John Bannister was an English actor and theatre manager. The principal source for his life are his own Memoirs, and as a leading performer his career is well documented.
The West Indian is a play by Richard Cumberland first staged at the Drury Lane Theatre in 1771. A comedy, it depicts Belcour, a West Indian plantation owner, travelling to Britain. Belcour tries to overcome his father's lingering disapproval of him and marry his sweetheart Louisa. Its hero, who probably owes much to the suggestion of David Garrick, is a young scapegrace fresh from the tropics, "with rum and sugar enough belonging to him to make all the water in the Thames into punch", a libertine with generous instincts, which prevail in the end. The early example of the modern drama was favorably received. Boden translated it into German, and Goethe acted in it at the Weimar court.
The Walloons is a comedy play by the British writer Richard Cumberland. It was first staged at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden in London in April 1782. The original cast included John Henderson as Father Sullivan, Richard Wroughton as Montgomery, John Quick as Sir Solomon Dangle, Charles Lee Lewes as Davy Dangle, Francis Aickin as Daggerly, Matthew Clarke as Don Vincentio Drclincourt, John Edwin as Pat Carey, James Fearon as Bumboat, James Thompson as Tipple, Sarah Maria Wilson as Kitty Carrington, Ann Pitt as Mrs Partlet, Mrs Webb as Lady Dangle and Elizabeth Satchell as Agnes. The character of Father O'Sullivan was widely believed to be based on Father Thomas Hussey an Irish-born Priest with whom Cumberland conducted secret talks in an attempt to secure a peace agreement between Britain and Spain during the American War of Independence.
The Impostors is a comedy play by Richard Cumberland. It was first performed at the Drury Lane Theatre in January 1789. The plot closely resembled that of The Beaux' Stratagem by George Farquhar.
The Battle of Hastings is a 1778 play by the English writer Richard Cumberland. It is a tragedy set around the Battle of Hastings in 1066. It was staged at the Drury Lane Theatre in October 1778 by Richard Brinsley Sheridan. Sheridan later mocked Cumberland's sensitivity to criticism by modelling the character Sir Fretful Plagiary, in his 1779 play The Critic, after him.
The Brothers is a 1769 comedy play by Richard Cumberland. The play was Cumberland's breakthrough work. Its complicated plot involved a villain with a virtuous young brother and was set partly in Cornwall. He dedicated the play to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom the Duke of Grafton. Two years later Cumberland went on to write his most successful work The West Indian.
Don Pedro is a tragic play by the British writer Richard Cumberland. It was first staged at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket in London on 23 July 1796. The original cast included James Aickin as Count Valdesoto, Charles Kemble as Henrique, John Palmer as Pedro De Rascifiria, John Bannister as Basco de Robeldondo, Richard Suett as Nicolas Sassenigo, Thomas Caulfield as Tayo, George Wathen as Roca, Robert Palmer as Cerbero and Elizabeth Kemble as Celestina, Sarah Harlowe as Mariguita, Maria Kemble as Cattania and Elizabeth Hopkins as Benedicta. The epilogue was written by George Colman the Younger.
First Love is a 1795 sentimental comedy play by the British playwright Richard Cumberland. It was first performed at the Drury Lane Theatre in May 1795. Frederick Mowbray becomes the protector of Sabrina Rosny after her abandonment by Lord Sensitive.
The Last of the Family is a comedy play by the British writer Richard Cumberland. It was first staged at Drury Lane Theatre on 8 May 1797 as a benefit performance for the actor John Bannister. The original cast included William Dowton as Sir John Manfred, John Bannister as Sir Adam ap Origen, Ralph Wewitzer as Squire Abel, Charles Kemble as Peregrine, Richard Suett as Beau Tiffany, Robert Palmer as Ned Flexible, Thomas Caulfield as George Ivey, John Hayman Packer as David Duncan, Jane Pope as Lady Manfred, Charlotte Tidswell as Lucy and Dorothea Jordan as Letitia Manfred.
The Box-Lobby Challenge is a comedy play by the British writer Richard Cumberland. It was first staged at the Haymarket Theatre in February 1794. It is a farcical comedy of manners set amongst the working class. The original cast included Thomas Caulfield as George Waterland, William Barrymore as Captain Waterland, James Aickin as Sir Toby Grampus, Richard Suett as Squire Robert, Robert Baddeley as Old Crochet, John Bannister as Jack Crotchet, George Bland as Fulsome Walter Maddocks as Jones, Robert Benson as Joe, Maria Gibbs as Lady Jane Danvers, Sarah Harlowe as Diana Grampus, Charlotte Goodall as Laetitia, Elizabeth Hopkins as Theodosia and Maria De Camp as Lindamira. The prologue was authored by Francis North.
Laurence Clinch 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.
