| Actors |
£2 2s |
Internal |
Mrs. Burden for last Week |
BD vol. 2, p. 416 states that "The "Mrs Burdan" who was listed for several weekly payments of £2 each during the 1778-79 season at Drury Lane seems not to have been the actress Kitty, but a supplier of some kind of materials. She may well have been related to Mrs Burden the actress through her husband." However, it gives no evidence in support of this statement, and seems unaware of: the frequency of the payments (far more than the term "several" suggests); the usage of the spelling "Burden", rather than "Burdan", in the season's main account book; and the fact that one of them, on 12 June 1779, was described as an "Advance". Moreover, suppliers were not normally paid in set weekly or semi-weekly instalments, as this recipient was; and no Mrs Burden has been identified in trade directories of the time. The decision has therefore been taken to categorise these payments as "Actors". |