Strolling Actresses Dressing in a Barn, after Hogarth’s print of 1738

The present composition represents Hogarth’s response to the controversial Theatrical Licensing Act of 1737. The poster depicted in the print shows an advertisement for the final performance of a fictitious play just before the Act will come into force. The whole scene is haunted by images of death and transitory life. In addition to the sorry condition of both the setting and the actors, fire threatens to erupt imminently in not one but two places.