Ernest Christopher Dowson

Ernest Christopher Dowson, 1867-1900.
The Pierrot of the Minute: A Dramatic Phantasy in One Act
Illustrated by Aubrey Beardsley.
London: Leonard Smithers, 1897.
(SPL) PR 4613 .D5 P5 1897

A member of the Rhymers’ Club, Dowson, like many of Yeats’s friends in the 1890s, died young. This one-act dramatic work came about directly from his contacts with members of the Rhymers’ Club. It was commissioned by an American poet, actor, and “guest” of the club, Theodore Peters. Another member of the Rhymers’ Club, Aubrey Beardsley provided the illustrations for this first edition of Dowson’s play.

Shy about reading his own work in front of his peers, Dowson often called upon Lionel Johnson to read for him. Dowson died of tuberculosis in 1900.