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Clear filtersRetired Lord Claverton's respected public image is challenged when people from his past return, bringing back memories of a youthful crime and a thwarted love affair. With his daughter Monica's support, he confesses the truth and seeks spiritual reconciliation.
The Eldest Son is a 1912 play by the British writer John Galsworthy. Although first written in 1909, it was until three years later that a version was produced. It ran for 47 performances at the Kingsway Theatre in London's West End between 23 November 1912 and 10 January 1913. The cast included Robert Rendel, Claude King, Moffat Johnston, Irene Rooke and Cathleen Nesbitt.
A surrealist prose farce presented as a play within a play; Brecht later suggested it be performed as a foyer interlude and subtitled it “The provability of any and every contention.”
The Elephant Man opens with Frederick Treves, an up-and-coming surgeon, meeting his new employer Francis Carr-Gomm, the administrator of the London Hospital. Ross, the manager of a freak show, invites a crowd on Whitechapel Road to come view John Merrick, the Elephant Man. Treves happens upon the freak show and is intrigued by Merrick's disorder. He insists that he must study Merrick further; Ross agrees, for a fee. Ross then gives a lecture on Merrick's anatomy, making Merrick stand on display while Treves describes his condition to the audience. The freak show travels to Brussels after being driven out of London by the police. Merrick tries to converse with three freak show "pinheads", or people suffering from microcephaly and mental retardation. The "pinheads" go onstage to sing "We Are the Queens of the Congo", but the police will not allow Merrick to perform, because they consider his condition "indecent". Ross decides that Merrick is more trouble than he is worth, steals his savings, and sends him back to London. When Merrick arrives in London, his appearance incites a crowd to riot. The train's conductor and a policeman are able to fetch Treves to calm the situation. Treves takes Merrick to the London Hospital and interviews a woman, Nurse Sandwich, for the position of Merrick's caretaker. Sandwich assures Treves that she has cared for lepers in Africa and is quite prepared for anything. However, when she sees Merrick taking a bath, she bolts from the room and refuses to take the job. Bishop How visits Merrick and declares him a "true Christian in the rough". He tells Treves he would like to educate Merrick in religion. Carr-Gomm argues with Bishop How about the importance of science versus the importance of religion. Carr-Gomm announces that, due to a letter he had printed in The Times, the people of London have donated enough money to allow Merrick to live at the hospital for life. Treves tells Gomm that he is glad Merrick now has a place where he can stay without being stared at, and is determined that Merrick should lead a normal life. When two attendants, Will and Snork, are caught peeking into Merrick's room, Will is fired and Snork is given a severe warning. Treves believes that it is important to enforce these rules, but Merrick worries what will happen to Will and his family. Merrick grew up in the workhouses, and wishes that no one had to suffer that fate. Treves says that it is just the way things are. John Merrick has a visitor by the name of Madge Kendal, an actress who came across Carr-Gomm's section in the newspaper. When Mrs. Kendal meets Merrick, she requires all of her self-control in order to disguise her horror at Merrick’s appearance. After several minutes of strained conversation, Merrick mentions he is reading Romeo and Juliet, and Mrs. Kendal shares her experience in the role of Juliet. Merrick amazes Mrs. Kendal with his thoughtful and sensitive views on Romeo and the nature of love. Mrs. Kendal says that she will bring some of her friends to meet Merrick, then shakes his hand and tells him how truly pleased she is to meet him. Merrick dissolves into tears as Treves tells Mrs. Kendal that it is the first time a woman has ever shaken his hand. Mrs. Kendal's high society friends visit Merrick and bring him gifts while he builds a model of St. Phillip's church with his one good hand. He tells Mrs. Kendal that St. Phillip’s Church is an imitation of grace, and his model is therefore an imitation of an imitation. When Treves comments that all of humanity is a mere illusion of heaven, Merrick says that God should have used both hands. Merrick's new friends—Bishop How, Gomm, the Duchess, Princess Alexandra, Treves, and Mrs. Kendal—all comment upon how, in different ways, they see themselves reflected in him. However, Treves notes that even though Merrick has become popular, his condition is worsening with time. Merrick tells Mrs. Kendal that he needs a mistress and suggests that he would like her to do that for him. Mrs. Kendal listens compassionately, but she tells Merrick that it is unlikely that he will ever have a mistress. Merrick admits that he has never even seen a naked woman. Mrs. Kendal is flattered by his show of trust in her, and she realizes that she has come to trust him. She undresses and allows him to see her naked body. Treves enters and is shocked, sending Mrs. Kendal away. Ross comes to the hospital to ask Merrick to rejoin the freak show. Ross's health has drastically worsened, and he tells Merrick that without help he is doomed to a painful death. He tries to convince Merrick to charge the society members who visit him. Merrick refuses to help Ross, finally standing up to him after suffering years of abuse at his hands. Ross makes one final pathetic plea to Merrick, who refuses him, saying that's just the way things are. Merrick asks Treves what he believes about God and heaven. Then he confronts Treves, criticizing what he did to Mrs. Kendal and the rigid standards by which he judges everybody. Treves realizes that he has been too harsh with Merrick and tells him that although he will write to Mrs. Kendal, he does not believe she will return. After Merrick leaves the room, Treves says that it is because he does not want her to see Merrick die. Treves has a nightmare that he has been put on display while Merrick delivers a lecture about his terrifying normality, his rigidity, and the acts of cruelty he can commit upon others "for their own good". Carr-Gomm and Treves discuss Merrick's impending death. Treves displays frustration at the fact that the more normal Merrick pretends to be, the worse his condition becomes. He confronts Bishop How, telling him that he believes Merrick’s faith is merely another attempt to emulate others. It comes out that the real source of his frustrations is the chaos of the world around him, with his patients seemingly doing everything they can to shorten their own lives. No matter how hard he tries he cannot help them, just as he cannot help Merrick. He finally begs for the bishop to help him. Merrick finishes his model of the church. As usual, he goes to sleep while sitting, a posture which he must adopt due to the weight of his head. As he sleeps he sees visions of the pinheads, now singing that they are the Queens of the Cosmos. They lay him down to sleep normally, and he dies. Snork discovers his body and runs out screaming that the Elephant Man is dead. In the final scene, Carr-Gomm reads a letter he has written to The Times, outlining Merrick’s stay at the hospital, his death and his plans for the remaining funds donated for Merrick's care. When he asks Treves if he has anything else to add, a distressed Treves says he does not and leaves. As Carr-Gomm finishes the letter Treves rushes back in, saying that he’s thought of something. Carr-Gomm tells the doctor that it is too late: it is done.
