BRITISH THEATRE, Confifting of the most efteemed ENGLISH PLAYS. VOLUME THE FIRST. Being the First VOLUME of TRAGEDIES. CONTAINING ZARA, by AARON HILL, Efq. VENICE PRESERVED, by Mr. T. OTWAY. LONDON: Printed for JoHN BELL, near Exeter Exchange, in the MDCCLXXVI. ADVERTISEMENT. THE HE PUBPLISHER takes this Opportunity of gratefully acknowledging the generous encouragement with which this undertaking has already been honoured; and at the fame time begs. leave to affure the PUBLIC, that it shall be his particular care, not only to fulfil his present engagement, as ftated in the following Propofals, but also to embrace every opportunity of improv ing the work; he will, therefore, thankfully receive, and attend to, any judicious obfervations that he may be favoured with for that purpose.. DESIGN OF THE WORK. ONE NUMBER (containing a complete Play) will be published every Saturday, till the whole is completed, at 6d each. A FEW COPIES will be printed for the cu rious, on large Royal Paper, and contain proof. impreffions of the prints, at one fhilling each number. EACH EACH of the fizes will bind up uniform with Bell's Edition of Shakefpeare, and when completed, will form a complete Dramatic Library. THE FIRST NUMBER was published on Saturday May 4th, 1776. A VOLUME of the moft celebrated ENGLISH TRAGEDIES and COMEDIES (exclufive of SHAKESPEARE's, which may be had feparate) will be completed alternately.---With every fifth Play will be given a general Title and a beautiful Vignette, adapted to the fubject of the Volume, by one of the first Artifts in Great Britain.---Each Play will be embellished with at least one lively DRAMATIC CHARACTER, painted from the life, by Permiffion, on purpose for this work only, and executed by the beft Engravers in London. THE PLAYS are printed from the most approved copies, with their laft emendations, and the Variations of the Theatres diftinguished by inverted Commas, thus, '; fo that claffical, theatrical, and general readers, may be equally gratified, and the merits of each respective Author be handed down to pofterity with the utmost degree of reputation. AT the end of the year will be printed one Volume, confifting of an INDEX of the CHARACTERS, SENTIMENTS, SIMILIES, SPEECH ES |