page_title: Joseph Grimaldi
section_title: Early years at Sadler's Wells and Drury Lane
hierarchical_section_title: Joseph Grimaldi / Biography / Early years at Sadler's Wells and Drury Lane
caption_attribution_description: English: An illustration by George Cruikshank for Dickens' Memoirs of Joseph Grimaldi 1838, showing the young Joseph dressed as a monkey and falling into the orchestra pit after the chain broke with which his father had been twirling him.
context_page_description: Joseph Grimaldi was an English actor, comedian and dancer, who became the most popular English entertainer of the Regency era. In the early 1800s, he expanded the role of Clown in the harlequinade that formed part of British pantomimes, notably at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane and the Sadler's Wells and Covent Garden theatres. He became so dominant on the London comic stage that the harlequinade role of Clown became known as "Joey", and both the nickname and Grimaldi's whiteface make-up design were, and still are, used by other types of clowns. Grimaldi originated catchphrases such as "Here we are again!", which continue to feature in modern pantomimes.
  Born in London to an entertainer father, Grimaldi began to perform as a child, making his stage debut at Drury Lane in 1780. He became successful at the Sadler's Wells Theatre the following year; his first major role was as Little Clown in the pantomime The Triumph of Mirth; or, Harlequin's Wedding in 1781, in which he starred alongside his father. After a brief schooling, he appeared in various low-budget productions and became a sought-after child performer.
context_section_description: From the age of two, Grimaldi was taught to act the characters in the harlequinade by his father.  Although he and his younger brother John Baptiste both displayed acting talent, Joseph was groomed for the London stage. He made his stage debut at the Sadler's Wells Theatre in late 1780, when Giuseppe took him on stage for his "first bow and first tumble".  On 16 April 1781, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, the manager of Drury Lane, cast both Giuseppe and Grimaldi in the pantomime The Wizard of the Silver Rocks; or, Harlequin's Release.  Sheridan employed dozens of children, including Grimaldi, as extras at Drury Lane.
  On Boxing Day 1781, Grimaldi took the part of Little Clown in the pantomime The Triumph of Mirth; or, Harlequin's Wedding at Drury Lane. It was a success for him personally, and the pantomime enjoyed an extended run until March 1782.  As a result of his performance, he received further work offers from the management and became an established juvenile performer at Drury Lane. At the same time, he was a prolific performer at Sadler's Wells where he played a host of minor roles, including monkeys, imps, fairies and demons. The Drury Lane season ran every year from September to late spring, with Sadler's Wells playing from 15 April to the second week in October. Though the two theatres staged similar productions, they appealed to different audiences: Drury Lane to the wealthy classes of society and Sadler's Wells to the boisterous working class. Although Grimaldi's stage career was flourishing, Giuseppe enrolled him at Mr Ford's Academy, a boarding school in Putney, which educated the children of theatrical performers. Although Grimaldi struggled with reading and writing, he showed a talent for art, as evidenced by some of his drawings that survive in the Harvard Theatre Collection.
  Their success on the London stage allowed the Grimaldis to enjoy an affluent lifestyle in contrast to other working-class families living in Clare Market and Holborn.  By the age of six, Grimaldi was considered a prominent stage performer by the press, with one critic from the Gazetteer commenting that "the infant son of Grimaldi performs in an astonishing manner". One evening, Grimaldi was playing the part of a monkey and was led onto the stage by his father, who had attached a chain to Grimaldi's waist.  Giuseppe swung his young son around his head "with the utmost velocity", when the chain snapped, causing young Grimaldi to land in the orchestra pit. From 1789 Grimaldi would appear alongside his siblings in an act entitled "The Three Young Grimaldis".
  Grimaldi's father suffered ill health for many years and died of dropsy in 1788. As a result, at age 9, Grimaldi became the family's principal breadwinner.  Sheridan paid him an above-average wage of £1 a week at Drury Lane, and allowed his mother to work at Drury Lane as a dancer.  However, the proprietors of Sadler's Wells were less supportive, cutting Grimaldi's pay from 15 shillings to 3 shillings a week, at which level it remained for the next three years. The loss of Giuseppe's income and Joseph's reduced summertime earnings meant the Grimaldis could no longer afford to keep the house in Holborn. They moved to the slum district of St. Giles, where they took lodgings with a furrier in Great Wild Street. Grimaldi's brother, John Baptiste, illegally signed on as a cabin boy aboard a frigate in 1788, when he was nine, using a false identity.  Grimaldi saw him only once more in his life.
  John Philip Kemble took over the producer's (director's) duties at Drury Lane later in 1788 when Sheridan was promoted to chief treasurer. Sheridan often employed Grimaldi in minor roles in Kemble's productions and continued to allow him to work concurrently at Sadler's Wells. Grimaldi took an interest in the design and construction of stage scenery and would often help to design sets. His stage performances over the next two years did not garner him the kind of success he had experienced under the management of his father, and the role of pre-eminent Clown in London productions soon fell to Jean-Bapti
caption: Joe's debut into the pit at Sadler's Wells, illustration by George Cruikshank for Dickens's memoirs of Grimaldi
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