An independent psychiatrist investigates a patient's possible role in his supervising doctor's disappearance. The patient draws him into a psychological game about a traumatic childhood, a distant father, his mother's death and his hospitalization.
The Eleventh Commandment is a 1921 play by Brandon Fleming. It premiered at the Playhouse Theatre, Cardiff before transferring to the Royalty Theatre in London's West End where it ran for 32 performances between 16 January and 11 February 1922. The original West End cast included Henry Stoker, Edmund Breon, Dawson Millward and Viola Tree.
A single performer plays Robert O’Brien, an outwardly respectable elocution tutor who begins by describing his students while dressing onstage. His account reveals his transvestitism and obsession with a beautiful young student, Benjamin Franklin, before disclosing that he is confined in a mental institution.
Lovely’s search for love and self-understanding moves through personal memories and representations of Black women’s sexuality. Her story intersects with Sarah Baartman’s as she questions inherited images and seeks a different relationship with herself.
Accountant Filipp Stepanovich and cashier Vanechka accidentally embezzle a small sum and become entangled in further crimes and adventures. As they spend the money and travel from place to place, their comic and dramatic predicaments finally force them to return home and report themselves to the criminal investigation office.
A historical play depicting the Council of Nicaea, where the Nicene Creed was formed.
Brutus Jones, a former Pullman porter who has made himself emperor of a West Indian island, flees a brewing rebellion through the jungle. As he encounters visions of episodes from his past, fear and guilt overtake him, and the rebels kill him with the silver bullet he believed was the only weapon that could harm him.
A single continuous scene unfolds at night in the living room of the Boyce family mansion while patriarch Beauchamp lies dying upstairs. His three sons and their wives gather below.
Massinger dramatizes Emperor Theodosius II, his sister and regent Pulcheria, and his wife Eudocia amid rumors that she has been unfaithful with courtier Paulinus. In the tragicomedy's resolution, Theodosius disguises himself as clergy and hears Eudocia's confession, which persuades him she is innocent.
Dr. Baliardo believes that the moon is inhabited, and that he will be able to spy on its king through his telescope. His obsession leads him to neglect his daughter Elaria and his niece Bellemante. Don Cinthio and Don Charmante form a plan to marry Elaria and Bellemante, as well as to cure Baliardo's obsession. They masquerade as the Emperor of the Moon and his brother, the Prince of Thunderland. The gullible Baliardo receives these otherworldly suitors, and so the stage is set for the grand finale: a masque-like pageant that the schemers perform in an abandoned building. There, Baliardo is greeted by (allegedly) the Emperor of the Moon's court and the entire zodiac.
In Helmand Province, British corporal Gary Harris and Afghan soldier Hafizullah guard Zia, an injured prisoner suspected of a rocket attack. Zia claims he is a British citizen from Newham who was kidnapped while visiting family abroad. As Gary and Captain Simon Mannock await medical care and an Afghan army handover, the men must decide what to do while Zia's story and responsibility remain unresolved.
In 1887, Indian ayah Rani Das travels to London with her employers and falls in love with sailor Hari, but is abandoned at the docks. As she seeks a life in Britain, she encounters exploitation and finds allies, eventually working for Indian nationalist Dadabhai Naoroji. Meanwhile, Queen Victoria’s relationship with Abdul Karim illuminates the unequal ties between Britain and India.
The play follows the villainous Laula's efforts to place her lover, Grimalhaz, on the Moroccan throne.
The Enchanted is a 1950 English adaptation by Maurice Valency of the play Intermezzo written in 1933 by French dramatist Jean Giraudoux.
Maimed veteran Oliver and plain village girl Laura marry after finding companionship in an old cottage. They believe a change has made them physically beautiful, but when their visitors see no transformation, they learn that love has changed how they see one another. A dream sequence imagines the wedding Oliver and Laura might have shared before the war.
A Munich marionette play that marks the first appearance of the puppet character Kasper, later central to German-speaking Kaspertheater traditions.
The End of Longing is a dark comedy play written by Matthew Perry. The play, which marked Perry's playwriting debut, made its West End and world premiere at the Playhouse Theatre in February 2016. The play made its United States debut Off-Broadway in May 2017 at the Lucille Lortel Theatre.
In rural Ireland, Darry and his wife Lizzie argue over whose work is harder and exchange household and farm duties for a day. Darry’s inept attempts at housework turn the kitchen into a wreck while Lizzie completes his outdoor task.
In a fictional 1930s seaside town, a twelve-year-old boy watches unemployed neighbors attempt a riot, changing how he sees them and the local policeman. He then befriends Firpo, a mentally challenged young man who dreams of running in the Olympics; when Firpo’s beach race ends disastrously and he is institutionalized, the boy confronts the world’s injustices and the end of childhood innocence.
Frank and Walker are each convinced the other is following him. Their attempts to run away from one another repeatedly bring them to the same places.
The English Frier; Or, The Town Sparks, sometimes spelt as The English Friar, is a 1690 comedy play by the English writer John Crowne. It was originally staged by the United Company most likely at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, although it may have appeared at the Dorset Garden Theatre, the other venue of the company. Written in context of the recent Glorious Revolution, it attacks Catholic priests who meddle in English politics, undermining the constitution. The original cast included Anthony Leigh as Lord Stately, Edward Kynaston as Lord Wiseman, George Powell as Bellamour, John Bowman as Father Finical, Joseph Williams as Young Ranter, Cave Underhill as Old Ranter, George Bright as Dullman, William Bowen as Coachman, Samuel Sandford as Sir Thomas Credulous, Anne Bracegirdle as Julia, Charlotte Butler as Airy, Elinor Leigh as Lady Pinchgut and Elizabeth Boutell as Lady Credulous.
In London, two families’ children pursue love and revenge while usurer Quicksands hides his new bride Millicent in Moorish disguise. Intrigues, mistaken identities, and a failed revenge plot ultimately reunite the young couples and expose the play’s mock marriage.
The English Princess; Or, The Death Of Richard The Third is a 1667 tragedy by the English writer John Caryll. It is set around the downfall of Richard III. It was performed at Lincoln's Inn Fields by the Duke's Company. Although the full cast is unknown it included Thomas Betterton as Richard III, Henry Harris as Duke of Richmond and William Smith as Sir William Stanley. In his diary Samuel Pepys described it as a "a most sad, melancholy play, and pretty good; but nothing eminent in it, as some tragedys are" At the end of the show actress Moll Davis came on stage to dance a jig and announcer the next day's performance.
