Handel’s Messiah, one of the most sublime pieces of music ever written, was first performed on April 13, 1742 in Neal’s New Musick Hall in Dublin.
Neal’s New Musick Hall was a small theatre in Fishamble Street, opened not long before on October 2, 1741.
Handel had visited Dublin in the winter of that same year to undertake a season of concerts. So successful and popular were the concerts that a second series was quickly arranged.
In early March 1742, Handel began to plan the Messiah premiere for April. He intended it to take the form of a charity concert, in cooperation with several local committees.
The first performance of the Messiah on April 13 1742 was directed by Mattew Dubourg and performed by Susannah Maria Arne (an English singer and actress much admired by Handel) and the United Choirs of St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Christchurch Cathedral. The choirs consisted of 16 men and 16 boy choristers, with several of the men being allocated solo parts.
In the official announcement, it was specified that this performance of the oratorio had a charitable purpose – it was to be in aid of prisoners’ debt relief, the Mercer’s Hospital, and the Charitable Infirmary.
So unanimous was the approval of Handel’s masterpiece (with about 700 spectators packing into the small Musick Hall) that the event organizers, anticipating a large crowd, requested ladies attend without hoops in their skirts, and gentlemen without their swords.
The original theatre building has since been demolished, but Dubliners still commemorate the anniversary of this notable event with a grand gala. Once a year, the Messiah is performed in the open air, on the street outside the Musick Hall’s original location. A commemorative plaque on a nearby building marks the spot where the Messiah had its legendary first performance.
