The history of Irish theatre begins in the Middle Ages and was for a long time confined to the courts of the Gaelic and "Old English" – descendants of 12th-century Norman invaders – inhabitants of Ireland. The first theatre building in Ireland was the Werburgh Street Theatre, founded in 1637, followed by the Smock Alley Theatre in 1662.
Over the centuries, there have been five theatres in Dublin called the Theatre Royal.
Events from the year 1670 in Ireland.
Tommaso Giordani was an Italian composer active in England and particularly in Ireland.
Events from the year 1715 in Ireland.
Matthew Concanen was a writer, poet and lawyer born in Ireland.
Macnamara Morgan (c.1720–1762) was an Irish playwright, poet, and barrister.
Since the 17th century, there have been numerous theatres in Dublin with the name Smock Alley.
Richard Daly (1758–1813) was an Irish actor and theatrical manager who, between 1786 and 1797, held the Royal patent for staging dramatic productions in Dublin and became such a dominant figure in Irish theatre that he was referred to as "King Daly".
Joseph Ashbury (1638–1720), was an English actor and theatrical manager.
Thomas Elrington (1688–1732), was an English actor.
John Leigh (1689–1726) was an Irish actor and dramatist.
Aungier Street is a street on the south side of Dublin, Ireland. It runs north-south as a continuation of South Great George's Street.
Jane Rogers was a British stage actress.
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.
Henry Giffard (1694–1772) was a British stage actor and theatre manager.
A Wife and No Wife is a 1724 comedy play by the Irish writer Charles Coffey. It premiered at the Smock Alley Theatre in Dublin. The original cast included Richard Elrington and Thomas Hallam.
Thomas Griffith (1680-1744) was an Irish stage actor and theatre manager.
Margaret Osborne or Osborn was an English stage actress of the seventeenth century She was a long-standing member of the Duke's Company from 1671, acting at Lincoln's Inn Fields and the Dorset Garden Theatre. She went to Dublin to work at the Smock Alley Theatre in 1677, but returned to the Duke's Company around two years later She subsequently joined the merged United Company in 1682 and was still acting in the 1690s.
Laurence Clinch (c1740-1812) was an Irish actor, familiarly known as Larry, and accomplished in both tragedy and comedy. The popular farce St Patrick's Day was written and performed to showcase his particular talent.