This five-act tragicomedy links two household plots: the returning Young Geraldine and Wincott's wife pledge a future together, while servant Reignald schemes to conceal Young Lionell's drunken excesses from his returning merchant father.
Archie Rice, a failing music-hall performer, lives amid his family's tensions as his father Billy recalls an earlier era, his daughter Jean returns, and wartime news of Archie's son Mick turns their hopes to grief. Archie clings to performance while Britain's fading imperial confidence echoes through the family's decline.
A royal welcome at Althorp blends classical and English folklore: a satyr converses with Queen Mab, fairies and elves appear, and the Fairy Queen presents Anne of Denmark with a jewel. A comic figure called Nobody introduces a morris dance.
Commissioned for the opening of the New Exchange, Ben Jonson's masque welcomes King James and Queen Anne to a new world of commercial wonders. A Key Keeper introduces the venue, a Shop Boy catalogs its goods, and a shop's Master celebrates the commodities he has acquired and his desire for wealth.
At Theobalds House, the personified Hours of Law, Justice and Peace welcome James I and Christian IV. The porch display included speeches in English and Latin and epigrams addressed to both kings; the Hours wore crowns bearing a sun-dial, clock and hour-glass.
At a 1960s holiday camp, respectable campers turn against the rigid, moralizing manager Erpingham. The farce is loosely based on Euripides' The Bacchae.
Enslaved spouses Melinda and Glen flee after Dr. Gaines threatens Glen and his wife attempts to force Melinda to drink poison; after escaping torture and pursuit, the couple follow the North Star toward Canada, where a northern ally helps them reach a ferry to freedom.
Shortly after the Romans destroy Jerusalem and the Second Temple, a stranger arrives in a nearby town searching for a child born at the moment of the Temple’s fall, whom he believes is the Messiah. The townspeople reject him until a woman fleeing Jerusalem says her newborn was born at that same hour; then the child vanishes in a whirlwind.
Pursued by the Furies for killing his mother, Orestes appeals to Athena in Athens. She establishes a trial before citizens of the Areopagus; when the votes tie, Athena acquits Orestes. She persuades the Furies to accept a new role as protective forces in the city, ending the cycle of private vengeance in favor of judgment through law.
Set in ancient Antioch, the play has Simon Peter ask John, Mark, Matthew and Luke to write accounts of Jesus's life. It reimagines New Testament figures and events: Peter is violent and accused of killing Jesus, Mary Magdalene is portrayed in a sexualized scene, and Peter kills the apostles at the Last Supper.
A theological comedy on the theme of marriage.
Conscript Quizz West leaves his hometown girlfriend and family for the Philippines. As American troops face overwhelming odds there, dreams let him ask his mother and Janet whether he and his friends should sacrifice themselves to cover the retreat or escape by boat.
Indebted Sir Walter Peregrine becomes a captain, leaving his wife vulnerable to Lord Fitzavarice's attempted seduction. Her steadfastness reforms Fitzavarice, but a mistaken assumption leads the two men to a duel before they become friends. A comic subplot follows Jacinta's rival suitors and her paranoid uncle.
A rich merchant and a working-class porter cross the fictional Yahi Desert on an oil-deal journey. The merchant grows fearful and brutal, then mistakenly shoots the porter, who was offering him water; a court acquits the merchant, exposing the unequal logic of class power.
Two actors, a man and a woman who had an affair that ended two years earlier, use improvisational acting exercises to hurt one another. One exercise turns on the woman’s revelation that she had an abortion.
The work combines first-person narrative with legal records to tell the stories of six former death row inmates: Delbert Tibbs, Kerry Max Cook, Gary Gauger, David Keaton, Robert Earl Hayes and Sunny Jacobs, and their paths to freedom. Tibbs, Cook, Gauger, Keaton, and Hayes were legally exonerated, while Jacobs took an Alford plea to a lesser charge and was freed on time served. In 2004, Hayes pleaded guilty to murdering a woman in New York in 1987. In 2022, DNA testing also proved his guilt of the murder in the woman in Florida, albeit he cannot be retried in that case as a result of double jeopardy. The production is performed as an anthology by 10 actors seated behind music stands. Their accounts of the freed convicts emphasize their lives after being sentenced to death, including much of the legal proceedings that gained their exoneration.
The Exorcist is a play by John Pielmeier based on the novel of the same name by William Peter Blatty and is part of The Exorcist franchise. The story revolves around a young girl, Regan MacNeil, who is possessed by a demonic spirit. Her mother, Chris, seeks out the church to perform an exorcism.
The show takes place in London in 1879 and depicts Phyllida Spotte-Hume's attempt to become the first female member of the titular club of elite explorers. As evidence of her exploring prowess, she presents a blue-skinned native man (who she has given the name Luigi), brought back from a lost city she has discovered. The club's president, botanist Lucius Fretway, who harbors a secret love for Phyllida, advocates for her admission, but other members stand in opposition, including the misogynistic "archeo-theologist" Professor Sloane. At one point, the action is interrupted by the entrance of member Harry Percy, who announces he has returned from a successful expedition to the "East Pole".
On a Washington talk show, host Dick Hedgerow interviews counterterrorism expert Norm Krieger about the danger of extremism. Their shifting definitions and contradictions expose how both men advocate manipulation and unquestioning belief while warning against extremist thought.
The Fabulous Invalid is a 1938 stage play by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart following the oscillating fortunes of a fictitious Broadway theater, the Alexandria, in the period between 1900 and 1930. The play's title has since entered the vernacular as a synonym for the theater.
Jeffrey Hatcher reworked the earlier play to cover a century in the history of Boston’s Cutler Majestic Theatre, with two performers appearing as ghosts of the theatre.
In Paris, serial killer Le Loup precedes his murders with a wolf howl, and master detective Paul Gouffet pursues him. In a signature scene, Gouffet uses an electric current to make a dead victim’s arm complete the writing of the murderer’s name.
Five women at a Donegal shirt factory face threatened job losses. After poor conditions and management's demands provoke their anger, Ellen and Vera lead a workplace takeover and blockade themselves inside, while tensions among the women grow.
