Abstract
This article examines how Victorian theatre anticipates theories of commodity culture from within. Using previously unseen material from the M. E. Braddon Archive at the International Centre for Victorian Women Writers at Christchurch Canterbury and Lacy’s Acting Editions, I argue that Watts Phillips’s The Woman in Mauve (1864/65) was symptomatic of a move beyond simple replications of familiar sensation genres to create a collaborative cultural space where ideas of intertextuality, influence and piracy converge. Assumed to be a parody, Phillips’s work is rather a response to how the sensation genre had become cultural capital. The play renegotiates the sensational tropes of authentic repetition as a self-referential theatricalised commodity. The result is an exercise in reproduction, where material practice is on show. As a critique of commodity culture, The Woman in Mauve becomes an intertheatrical text, layered with meanings which can only be relative.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.