Hannah Cowley was an English playwright and poet. Although Cowley's plays and poetry did not enjoy wide popularity after the 19th century, critic Melinda Finberg rates her as "one of the foremost playwrights of the late eighteenth century" whose "skill in writing fluid, sparkling dialogue and creating sprightly, memorable comic characters compares favourably with her better-known contemporaries, Goldsmith and Sheridan." Cowley's plays were produced frequently in her lifetime. The major themes of her plays – including her first, The Runaway (1776), and her major success, which is being revived, The Belle's Stratagem (1780) – revolve around marriage and how women strive to overcome the injustices imposed by family life and social custom.
The Belle's Stratagem is a romantic comedy of manners, the most successful work of its playwright, Hannah Cowley. It received its premiere on 22 February 1780, filling the 2,000-seat Drury Lane theatre. The play became a major hit of the season, with Queen Charlotte enjoying it so much that she decreed it be performed for the royal family once a season for several years. Its title comes from George Farquhar's play The Beaux' Stratagem.
Elizabeth Younge was an English actress who specialized in Shakespearean roles.
James Aickin, was an Irish stage actor who worked at the Edinburgh Theatre in Scotland and in theatres in the West End of London.
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.
Richard Wroughton (1748–1822), was an actor, who worked mainly in Covent Garden and Drury Lane, and occasionally in the city of his birth, Bath.
Priscilla Kemble was an English actress. The English actor John Philip Kemble was her third and last husband.
The School for Friends is an 1805 comedy play by the British writer Marianne Chambers. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London on 10 December 1805. The Drury Lane cast featured Robert William Elliston as Lord Belmour, Richard Wroughton as Sir Felix Mordant, William Barrymore as Sir Edward Epworth, William Dowton as Mr. Hardy, Charles Mathews as Matthew Daw, Walter Maddocks as Landlord, Jane Pope as Lady Courtland, Dorothea Jordan as Mrs. Hamilton, Harriet Siddons as Miss Emily, Harriet Mellon as Lucy and Charlotte Tidswell as Sarah. The prologue was written by James Kenney. It appeared for 25 performances on its initial run.
The Masquerade is a 1719 comedy play by the British writer Charles Johnson.
The School for Vanity is a 1783 comedy play by the British writer Samuel Jackson Pratt. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London on 29 January 1783. The original Drury Lane cast included Thomas King as Sir Hercules Caustic, John Palmer as Sighwell, James William Dodd as Lord Frolic, William Brereton as Valentine Onslow, Robert Baddeley as Secondhand, William Parsons as Alderman Ingot, Elizabeth Hopkins as Lady Blaze, Mary Bulkley as Widow Wherett and Elizabeth Farren as Ophelia Wyndham.
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 Town Before You is a 1794 comedy play by the British writer Hannah Cowley.
Which is the Man? is a 1782 comedy play by the British writer Hannah Cowley. The original Covent Garden cast included John Henderson as Fitzherbert, William Thomas Lewis as Beauchamp, Richard Wroughton as Belville, John Quick as Pendragon, Charles Lee Lewes as Lord Sparkle, Isabella Mattocks as Sophy Pendragon, Sarah Maria Wilson as Kitty, Mary Morton as Clarinda, Harriet Pitt as Tiffany, Elizabeth Satchell as Julia and Elizabeth Younge as Bloomer.
The Man of Ten Thousand is a 1796 comedy play by the British writer Thomas Holcroft.
Seduction is a 1787 comedy play by the British writer Thomas Holcroft.
A Bold Stroke for a Husband is a 1783 comedy play by the British writer Hannah Cowley. The title is a variation on Susanna Centlivre's A Bold Stroke for a Wife. The original Covent Garden cast included William Thomas Lewis as Don Julio, Richard Wroughton as Don Carlos, John Quick as Don Caesar, John Edwin as Don Vincentio, Richard Wilson as Gasper, John Whitfield as Don Garcia, James Fearon as Vasquez, Mary Robinson as Victoria, Sarah Maria Wilson as Minette, Mary Whitfield as Laura, Harriet Pitt as Sancha and Isabella Mattocks as Olivia. The epilogue was written by John O'Keeffe. The play is in five acts and is set in Madrid.
The World as It Goes is a 1781 comedy play by the British writer Hannah Cowley.
Who's the Dupe? is a 1779 comedy play by the British writer Hannah Cowley. A two-act farcical afterpiece, it premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London on 10 April 1779. The original cast included William Parsons as Doiley, James Aickin as Sandford, John Palmer as Granger, Thomas King as Gradus, Priscilla Brereton as Elizabeth and Mary Ann Wrighten as Charlotte. The Irish premiere was at the Smock Alley Theatre in Dublin on 8 February 1791. Cowley had enjoyed success with her debut play The Runaway and followed it with the tragedy Albina and this farce. It became one of her most popular works.
Albina, Countess Raimond is a 1779 tragedy by the British playwright Hannah Cowley. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket in London 31 July 1779. The original cast included Howard Usher as King Henry, West Digges as Westmoreland, William Wyatt Dimond as Edward, James Aickin as Egbert, Robert Palmer as Oswald, John Gardner as Steward and Katherine Sherry as Albina. She dedicated the play to the politician Lord Harrowby.
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.