The Fair Captive is a 1721 tragedy by the British writer Eliza Haywood. Performed at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre the cast featured James Quin as Mustapha, John Leigh as Ozmin, Anthony Boheme as Haly, Lacy Ryan as Alphonso, John Egleton as Achmat and Anna Maria Seymour as Isabella. The epilogue, comic in contrast to the play's tragedy, was written by Aaron Hill.
The Fair Circassian is a 1781 tragedy by the British writer Samuel Jackson Pratt. It is an adaptation of the novel Almoran and Hamet by John Hawkesworth. He wrote the lead role for his friend Sarah Siddons, but due to other commitments it ended up being played by Elizabeth Farren. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on 27 November 1781 with a cast that included William Smith as Hamet, Robert Bensley as Omar, John Hayman Packer as Ali, James Wrighten as Principle Iman and Elizabeth Farren as Almeida. The epilogue was written by the Irish Whig politician Richard FitzPatrick, although it has also been attributed to Richard Brinsley Sheridan.
The Fair Example, or the Modish Citizen is a 1703 comedy play by the English writer Richard Estcourt, originally staged at the Drury Lane Theatre. It was part of a growing trend of plays to feature a plot of an honest wife reforming her rakish husband along with Sir Harry Wildair, As You Find It, The Wife's Relief and The Modish Couple. It is a reworking of the 1693 French play Les Bourgeoises à la Mode by Florent Carton Dancourt. In 1705 a separate English adaptation of the French work John Vanbrugh's The Confederacy appeared at the rival Queen's Theatre in the Haymarket. The cast included Colley Cibber as Springlove, Anne Oldfield as Lucia, Benjamin Johnson as Sir Rice-ap-Adam, William Penkethman as Mr Whimsey, William Bullock as Mr Fancy, John Mills as Sir Charles, Henry Norris as Symons, Susanna Verbruggen as Mrs Cringe and Mary Powell as Mrs Furnish, Frances Maria Knight as Florinda, Margaret Mills as Lettice and Jane Lucas as Flora.
Three wealthy brothers fall in love with Phyllis, who instead loves the indifferent Cripple of Fanchurch. Through disguises, forged letters and mistaken identities, Frank helps the Cripple while secretly pursuing Phyllis; after a sequence of mistaken proposals and kidnappings, she chooses Frank, and her father is arrested over a stolen diamond.
In Florence, Cesario’s courtship of tavernkeeper’s daughter Biancha and his friendship with Mentivole unravel into a feud between their families. Deceptions over parentage and a supposedly dead admiral complicate the conflict, until Biancha’s identity is revealed and the families reconcile in two marriages.
Tavern keeper Bess Bridges disguises herself to defeat a bully, then becomes a privateer when she believes her beloved Spencer has died. Her voyages take her to Morocco and Italy, where she outwits rulers and pirates and reunites with Spencer; across the second part, the couple navigate renewed danger and courtly schemes.
In Rowe’s reworking of The Fatal Dowry, the setting moves from Dijon to Genoa and the characters receive new names. The adaptation simplifies the action and focuses more closely on Calista’s infidelity and domestic tragedy.
The Fair Quaker of Deal or, The Humours of the Navy is a 1710 comedy play by the British writer Charles Shadwell. A popular hit running for thirteen nights, it was revived a number of times. The original Drury Lane cast included Barton Booth as Worthy, George Pack as Mizen, George Powell as Rovewell, Thomas Elrington as Cribidge, John Corey as Easy, John Freeman as Scruple, Hester Santlow as Dorcas Zeal, Henrietta Moore as Belinda and Lucretia Bradshaw as Arabella Zeal. The play was dedicated to "my generous and obliging friends of the County of Kent".
A comedy drawing on British fairy lore, featuring Loswello as the fairy knight and Politico, a silly politician, as pretender king of the fairies.
A three-act Arthurian dramatic romance follows Rowenna, a Saxon sorceress, in her attempt to win Arthur while using magic against him. The Lady of the Lake intervenes, and the final conflict ends with Guenever and Tristram rescued and Arthur crowned king.
Fairy Rosebud tries to protect a clergyman and a nurse from a demon and a supposed wicked baronet, but disguises and mistaken identities repeatedly foil her plans. To resolve the confusion, she magically forces the mortals to perform a harlequinade before everyone is restored to their true identities and the couples are reconciled.
The Faithful Bride of Granada is a 1704 tragedy by the English writer William Taverner. It was the only tragedy by Tarverner, better known for his comedies. The original cast included John Mills as Abdolin, Robert Wilks as Abinomin, Philip Griffin as Osmin, Benjamin Husband as Albovade, Jane Rogers as Zelinda, Frances Maria Knight as Abenede and Mary Kent as Zaida.
Marius returns from exile to find his friend Marcus Tullius newly married and sent to war, while Marius’s lost love Lelia lives disguised as the bride’s page. Court factions conspire against Marcus; mistaken identities and an attempted murder ultimately expose the plot, and the king is urged to spare the conspirators.
A drama framed by a prologue and epilogue at the Reindeer Hotel near Southampton docks, with two acts set twenty years later: first in a wartime hotel office and then in a London flat.
Chaste healer Clorin helps shepherds and shepherdesses recover from jealousy, lust and deception. Amarillis impersonates Amoret to manipulate Perigot, while other couples fall into sexual turmoil; Clorin restores them toward reconciliation and chastity.
A young woman is married by her status-seeking father to an earl's son, who proves to be an abusive addict. The manager of the father's business kills the husband with an overdose, then tells the father he considers him complicit in the misery that led to the murder.
A young wife’s drunken escapades and her husband’s suspicions produce a farce of marital mistrust. Their apparent reconciliation gives way to fresh confusion about the parentage of Eve’s child.
In Paris after Robespierre's fall, his opponents Bertrand Barère, Tallien and Legendre plan to challenge the tyrant through speeches framed like a public assembly. The final act presents their victory as a defense of liberty and a warning against new despots.
The Fall of Saguntum is a 1727 tragedy by the British writer Philip Frowde. The plot revolves around the Siege of Saguntum in the Second Punic War, and its fall the forces of the Carthaginian general Hannibal. Influenced by the style of John Addison's play Cato it was dedicated to Prime Minister Sir Robert Walpole. Staged at Lincoln's Inn Fields the original cast included Anthony Boheme as Sicoris, Thomas Walker as Murrus, James Quin as Eurydamas, Charles Hulett as Theron, Richard Diggs as Lychormas, Lacy Ryan as Fabius, William Milward as Curtius, John Ogden as First Saguntium, Anne Berriman as Candace and Jane Rogers as Timandra. The prologue was written by Lewis Theobald.
