''The Cutter of Coleman Street'' is a

comedy play Comedy is a genre of dramatic performance having a light or humorous tone that depicts amusing incidents and in which the characters ultimately triumph over adversity. For ancient Greeks and Romans, a comedy was a stage-play with a happy endin ...

by the English writer

Abraham Cowley Abraham Cowley (; 161828 July 1667) was an English poet and essayist born in the City of London late in 1618. He was one of the leading English poets of the 17th century, with 14 printings of his ''Works'' published between 1668 and 1721. Early ...

. It premiered at the

Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre Lisle's Tennis Court was a building off Portugal Street in Lincoln's Inn Fields in London. Originally built as a real tennis court, it was used as a playhouse during two periods, 1661–1674 and 1695–1705. During the early period, ...

on 16 December 1661, performed by the

Duke's Company The Duke's Company was a theatre company chartered by King Charles II at the start of the Restoration era, 1660. Sir William Davenant was manager of the company under the patronage of Prince James, Duke of York. During hats period, theatres b ...

. Cowley had originally written it in 1658 during the

English Commonwealth The Commonwealth was the political structure during the period from 1649 to 1660 when England and Wales, later along with Ireland and Scotland, were governed as a republic after the end of the Second English Civil War and the trial and execut ...

era. The title refers to

Coleman Street Coleman Street is one of the 25 ancient wards of the City of London and lies on the City's northern boundary with the London Borough of Islington. The ward, which includes land lying on either side of the former city wall, takes its name from ...

in the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

. The

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governme ...

Cowley inserted lines mocking the recent republican government of England, including Thomas Harrison who had been executed for

regicide Regicide is the purposeful killing of a monarch or sovereign of a polity and is often associated with the usurpation of power. A regicide can also be the person responsible for the killing. The word comes from the Latin roots of ''regis'' ...

the previous year. Although it was released during the Restoration period, along with '' The Committee'' its debt to earlier traditions mean that it not a full Restoration comedy in the style that would flourish after

George Etherege Sir George Etherege (c. 1636, Maidenhead, Berkshire – c. 10 May 1692, Paris) was an English dramatist. He wrote the plays '' The Comical Revenge or, Love in a Tub'' in 1664, ''She Would If She Could'' in 1668, and '' The Man of Mode or, ...

's ''

The Comical Revenge ''The Comical Revenge; Or, Love In A Tub'' is a 1664 comedy play by the English writer George Etherege. First staged by the Duke's Company, it premiered at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre. It is one of the earliest Restoration Comedies. The ...

'' in 1664. The original cast included

Thomas Betterton Thomas Patrick Betterton (August 1635 – 28 April 1710), the leading male actor and theatre manager during Restoration England, son of an under-cook to King Charles I, was born in London. Apprentice and actor Betterton was born in August 16 ...

as Colonel Jolly, Henry Harris as Young Trueman, Thomas Lovell as Old Trueman,

Cave Underhill Cave Underhill (1634–1710?) was an English actor in comedy roles. Underhill entertained three generations of London theatre-goers. For over 40 years, as a member of the Duke's Company, Underhill played the first Gravedigger in ''Hamlet''. He w ...

as Cutter,

Samuel Sandford Samuel Sandford ( fl. 1661–1699) was an English character actor, known for his roles as villains. Career He joined William D'Avenant's company at Lincoln's Inn Fields about a year after its formation, and was, on 16 December 1661, the original ...

as Captain Worme,

James Nokes James Nokes (Noke, Noak, Noakes) (died c.1692) was an English actor, whose laughter-arousing genius was attested by Cibber and other contemporaries. Life Nokes was one of the male actors who played female roles in the newly reopened playhouses s ...

as Puny,

Mary Betterton Mary Saunderson (1637–1712), later known as Mary Saunderson Betterton after her marriage to Thomas Betterton, was an actress and singer in England during the 1660s and 1690s. She is considered one of the first English actresses. Stage career ...

as Aurelia, Anne Gibbs as Lucia and Jane Long as Laughing Jane.Van Lennep p.44

References

Bibliography

* Canfield, J. Douglas. ''Tricksters and Estates: On the Ideology of Restoration Comedy''. University Press of Kentucky, 2014. * Farr, David. ''Major-General Thomas Harrison: Millenarianism, Fifth Monarchism and the English Revolution 1616-1660''. Routledge, 2016. * Fisk, Deborah Payne & Canfield, J. Douglas ''Cultural Readings of Restoration and Eighteenth-Century English Theater''. University of Georgia Press, 2010. * Van Lennep, W. ''The London Stage, 1660-1800: Volume One, 1660-1700''. Southern Illinois University Press, 1960. 1661 plays West End plays Restoration comedy Plays set in London {{17thC-play-stub