Aston, Anthony (fl. first half of 18th century), actor and playwright. A vagabond player, he generally is considered to have been the first professional actor to appear on an American stage. In an autobiographical preface to his play The Fool's Opera Aston wrote, “You are to know me, as a Gentleman, Lawyer, Poet, Actor, Soldier, Sailor, Exciseman, Publican; in England, Scotland, Ireland, New York, East and West Jersey, Maryland, Virginia (on both sides Chesapeek), North and South Carolina, South Florida, Bahama's, Jamaica, Hispaniola, and often a Coaster by all the same.” He then adds, “Well, we arriv'd in Charlestown, full of Lice, Shame, Poverty, Nakedness and Hunger:—I turn'd Player and Poet, and wrote one Play on the Subject of the Country.” Aston goes on to tell of visiting New York and “acting, writing, courting, fighting that Winter.” No records survive of precisely what roles and plays Aston offered, nor exactly where or when. Most scholars, despite the player's bravado, take him at his word and suggest that he was in America in 1703 and 1704. Biography: Anthony Aston, Stroller and Adventurer, Watson Nicholson, 1920.

(c. 1682-c. 1753)

1712

Pastora. Originally published in 1709 as The Coy Shepherdess, this play is a pastoral composed in rhyming couplets about the comical situations of three groups of lovers. The play--only twenty pages long--is one of the author's most important works, displaying his biting humor and optimistic view of life. Aston is sometimes referred to as the "first professional actor in America," and his impoverished life of travel anticipates the lot of itinerant performers of the 1700s.

1731

The Fool's Opera. Aston's dramatic parody of John Gay's The Beggar's Opera follows the actions of a Fool and a Poet, who attempt to humiliate each other. Following his normal practice, Aston demonstrates his playful wit at the conclusion of the work as he begs for money.

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