At Elizabeth I's court, the Earl of Essex is imprisoned after negotiating a truce in Ireland. Lady Nottingham withholds the Queen's token that could secure his appeal, leading Elizabeth to order his execution.
Julia and Don Carlos exchange private vows, but her father forces her to marry the older Francisco. After supposed corsairs capture them, Francisco yields Julia to a Turkish Sultan who is actually Carlos in disguise. A subplot involving a chimney-sweep posing as a count and other mistaken matches ends in marriages for the lovers.
The False Friend is a 1702 comedy play by the English writer John Vanbrugh. It was inspired by Francisco de Rojas Zorrilla's Spanish play La traición busca el castigo. The original Drury Lane cast included Robert Wilks as Don Pedro, Philip Griffin as Don Felix, John Mills as Don Guzman, Colley Cibber as Don John, William Pinkethman as Lopez, William Bullock as Galindo, Jane Rogers as Leonora, Mary Kent as Isabella and Anne Oldfield as Jacinta.
In Sardinia, Emilius and Louisa have secretly married, provoking Emilius's foster-sister Appamia, who loves him. She tries to destroy their trust and ultimately tricks Emilius into poisoning Louisa; when her plot is exposed, he kills himself and Louisa dies.
In Egypt in 48 BCE, Caesar encounters Cleopatra while her brother Ptolemy holds her from power. The play centers on Roman officer Septimius, who betrays and murders Pompey; Caesar ultimately deposes Ptolemy and gives Cleopatra the Egyptian crown.
The Family Legend is an 1810 historical tragedy by the Scottish writer Joanna Baillie. The idea of dramatising what was an old Highland tale was suggested to Baillie by her friend the sculptor Anne Seymour Damer, granddaughter of John Campbell, 4th Duke of Argyll. The play premiered at the Theatre Royal in Edinburgh on 29 January 1810 and ran for thirteen consecutive nights. The Edinburgh cast included Henry Siddons, his wife Harriet Siddons and Daniel Terry. Its Edinburgh staging was due largely to the lobbying of Walter Scott on its behalf. On 29 May 1815 it debuted in London's West End at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane with a cast that featured George Bartley as the Earl of Argyle, Alexander Rae as John of Lorne, James William Wallack as Maclean, Samuel Penley as Sir Hubert de Grey, John Powell as Loctorish Mrs Bartley as Helen and Susan Boyce as Rosa. It revolves around the historic rivalry of the Campbells and the Macleans.
The Family Party is a 1789 comedy play by the British writer George Colman the Younger. A two-act farce, it premiered at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket in London on 11 July 1789. The original Haymarket cast included Robert Baddeley as Old Spriggins, William Davies as Captain Rampart, Robert Palmer as Pinch, John Bannister as Sir Toby Twaddle, Elizabeth Heard as Laura and Lydia Webb as Mrs Malmsley.
At a birthday gathering at Wishwood, Harry returns after eight years haunted by the belief that he caused his wife's death at sea. His aunt reveals the family's buried history and encourages him to leave, while the household's Greek-chorus-like relatives and Harry's pursuit by the Furies frame his movement from guilt toward a spiritual vocation.
The Hellers are a middle-class family that love one another, but often become quarrelsome due to being constrained to share a small apartment. Their eldest daughter, Louise, has taken a job just to get away from her family a few hours each day. When the play opens, the Hellers take their meals in the parlor as their dining room is being redone by painters. The parents, Emma and Joe, worry over the two older children: Emma is sure Louise will never have a boyfriend or get married, while Joe frets over Willie's lack of ambition for either school or work. Each champions the child whom the other worries about. Meanwhile, little Annabelle makes desultory classic noises on the upright piano when driven to it, but sings Red Hot Mama when freed. At dinner, Louise startles everyone by announcing that Charles Grant is coming to call. She met him at a party a few weeks earlier and they plan to go boating on Sunday. Charles proves a personable lad, and Emma tries to make Louise seem a "catch" by inflating the family's economic status. When the couple are left alone, Charles proposes to Louise, who accepts, but wants the engagement to remain a secret from her family for now. When Charles comes to collect Louise on Sunday morning, he is made aware of the inflated expectations for modern brides through the chatter of Miss Callahan. Emma again paints a rosy picture of Louise's many (fictional) suitors and the family circumstances. When Louise appears, Charles tells her he feels his salary is inadequate to support her. Louise flies into a rage at her family, denigrating them in front of Charles. She breaks off the engagement—the first her family has heard of it—and exits, as does Charles. A few hours later, Louise informs her parents she is leaving. Before she does, Willie notices Charles sitting on the front stoop. Joe sends Willie down with a tale to get Charles back up to the apartment. Joe also phones Mrs. Grant, who arrives with Herbert in tow. Herbert is told to go play with Annabelle, but demurs until Willie marches him out of the parlor. The three adults then open up about their aspirations for the young couple, who are reconciled, with Emma and Louise apologising to each other.
Gerardine disguises himself as a wealthy widow’s fiancé to recover his mortgaged estate and marry Maria, while Glister’s and Purge’s households are entangled in affairs, failed seductions and a satirical portrayal of the supposedly lascivious Family of Love. Gerardine stages a mock trial that forces Glister to consent to the marriage.
The play ranges across Edward I's return from crusade, his struggle with Llywelyn in Wales, and John Balliol's revolt in Scotland. It combines political conflict and dynastic episodes with Robin Hood-style ballad characters and comic scenes.
