A Methodist Opera? The Troublers of Israel (1767) as Response to the Anti-Methodist Critique

Abstract

Abstract: This essay examines the The Troublers of Israel in the context of Methodism's uneasy, and seemingly contradictory, relationship with the theatre and argues that its anonymous author purposefully adapted the operatic form to achieve his rhetorical, and religious, aims. Even though this tactic has confused bibliographers who have miscategorized the piece as an anti-Methodist work since the nineteenth century, the operatic form, like George Whitefield's preaching, effectively demonstrates how the Methodists coopted and redeployed the dramatic arts as a means of conveying their religious message while reframing and refuting anti-Methodist arguments. The Troublers provides further evidence, in addition to Whitefield's preaching, that the Methodists recognized the power of the dramatic arts to influence belief and behaviour at the same time they condemned more mainstream forms of plays and playgoing.