Benford's G&S Lexicon Entries for Thespis
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Act I
Pronunciation: Bahth-buns
Sugar-topped buns containing fruit, nuts, and raisins –– usually split, and buttered. The name comes from their city of origin (142, 257).
Horses used in fox hunting.
Rail yard employees who throw switches to divert trains from one set of tracks to another.
It was then a lower-middle class suburb in the southwest part of London (166, 245). It is now a London borough (142).
A railroad spur where rail cars can be temporarily idled.
A city in Scotland, to say nothing of another in Australia. (But Gilbert meant the former.)
Then a working-class town about seven miles east and a little north of London; now a London suburb.
Policemen. The word goes back to the English statesman Sir Robert Peel (1788-1850), who established the metropolitan police force in England. He became Prime Minister in 1841 and served in that office for five years (105). Brewer (56) adds that the nickname “Bobby” was derived from Peel’s first name.
Workhouse, a place where poor people were lodged and given work. In the USA a workhouse is more likely a jail for petty criminals, and as Goodman (142) describes the old British workhouses, they weren’t much better. Turnbull (294) sadly informs us that the old Savoyard Rutland Barrington ended his days in one.
Rees (251) defines these simply as matches. Perhaps they were an oversize variety especially suited to igniting stubborn pipes.
This is the old name for what is now called Piccadilly Circus. It’s not the kind of circus with lions and tigers; but it does have a statue surrounded by loafers, surrounded by vehicular traffic, surrounded by shoppers (and street vendors), surrounded by stores––all in a swirling pattern of concentric circles.
Paper chemically treated so that contact with a piece of glowing string will cause a sudden little flash and puff of smoke (254). The consumed paper leaves no ash (245).
Pronunciation: DANN-uh-ee
Princess of Argos. To protect her virginity, her father locked her in a bronze tower. Zeus (Jupiter), not one to overlook such a challenge, “transferred himself into a golden shower, and descended through the apertures of the roof into her embrace.” The “issue” was Perseus. All this is from Lemprière’s Classical Dictionary (187) –– as is much of the rest that follows. Young women who are free with their favors may wish to file these unique explanations for future reference.
Pronunciation: LEE-duh
Queen of Sparta, who carried on with Zeus, who came calling in the form of a swan, or so she claimed. Their offspring were Pollux and Helen. Leda also produced two legitimate offspring, Castor and Clytemnestra (54, 187).
A Phoenician charmer who was abducted by Jupiter, who assumed the form of a bull (thus cowing her), “and swam with his prize to the island of Crete.” The results of all this swimming, and so forth, were Minos, Sarpedon, and Rhadamanthus.
The common horde (Greek). Cameron (66) says the preferred spelling is “hoi polloi.” To this Aurora (15) adds that the correct pronunciation also includes that initial h.
Pronunciation: thuh-SAY-lee-an
Pertaining to Thessaly, or Thessalia, the northeastern region of ancient Greece. I suppose Gilbert chose that location because it chimes in well with both “Thespis” and “Theatres.” On the other hand there is a darker meaning to the word, namely treacherous (56). Stone (284) mentions that there really is a Thessalian Theatre.
A comic stage piece that derives its laughs from ridiculing or vulgarizing some serious subject. A travesty or parody.
A large printed advertising poster assembled from six separate sheets.
A strong theatrical spot light generated by projecting a mixture of oxygen and hydrogen on a small piece of quicklime (calcium oxide). Invented by British army engineers in 1824, it was quickly adapted for magic lanterns (early form of slide projectors) and later for the stage (253).
Pronunciation: MY-lo
The famous Venus de Milo statue in the Louvre derives its name from the island of Milo, or Melos, on which it was discovered in 1820. Venus here is clearly afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease. Mr Milo, indeed!
A stage scrim: a thin semi-transparent screen filling the proscenium and partially or totally obscuring the stage, depending on the source of light. Gauzes may also be used to cover openings upstage.
Short for incognito: in disguise, with hidden identity.
Clothes. Rag collectors in the streets used to call, “Any old clo?” (274).
Pronunciation: FEE-bus
Another name for Apollo, particularly when in his role as sun god.
Pronunciation: kah-LIE-oh-pee
One of the muses. She was the daughter of Jupiter and Mnemosyne, and her official duties required her to preside over eloquence and heroic poetry. Apollo was her half-brother and, if you’ll recall, he too was supposed to preside over some of the arts. In their collaborative efforts with the Hellenic Arts Council they worked so intimately that they became the parents of Orpheus. You never can tell where committee work may lead.