Act I (The living room of the Fair home on Long Island. A morning in May 1919.) Sylvia and Alan discuss their mother's home coming after four years away. Alan telephones Peggy, and Sylvia guesses they are engaged. Nora brings in E. Dudley Gillette, who has a contract for public lectures for their mother. Alan takes a dislike to him, but Sylvia is startled by his obvious interest in her. Alan sends Gillette away, keeping the contract which he means to destroy. Neighbor Angy Brice brings some violets for their mother's welcome. Sylvia is delighted; Angy has been her friend since her mother went away. Alan, however, is cold to her, knowing her interest in their wealthy father. She is still there when Jeffrey brings in Nancy, having met her at the dock. Nancy is delighted at how Sylvia has grown, but puzzled by Angy's presence. She is amused by Jeffrey's discomfiture, but is distracted by the arrival of her old ambulance unit, five women who served with her in France. Alan warns Jeffrey and Sylvia that Nancy will soon experience boredom with peace time life, as he did when demobilized. (Curtain) Act II (Same as Act I. An afternoon in June.) Nancy's old coterie is once again visiting. Though they have abandoned uniforms, their reminisces and attention feed Nancy's thirst for a cause to fight. Sylvia has at last begun to sense Angy's attentions to her father, and their friendship cools, while Alan openly spars with the widow, who maintains her composure. Alan finally tells his father about Peggy, who has come to tea. Jeffrey has a conversation with Peggy, and approves of her, despite her being a middle-class suffragist. But Jeffrey is aghast that Alan has not yet spoken of her to Nancy. Before Alan can do so, Gillette hustles Nancy and her crew off to be photographed. He is still pressing her to sign a contract for a speaking tour. Angy lures Jeffrey outside where she subtly feeds his resentment about Nancy's distance from her family. Gillette flirts with Sylvia, who is unused to male attention, though she is perceptive enough to realize he is pumping her for information about Nancy's intentions. When Nancy returns, she is terribly hurt to learn of her son's engagement. Peggy leaves to avoid a scene. Jeffrey tries to forbid Nancy from going on tour, but she defies him by signing Gillette's contract. (Curtain) Act III (The New York apartment of Jeffrey Fair. An evening in October, just after 9pm.) From exposition between Alan and Jeffrey we learn that Nancy has just returned from a three month speaking tour, but is planning to attend a banquet that night. Sylvia accompanied Nancy for a month, but then came back to New York. Jeffrey took the apartment in New York so she could have some company. Alan and Peggy are married and living in an apartment, so Sylvia is unsupervised by family, for Angy Brice has come to town and is monopolizing Jeffrey. Nancy now comes in to ask if Sylvia has returned; she also tells Alan to bring Peggy sometime, as she wants to make her peace with her. Alan is delighted, and rushes off to Peggy's office. Sylvia arrives home, and her mother is appalled at her daughter's appearance. She wears mascara, lipstick and rouge, and sports the clothes and hat of a chorus girl. Indeed, she has been consorting with chorus girls introduced to her by Gillette, who is taking her to dinner. Nancy is surprised to learn of Gillette's liberality in squiring Sylvia about town. She cuddles Sylvia on her lap, wipes away the makeup and then sends her to her room. When Gillette arrives for Sylvia, Nancy confronts him with demands for the lecture tour money he owes her and to stop seeing Sylvia. Gillette agrees, but instead of saying goodbye to Sylvia, convinces her to run away with him by telling her of Jeffrey's affair with Angy. Nancy and Jeffrey blame each other for Sylvia's neglect. When Jeffrey admits to having paid off Angy to end their affair, Nancy asks for a divorce. But Alan and Peggy rush in, having seen Sylvia and Gillette leave together in a taxi. Nancy is aghast, but Alan phones Tom Gibbs to set the police on Gillette. (Curtain) Act IV (Same as Act III. Two hours later.) Peggy tries to comfort Nancy, while Jeffrey and Alan are out with the police. When Jeffrey returns, he tells Nancy that Gillette wants to marry Sylvia to stop Nancy prosecuting him for fraud. Alan returns with Sylvia; the police had caught up with her and Gillette at the train station. Sylvia is angry and hurt with her family for ignoring her. She asks, "Why drag me back here when no one wants me?" Her emotional breakdown is followed by Peggy's recounting of Gillette's prior links with charity fraud. Nancy and Jeffrey reconcile with each other and Sylvia. When Peggy asks where Gillette is, Alan replies, "In an ambulance" while showing his fists. (Curtain)
At Tintagel, Queen Iseult and King Mark return from separate sea voyages. Tristram, disguised as a harper, meets her; Mark kills him, Iseult kills Mark with the same dagger and then dies by suicide, while Iseult the Whitehanded leaves. Merlin frames the action in prologue and epilogue.
The play follows Prince Henry from youthful robbery and tavern disorder through his reconciliation with Henry IV and accession to the throne. As Henry V, he prepares to invade France, wins at Agincourt, and woos Princess Katherine.
A fan passes from hand to hand, linking the characters in a lively comedy of misunderstandings and social encounters.
In Siena, bachelor Marquis Octavio’s Bower of Fancies is mistaken for a harem, though the three young women are his wards. A suitor’s schemes and the women’s tests of virtue drive the main plot; a spendthrift husband who sold his wife, a barber’s marriage and a separate pair of lovers add interlocking comic and romantic complications.
The Far Country is a 2022 American play by Lloyd Suh. The play follows an unlikely family's immigration from Taishan, Guangdong to the San Francisco Bay Area in the wake of the Chinese Exclusion Act during the early 20th century. The Far Country was a finalist for the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
After their mother's death, Philippe struggles with a widening divide from his younger brother André while pursuing his doctorate on Konstantin Tsiolkovsky. His fascination with the Soviet-American space race and the search for extraterrestrial intelligence leads him to prepare a video message for a possible audience beyond Earth.
This dance-theatre adaptation follows the comic dispute over a missing skull-bowl: drunken Kapalika mendicants Satyasoma and Devasoma accuse a Buddhist monk before a Pasupata intervenes and a madman returns the bowl, recovered from a dog. The 2003 version was edited to highlight Bharatanatyam.
In a village ruled by landowner Don Augusto, farmer Juan resists increased rents and defends the villagers while pursuing the owner's daughter Isabel. Encarnación, who loves Juan, is also harassed by Don Augusto; when Juan rejects Isabel's offer of money and the villagers refuse to revolt, Don Augusto and rival Alonso conspire against him. Encarnación finally confesses her love, but Alonso kills Juan, leaving her to lament.
The play concerns a farmer who has returned from the coronation of George III in London. Farmer John regales his family with stories of the sights of London, including the famous Cock Lane ghost fraud. The apparent ghost was known to answer questions by "scratching and knocking once for 'yes', twice for 'no'". The farmer then teases his wife by saying that the ghost knocked twice when he asked about her fidelity.
After his wife dies, a farmer goes through an elaborate attempt to persuade one of his various female neighbours to marry him without realising that the ideal woman is already working as his housekeeper.
Aaron Sorkin's drama about Philo Farnsworth's development of electronic television and his conflict with RCA president David Sarnoff, whose competing claim becomes a dispute over who invented the technology.
