The Castle Spectre was first performed at Drury Lane Theatre in London
in 1797 and quickly became a dramatic standard during the late 18th and
early 19th centuries. Lewis' Gothic play was one of the first to combine
the action on stage with both music and special effects in order to
evoke an emotional overload from theatre-goers. It was quite common,
according to contemporary accounts, for members of the audience to pass
out from fright during performances of The Castle Spectre. The
Playwright, Matthew Lewis, was one of the originators of early Literary
Gothic with his novel, The Monk. This edition includes the text of the
original five-act play, a condensed three-act version, biographies of
the original performers, newspaper adverts, contemporary reviews and
critiques, the original musical score, and a critical introduction.