Funny and disturbing: women’s serio-comic performances on the Victorian music hall

Article


Beale, S. 2022. Funny and disturbing: women’s serio-comic performances on the Victorian music hall. Comedy Studies. 13 (2), pp. 186-198. https://doi.org/10.1080/2040610X.2022.2091734
TypeArticle
TitleFunny and disturbing: women’s serio-comic performances on the Victorian music hall
AuthorsBeale, S.
Abstract

This article considers the contributions made to UK comic performance history by women serio-comic performers on the late-nineteenth century British music hall. These women were associated with gritty and witty portrayals of the lives of lower-class Victorians and frequently engaged in ironic representations of ‘acceptable’ versions of female behaviour in performances combining the serious and the comic. Reflecting on the style and content of their characterisations and their direct interactions with audiences, the article examines the varied nature of these largely forgotten acts, and considers the echoes of such serio-comic approaches in contemporary comedy.

KeywordsSerio-comic, music hall, women and comedy, irony, stand-up comedy, comic song
Sustainable Development Goals5 Gender equality
Middlesex University ThemeCreativity, Culture & Enterprise
Research GroupTheatre Arts group
PublisherTaylor and Francis
JournalComedy Studies
ISSN2040-610X
Electronic2040-6118
Publication dates
Online04 Jul 2022
Print04 Jul 2022
Publication process dates
Deposited24 Aug 2022
Accepted31 Dec 2021
Output statusPublished
Publisher's version
License
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1080/2040610X.2022.2091734
LanguageEnglish
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