The Faro Table is a comedy play by the British writer John Tobin. Written in the late 1790s, it was initially agreed to be staged by Richard Brinsley Sheridan, the manager of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, who then pulled out of the arrangement. Possibly this was because the character Lady Nightshade was too obviously based on Lady Sarah Archer, one of the Faro Ladies. It drew inspiration from Sheridan's The School for Scandal, particularly the character of Sir Oliver, who is here renamed Barton Around the time Tobin died of tuberculosis, he enjoyed great success with The Honey Moon, leading to greater demand for his unstaged works. It was published posthumously by John Murray and finally premiered in the West End at Drury Lane on 5 November 1816. A prologue was written by Thomas Love Peacock, while the cast included William Dowton as Barton, James William Wallack as Sedgemore, John Pritt Harley as Hint, William Oxberry as Sapling, Sarah Harlowe as Lady Nightshade and Maria Rebecca Davison as Lady Wellgrove.
Two foundlings separately ask the Lord Chancellor to arrange their lives: Horace seeks a job and a motherly wife, while Anastasia demands a weak-willed husband; they recognize each other as kindred and embrace.
A sentimental comedy, it follows the adventures of Augusta Aubrey after she leaves her ward's house and is nearly seduced by the villainous Lord Abberville.
In a dilapidated East End flat, thirty-year-old Cougar Glass obsessively pretends to be nineteen and hosts birthday parties to lure young people he has befriended. When fifteen-year-old Foxtrot arrives with his pregnant seventeen-year-old girlfriend Sherbet, she sees through Cougar and takes control of the gathering.
A 12-part play of portraits presenting stories about love, family, sexuality, religion, bullying and other experiences of teenage life. Its largely wordless, symbolic form uses music and animated illustrations to evoke teenage insecurities, rebellion, acceptance and the path to adulthood.
Vera Cartwright, a sophisticated Manhattan society woman, must choose between her boorish husband, a theatrical producer, and a young playwright who admires her.
In ancient Greece, a man, Ammon, is upset that his adopted sister, Hesione, whom he is in love with, is going to marry a soldier, Omphales. Ammon decides to blackmail a priest, Zimon, who is officiating the wedding of Omphales and Hesione, into delivering a bad omen that will prevent the two from marrying one another. Tryphon, Hesione's father, believes Zimon's falsehood, and refuses to let his daughter wed Omphales. Omphales leaves the city and conjures up an army of soldiers to overtake Tryphon, but is, along with his allies, defeated and killed. As a result, Hesione, who has been in a state of madness since Omphales's departure, dies. A guilty Ammon bemoans his actions.
Queen Fredigond secretly exterminates the family of Chrotilda, whose brother Lamot was wrongly blamed for the rape of her daughter. Disguised as the eunuch Castrato, Chrotilda manipulates the royal family into further murders and tortures, but the plot is exposed and the play ends with the royal heirs and Chrotilda facing death.
The Fatal Discovery is a 1769 tragedy by the British writer John Home. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London. The original cast included Spranger Barry as Ronan, Samuel Reddish as Orellan, Francis Aickin as Connan, John Palmer as Durstan, Thomas Jefferson as Kathul, James Aickin as Euran and Ann Street Barry as Rivine.
After Charalois’s father dies in debtor’s prison, Charalois takes his place to secure a proper burial. He marries Beaumelle, whose affair with Novall Junior ends in violence, a mock trial, and a series of deaths.
The Fatal Falsehood is a 1779 verse drama tragedy by the British writer Hannah More. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden in London on 7 May 1779. The original cast included Matthew Clarke as Earl Guilford, William Thomas Lewis as Rivers, his son, Richard Wroughton as Orlando, a young Italian Count, Francis Aickin as Bertrand, Elizabeth Younge as Emmelina and Elizabeth Hartley as Julia. The prologue was written by Richard Brinsley Sheridan. Like all of More's plays, the dramatis personae is very small, with only six named roles. As with all of her "serious" tragedies, only the prologues and epilogues are in rhyming couplets, while the entire action is written in blank verse. Once more, More undermines her own work in the prologue, spoken by Mr. Hull:Nor does she emulate the loftier strains Which high heroic Tragedy maintains: Nor conquests she, nor wars, nor triumphs sings, Nor with rash hand o'erturns the thrones of kings [...] The scenes of private life our author shows, A simple story of domestic woes [...]
The Fatal Jealousy (also written as The Fatal Jealousie) is a 1672 tragedy by the English writer Henry Nevil Payne. It was staged by the Duke's Company at the Dorset Garden Theatre with a cast that included William Smith as Don Antonio, Matthew Medbourne as Don Gerardo, John Crosby as Don Sebastian, Samuel Sandford as Jasper, John Young as Don Francisco, Henry Norris as Servant, James Nokes as Nurse, Anne Shadwell as Caelia, Mary Betterton as Eugenia, Margaret Osborne as Flora.
The Fatal Legacy is a 1723 tragedy by the British writer Jane Robe. It was inspired by Jean Racine's 1664 play La Thébaïde. It concerns the children of Oedipus in Ancient Thebes. The original Lincoln's Inn Fields cast included Anthony Boheme as Eteocles, Lacy Ryan as Polynices, James Quin as Creon, Thomas Walker as Phocias, Thomas Smith as Alcander, John Egleton as Attalus, Anna Maria Seymour as Jocasta and Jane Rogers as Antigona. The prologue was written by Charles Beckingham.
The Fatal Marriage; Or, The Innocent Adultery is a 1694 tragicomedy by the Anglo-Irish writer Thomas Southerne. It was part of the tradition of She-tragedy which flourished at the time. Incidental music for the work was composed by Henry Purcell. It was originally performed by the United Company at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane featuring a cast that included Edward Kynaston as Count Baldwin, Joseph Williams as Biron, George Powell as Carlos, Thomas Betterton as Villeroy, John Verbruggen as Frederick, Thomas Doggett as Fernando, William Bowen as Jaqueline, Cave Underhill as Sampson, Joseph Harris as Bellford, John Freeman as Pedro, Elizabeth Barry as Isabella, Frances Maria Knight as Julia, Anne Bracegirdle as Villeria and Elinor Leigh as Nurse. A popular hit it was revived numerous times with many leading actresses playing the part of Isabella. In 1758 David Garrick adapted it for his play Isabella which became a signature role for Sarah Siddons.
