Colley Cibber was a prominent English actor-manager, playwright, and Poet Laureate of the early eighteenth century. He was a pioneer in the development of the actor-manager system, primarily operating out of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. Cibber considered himself an actor first and foremost, achieving significant popular acclaim for his comedic performances, particularly in "fop" roles. However, his attempts at tragic acting were frequently met with public ridicule.
As a playwright, Cibber wrote twenty-five plays for his Drury Lane company. Many of these works were adaptations of existing plays, drawing harsh criticism from contemporary literary figures like Alexander Pope, who accused him of degrading the works of Shakespeare and Molière. Despite this criticism, his comedies remain valuable historical documents that reflect the shifting tastes and ideologies of his era.
Cibber's appointment as Poet Laureate and his brash, opportunistic personality made him a frequent target of satire. His poetry was widely derided, and he was famously immortalized as the chief "Dunce" in Alexander Pope's satirical masterpiece, The Dunciad. Today, Cibber is remembered less for his poetic output and more for his contribution to British theatrical history and his colorful, anecdotal autobiography, An Apology for the Life of Colley Cibber.
