by W. W. Robson , Fellow of Lincoln College, Oxford
On November 7. 1667, both Charles II and Samuel Pepys attended the first performance of ' The Tempest; or, the Enchanted Island,' adapted to contemporary taste by Dryden and Davenant. A few years later Thomas Shadwell revised it into an opera, ' having all new in it; all things performed so admirably well, that not any succeeding opera got more money.' The preface to this evening's performance describes the conditions in which it was originally produced.