The Fatal Retirement is a 1739 tragedy by the writer Anthony Brown. In his published version of the work, Brown complained about the last minute withdrawal of star actor James Quin from the play and the generally poor performance of the rest of the cast which he blamed for its public failure. The original Drury Lane cast included William Mills as Artamon, William Milward as Lanertes, Edward Berry as Ceron, Anna Marcella Giffard as Semandra, Elizabeth Butler as Sabia and Elizabeth Mills as Leonora.
A young widowed duchess secretly marries her household steward on the morning the action opens, despite her two powerful Spanish brothers' insistence that she remain unmarried. Theobald reshapes Webster's tragedy around this secret marriage and gives the adapted drama a different, ultimately conciliatory resolution.
The Fatal Vision is a 1716 tragedy by the British writer Aaron Hill. It is also known as The Fatal Vision: Or, the Fall of Siam. It is set at the Chinese imperial court in an unspecified time, and features the Chinese Emperor, his wife and two sons plus a captive princess from Siam. Hill funded the production using his own money. It ran for seven nights at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre.
The Fate of Capua is a 1700 tragedy by the writer Thomas Southerne. In Ancient Capua the rival Roman and Cartheginian factions vie for influence. The original cast included John Hodgson as Pacuvius Calavius, Thomas Betterton as Virginius, John Bowman as Magius, John Verbruggen as Junius and Elizabeth Barry as Favonia. The prologue was written by Charles Boyle.
The Fate of Sparta is a 1788 tragedy by the British writer Hannah Cowley. It is also known by the longer title The Fate of Sparta, or, The Rival Kings. The original Drury Lane cast included John Philip Kemble as Cleombrotus, Robert Bensley as Leonidas, William Barrymore as Amphares, John Whitfield as Nicrates, Matthew Williames as Mezentius, Richard Staunton as Corex, John Phillimore as Sarpedon, Richard Wilson as Priest and Sarah Siddons as Cherolice.
Captain Adolf and his wife Laura clash over the future and education of their daughter Bertha. Laura persuades others that Adolf is mentally ill, leading to his confinement; he suffers a stroke and dies as Laura reclaims Bertha.
Told from Nathuram Godse's perspective, the play follows Gandhi's future assassin and examines the political and social changes surrounding Indian independence and the mythology built around its historical figures.
As the Racket marriage sours, each spouse tries to provoke the other’s jealousy, while the scheming Ranter pursues Caroline. Colonel Duncan misreads an encounter and intervenes; Ranter’s deceptions and the return of Duncan’s long-lost son ultimately resolve the romantic and family confusions.
Nick Yarris is a death row inmate who, at the start of the play, has been incarcerated in the Huntingdon State Prison for sixteen years. When he meets Jacki, a volunteer with the Western Pennsylvania Coalition Against the Death Penalty, he begins to strike up a friendship with her, in part because he is one of the few inmates who does not harass her when she enters the prison. The two gradually bond over their shared love of literature: having spent most of his days in isolation, Nick has become a voracious reader in order to fill the time. As their relationship grows stronger, Nick regales Jacki with anecdotes from his life, ranging from his misadventures with childhood friends to his 30-day escape to Florida from the custody of county sheriffs, while en route from the Pennsylvania prison to a court hearing. Neither she nor the audience can be sure how many of his stories are true. Nick eventually confides in Jacki that he was wrongfully convicted, a situation that occurred after he erroneously accused a childhood acquaintance of committing the rape and murder of Linda Mae Craig, in an attempt to lighten lesser charges he acquired after a heated encounter with a police officer. Jacki commits to helping Nick overturn his conviction; eventually, the two fall in love. Over the course of several years, the couple attempts to prove Nick's innocence with the emerging technology of DNA profiling, though these efforts are repeatedly thwarted due to the mishandling of evidence. Jacki even marries Nick, thinking he will soon be free. Eventually, however, she decides to leave him, having come to the conclusion that his appeals are hopeless. After this, Nick pens a letter to the assigned judge requesting his execution, but instead his lawyer informs him that new DNA testing has finally exonerated him. In the wake of this news, Nick takes a long shower, which causes him to reflect on the sexual assault he experienced at nine years old, an incident whose traumatic after-effects he believes set him on the tragic path his life took. Once released, Nick delivers a monologue extolling the small pleasures in life and remembering his childhood dog.
At a feast celebrating Bengt and Margit's anniversary, Margit regrets her marriage and hopes to reunite with outlawed Gudmund. Her sister Signe and Gudmund love one another, while the sheriff Knut seeks Signe's hand. A planned poisoning is narrowly avoided, Bengt is killed in the ensuing conflict, and the king restores Gudmund's standing.
Two sisters flee to Rome and pose as courtesans to escape unwanted futures: Marcella loves Fillamour, while Cornelia is destined for a convent. A tangle of disguises, mistaken identities and Octavio’s revenge ends with the sisters’ marriages and Laura Lucretia’s unexpected engagement to her intended husband.
The Female Advocates is a 1713 comedy play by the British writer William Taverner. The longer title is The Female Advocates: or, the Frantic Stock-jobber. The original Drury Lane cast featured William Bullock as Sir Charles Transfer, Henry Norris as Sir Feeble Dotard, Barton Booth as Captain Stanworth, John Mills as Heartly, John Bowman as Friendly, George Pack as Bite, James Spiller as Smart, Mary Porter as Mrs Freelove, Margaret Bicknell as Olivia, Elizabeth Spiller as Brush, Susanna Mountfort as Charlotte.
The Female Fortune Teller is a 1726 comedy play by the British writer Charles Johnson. It is a reworking of Edward Ravenscroft's 1683 restoration comedy Dame Dobson. The original cast featured James Quin as Spring, Lacy Ryan as Ringwood, Thomas Walker as Sir Charles Mirmont, John Hippisley as Owen Apwigeon, Jane Egleton as Mrs Joiner, Henrietta Morgan as Frances, Anne Parker as Astrea and Elizabeth Younger as Scuttle.
The Female Prelate; Being The History Of The Life And Death Of Pope Joan is a 1680 tragedy by the English writer Elkanah Settle. It was first performed by the King's Company at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London. The original cast members are unknown. It is also known by the shorter title Pope Joan. It is based on the legendary Pope Joan. It was produced at the height of the Popish Plot scare, when attempts were being made to exclude the Catholic heir James, Duke of York from the throne. Consequently, it is written from an anti-Catholic viewpoint. Settle dedicated a 1681 published version to the Earl of Shaftesbury, the Whig leader.
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