(no subject)
Allison Best
Hawkinson
IB Theatre I
3BD
Restoration Comedy
After eighteen years of a long, strict puritan rule and ban on theatre in England, in 1660 theatre was back and the sexual energy of the stage was stronger than any other time in English theatrical history. These plays were so radical because the major theme of Restoration Comedy was based around sex. After the arduous Puritan rule, the English people were enthralled with the new scandalous and sexually charged plays. The writers of the Restoration Comedy plays (William Congreve, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, John Dreyden and William Wycherly) had to write to the audience’s tastes which could change from week to week rather than from season to season. The reason why Restoration Comedy was so successful wasn’t on how the stage was set, how light was cast or how costumes were worn; but were successful because how the characters interacted towards one another, how the lines were delivered and what was the message that was trying to be said from 1660 to 1700.
Restoration Comedy started when King Charles II, the catholic king, began his rule in 1660 and when he brought theatre back to the English common life. The plays written during King Charles II rule were known as Restoration Comedy plays. This was because they were written in a time in English history known as the Restoration where the English monarchy, Irish monarchy and Scottish monarchy were all restored under Charles the II, after the English civil war. Restoration Comedy plays were so
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revolutionary because they were based off of the Frenchman Molier’s Les Precieuses ridicules (1658). This English twist on the French satire was meant to lift up society for scrutiny and ridicule in order to change customs that to the writers seemed absurd (Wikipedia). These satirical plays took the small and diverse English audience (consisting of aristocrats and lower class citizens) by storm. Unfortunately, because the audiences were so small, companies had to fight for patrons and shows that had eleven consecutive shows were considered a hit on the stage (McMillian). What made shopws popular depended on what exactly was incorporated in the shows.
Popular themes in Restoration Comedy plays are love, marriage, seduction, adultery, jealousy, the manipulation of others, cynicism and the condemnation of others. Women in the plays were usually very promiscuous, very sexually frank, immoral, often prostitutes and often lacked the virtues that they tried to portray. Women were frequently on stage in tight fitting clothes that showed and emphasized their curves and were occasionally dressed in men’s clothing (such as Wycherly’s The Country Wife) which often caused an increase in attendance, especially with men patrons (McMillian). Another piece of Restoration Comedy that made audiences love them so much was the humor that was riddled throughout the show. The point of humor was to satirize a custom or idea of 17th and 18th century England. One example is from The Country Wife when Mr. Horner says, “a mistress should be like a little country retreat near the town, not to dwell in constantly, but only for a night and away, to taste the town better when a man returns” (McMillian, I.I). This particular quote exemplifies the objective nature of men towards women, treating them as a refresher for men to their community. The Country Best 2
Wife
Pinchwife doesn’t actually care for his wife, but rather is trying to keep her in line with his wishes and not to make up a “cockhold” (a man who is husband to an adulterous wife). This ridicules England’s strict belief that women are to be controlled by their husbands and have little to no power. Another satirical piece in The Country Wife is Margery’s supposed innocence, being that she is from the country. In actuality, she’s just as sexually open as the other women. Additionally, Lady Fidget is self proclaimed as virtuous but as her repeated attempts at Mr. Horner and leading in a bar like drinking song shows she’s more of a prostitute than a lady of honor. These pieces in The Country Wife emulate the gripping and popular issues that Restoration Comedy plays repeatedly performed on stage.
Restoration comedy, a genre focused on using sex as a toold for criticism and satire was one of the most controversial and entertaining genres ever performed on stage (Limbardi). Popular from 1660 to 1700, it captivated the lustful English audience and played with their fantasies while simultaneously stressing the ridiculousness of society and culture at the time. While Restoration Comedy was used to ridicule and life of English life and customs for scrutiny in order to (hopefully) inspire change in it’s audience, it was also one of the most popular genres of its time. With themes involving lust, sex, jealousy and manipulation; Restoration Comedy was a genre all of its own that focused more so on the satire and message of the plays than how the it was logistically performed. This gives freedom to the director while still achieving the play’s intended purpose which is to inspire change in its audience.
specifically, written by William Wycherly in 1675 is one Restoration Comedy that specifically exemplifies the techniques and satire that had woven itself in the 18th century plays.
The Country Wife was one of Wycherly’s most popular plays ever performed on the English stage (Restoration Comedy of Manners). This particular play focuses on loveless marriages, adultery, jealousy, promiscuous women and lust. Scenes such as The China Scene depict the sexual tension between multiple women and the object of their affections, Mr. Horner. Mrs. Squeamish says to Horner, “Oh, lord, I’ll have some china too. Good Mr. Horner, don’t think to give other people china, and me none; come to me with some too.“ To which Horner replies with, “Upon my honour, I have none left.” Lady Fidget then says in a snide remark to Mrs. Squeamish, “…Perhaps you just have not tried hard enough to find his china,” (McMillian). This shows that these women who say they are moral and virtuous are instinctually immoral, improper and flirtatious.
Another piece of satire that reflects absurd and ridiculous customs in English culture is personified in the Penknife scene. When Mr. Pinchwife discovers that his worst fear, that his wife Margery Pinchwife has met and fallen in love with Horner, he forces her to write him a letter. She protests and fights with him all she can saying, “but he is right in town therefore, I shall not write him, but speak to him” (McMillian). He dismisses her plea and tells her to write that she fights him “nauseous” and “loathing” but, she cannot find the strength to write such hurtful words she does not feel. “Write it woman, or I swear I will carve ‘whore’ into your forehead!” (McMillian). This shows
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