''Lucius'' or ''Lucius, the First Christian King of Britain'' is a 1717
tragedy
Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy ...
by the British writer
Delarivier Manley
Delarivier "Delia" Manley (1663 or c. 1670 – 24 July 1724) was an English author, playwright, and political pamphleteer. Manley is sometimes referred to, with Aphra Behn and Eliza Haywood, as one of " the fair triumvirate of wit", which is a ...
. It is based on the life of
Lucius of Britain
Lucius (Welsh: Lles map Coel, Lleirwg, Lleufer or Lleufer Mawr) was a supposed 2nd-century king of the Britons traditionally credited with introducing Christianity into Britain. Lucius is first mentioned in a 6th-century version of the ''Liber Po ...
, the
second century ruler of Britain traditionally considered to have introduced
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
to Britain. It was Manley's final play to be staged.
It premiered at the
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Dr ...
on 11 May 1717 with a cast that included
John Thurmond
John Thurmond (died 1727) was a British stage actor. To distinguish him from his son, also an actor named John, he is sometimes called John Thurmond the Elder.
His earliest known stage performance was in 1695, when he played in '' Cyrus the Grea ...
as Honorius,
Lacy Ryan
Lacy Ryan (c. 1694–1760), English actor, appeared at the Haymarket Theatre about 1709.
Life
By 1718 he had joined the company at Lincoln's Inn Fields, where he shared the lead with his friend James Quin. He took leading roles in ''Richard ...
as Vortimer,
Barton Booth
Barton Booth (168210 May 1733) was one of the most famous dramatic actors of the first part of the 18th century.
Early life
Booth was the son of The Hon and Very Revd Dr Robert Booth, Dean of Bristol, by his first wife and distant cousin An ...
as Lucius,
John Mills
Sir John Mills (born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills; 22 February 190823 April 2005) was an English actor who appeared in more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades. He excelled on camera as an appealing British everyman who often portra ...
as Arminius,
John Bowman as Prince of Cambria,
Anne Oldfield as Rosalinda and
Christiana Horton as Emmelin.
[''The London Stage, 1660-1800: Volume II'' p.578]
References
Bibliography
* Burling, William J. ''A Checklist of New Plays and Entertainments on the London Stage, 1700-1737''. Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press, 1992.
* Nicoll, Allardyce. ''History of English Drama, 1660-1900, Volume 2''. Cambridge University Press, 2009.
* Hartley, Cathy. ''A Historical Dictionary of British Women''. Routledge, 2013.
* Van Lennep, W. ''The London Stage, 1660-1800: Volume Two, 1700-1729''. Southern Illinois University Press, 1960.
1717 plays
West End plays
Plays by Delarivier Manley
Tragedy plays
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