Garden, which he managed from 1732-1761. Rich was a gifted dancer and mime artist, credited with having established and popularised the art of pantomime in England, and produced a range of technically and artistically innovative pantomimes in collaboration with figures such as the librettist Lewis Theobald and the composer Johann E. Galliard. Rich entered theatre management in 1714 when, on the death of his father Christopher Rich, he inherited a 75% share in the royal patent for the New Theatre at Lincoln Inn’s Fields, which opened on 18…
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Citation: McGinley, Kevin J. "John Rich". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 05 July 2011 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=3763, accessed 25 November 2024.]
