''The Hypocrite'' is a 1768

comic 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 Irish writer

Isaac Bickerstaffe Isaac Bickerstaffe or Bickerstaff (26 September 1733 – after 1808) was an Irish playwright and Librettist. Early life Isaac John Bickerstaff was born in Dublin, on 26 September 1733, where his father John Bickerstaff held a government posi ...

. It is a reworking of the 1717 play ''

The Non-Juror ''The Non-Juror'' is a 1717 comedy play by the British writer Colley Cibber. It is inspired by Molière's 1664 work ''Tartuffe''. The original Drury Lane Theatre cast featured John Mills as Sir John Woodvil, Barton Booth as Colonel Woodvil, Robe ...

'' by

Colley Cibber Colley Cibber (6 November 1671 – 11 December 1757) was an English actor-manager, playwright and Poet Laureate. His colourful memoir ''Apology for the Life of Colley Cibber'' (1740) describes his life in a personal, anecdotal and even rambling ...

, itself inspired by

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and world ...

's ''

Tartuffe ''Tartuffe, or The Impostor, or The Hypocrite'' (; french: Tartuffe, ou l'Imposteur, ), first performed in 1664, is a theatrical comedy by Molière. The characters of Tartuffe, Elmire, and Orgon are considered among the greatest classical thea ...

''. The original play had derived much of its humour from the politics of the era, and revolved around the intrigues of Doctor Wolf, a

nonjuring The Nonjuring schism refers to a split in the established churches of England, Scotland and Ireland, following the deposition and exile of James II and VII in the 1688 Glorious Revolution. As a condition of office, clergy were required to swea ...

clergyman with strong ties to the underground Jacobite movement. Bickerstaffe altered the role to that of Doctor Cantwell, a hypocritical

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

. The first

Drury Lane Drury Lane is a street on the eastern boundary of the Covent Garden area of London, running between Aldwych and High Holborn. The northern part is in the borough of Camden and the southern part in the City of Westminster. Notable landmarks ...

cast included Thomas King as Doctor Cantwell,

John Hayman Packer John Hayman Packer (12 March 1730 – 16 September 1806) was an actor for David Garrick's company at Drury Lane. Originally a saddler, he created the character Freeman in James Townley's ''High Life Below Stairs'' (1759). His parts were usua ...

as Sir John Lambert,

Samuel Reddish Samuel Reddish (1735–1785) was a theatre manager and an actor in England. He made a reputation with Mossop's company in Smock Alley, Dublin in the seasons of 1761-2 and appeared at Drury Lane, London, 1767, where he remained during ten seasons ...

as Darnley,

Samuel Cautherley Samuel Cautherley (c.1747–1805) was a British stage actor. His surname is sometimes spelt as Cautherly. Born to the actress Jane Green, he was reputed to be the son of David Garrick, actor-manager at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. Cautherley b ...

as Charles, Thomas Weston as Mawworm,

Mary Bradshaw Mary Bradshaw (died 1780) was a British stage actress at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane for 37 years. She appeared with David Garrick and she was included in a painting by Johann Zoffany. Life Bradshaw comes to notice playing young women. She join ...

as Old Lady Lambert,

Ann Street Barry Ann Street Barry aka Ann Dancer later Ann Crawford (1734 – 29 November 1801), was a British singer, dancer and stage actress. Life Barry was born in Bath, England, to an apothecary named James Street. Her brother, William Street, later became ...

as Lady Lambert and

Frances Abington Frances "Fanny" Abington (1737 – 4 March 1815) was an English actress who was also known for her sense of fashion. Writer and politician Horace Walpole described her as one of the finest actors of their time, and Richard Brinsley Sheridan was s ...

as Charlotte.Hogan It premiered in Bickerstaffe's native

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

in 1772, and was revived in London on several occasions. A 1814 revival featured

William Dowton William Dowton (1764–1851) was a British actor. Early life Dowton, the son of an innkeeper and grocer at Exeter, was born in that city on 25 April 1764. At an early age he worked with a marble cutter, but in 1780 was articled to an archite ...

Benjamin Wrench Benjamin Wrench (1778–1843), was an actor, born in 1778 in London, where his father occupied ‘a lucrative appointment in the Exchequer.’ He seems to have been grandson of Sir Benjamin Wrench, M.D., of Norwich (d. 1747, aged 82) (see Notes ...

and

William Oxberry William Oxberry (1784–1824) was an English actor. He also wrote extensively on the theatre, and was a printer and publisher. Early life Oxberry was the son of an auctioneer, born on 18 December 1784 in Moorfields, London, opposite Bedlam. Af ...

amongst others.

References

Bibliography

* Hogan, C.B (ed.) ''The London Stage, 1660–1800: Volume V''. Southern Illinois University Press, 1968. * Kinne, Willard Austin. ''Revivals and Importations of French Comedies in England, 1749-1800''. * Nicoll, Allardyce. ''History of English Drama, 1660-1900, Volume 2''. Cambridge University Press, 2009. 1768 plays West End plays Plays by Isaac Bickerstaffe Comedy plays Plays based on works by Molière Works based on Tartuffe {{play-stub