Ways and Means; Or, a Trip to Dover is a 1788 comedy play by the British writer and theatre manager George Colman the Younger. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket in London with a cast that included John Bannister as Sir David Dunder, John Palmer as Random, James Brown Williamson as Scruple, James Aickin as Old Random, Howard Usher as Paul Peery, Lydia Webb as Lady Dunder and Elizabeth Kemble as Harriet. Its Irish premiere was at the Crow Street Theatre in Dublin on 24 April 1793.
The Fatal Falsehood is a 1779 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.
Elizabeth Hopkins (1731–1801) was an English stage actress of the eighteenth century. Born as Elizabeth Barton to a publican in York, she married the actor William Hopkins in 1753. and he introduced her to the stage. They acted together in the provinces and then in Edinburgh where she was original Anna in John Home's Douglas in 1756. She then went to Dublin to perform at the Smock Alley Theatre and elsewhere, although she was at one point dismissed by the company by Thomas Sheridan. When her husband was appointed as prompter at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London she joined the company there, making her first appearance there in 1761. For several decades she was an integral part of the Drury Lane company, occasionally appearing elsewhere in the summer including at Richmond and the Theatre Royal, Haymarket. She transitioned in the 1780s from the younger, tragic roles she had played to older character parts such as dowagers Her final appearance was at the Haymarket in 1796. The actress Priscilla Kemble, wife of John Philip Kemble, was her daughter.
The Choleric Man is a 1774 comedy play by the British author Richard Cumberland. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London on 10 December 1774. The original cast included Thomas King as Andrew Nightshade, James Aickin as Manlove, John Hayman Packer as Stapleton, Samuel Reddish as Charles Manlove, Thomas Weston as Jack Nightshade, Robert Baddeley as Dibble, John Moody as Gregory, Francis Godolphin Waldron as Frampton. Roger Wright as Frederick, Elizabeth Hopkins as Mrs Stapleton, Frances Abington as Laetitia and Jane Pope as Lucy. The play's Irish premiere took place at the Crow Street Theatre in Dublin on 14 April 1777. It also appeared later at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden.
The Dupe is a 1763 comedy play by the Irish writer Frances Sheridan. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London on 10 December 1763. The original cast included Richard Yates as Sir John Woodall, William Havard as Friendly, John Hayman Packer as Wellford, Thomas King as Sharply and Hannah Pritchard as Mrs Etherdown, Kitty Clive as Mrs Friendly. It was one of only two new mainpieces debuting at Drury Lane that year along with a clutch of afterpieces. Sheridan, the mother of the playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan, was best known for her novel Memoirs of Miss Sidney Bidulph but had enjoyed success with the play The Discovery earlier in the year.
The Double Deception is a 1779 comedy play by the British writer Elizabeth Richardson. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on 28 April 1779, and was her only play. The original cast included James William Dodd as Flippant, William Parsons as Welford, James Aickin as Fairgrove, Robert Baddeley as Rudely, Francis Godolphin Waldron as Robin, John Palmer as Sir Henry Varnish, Elizabeth Farren as Louisa Freemore, Elizabeth Hopkins as Lady Varnish, Priscilla Brereton as Sophia Welford, Jane Pope as Kitty.
The Dependent is a 1795 comedy play by the British writer Richard Cumberland. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London on 20 October 1795. The original cast included Thomas King as Lord Leverington, Richard Suett as Sir Clement Canteser, John Philip Kemble as Edmund D'Alincourt, James Aickin as Carrington, John Bannister as Gabriel Wrinkle, George Wathen as Isaac, John Phillimore as Thomas, Walter Maddocks as Harry, Jane Pope as Mrs Margaret and Elizabeth Farren as Jane.
I'll Tell You What is a 1785 comedy play by the English writer Elizabeth Inchbald. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket in London on 4 August 1785. The original cast included John Palmer as Major Cyprus, Robert Bensley as Anthony Euston, James Aickin as Colonel Downright, James Brown Williamson as Sir George Euston, John Bannister as Charles Euston, Robert Palmer as Sir Harry Harmless, William Parsons as Mr Euston, Mary Bulkley as Lady Euston and Elizabeth Farren as A Young Lady. The Irish premiere took place at the Smock Alley Theatre in Dublin on 12 December 1785.
The Prisoner at Large is a 1788 comedy play by the Irish John O'Keeffe. A farce, it premiered as an afterpiece at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket in London on 2 July 1788. The original cast included James Brown Williamson as Lord Esmond, William Henry Moss as Old Dowdle, Ralph Wewitzer as Count Fripon, Robert Palmer as Jack Connor, John Phillimore as Frill, John Edwin as Muns and Elizabeth Kemble as Adelaide. The Irish premiere took place at the Crow Street Theatre in Dublin on 7 August 1789.
