''The Irish Widow'' is a

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * Pla ...

David Garrick David Garrick (19 February 1717 – 20 January 1779) was an English actor, playwright, theatre manager and producer who influenced nearly all aspects of European theatrical practice throughout the 18th century, and was a pupil and friend of Sa ...

first staged at

Drury Lane Theatre 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 Drur ...

on 23 October 1772. It was written in less than a week by Garrick and resembled the plot of '' Le Mariage forcé'' 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 ...

. A

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

, it depicts an elderly man who falls in love with his nephew's fiancée, the young Irish Widow Brady, and uses his control over his nephew's inheritance to end the relationship setting off a chain of events. The play was a success and was performed frequently until the 1820s.Stein p.102

References

Bibliography

* Stein, Elizabeth. ''David Garrick, Dramatist''. The Modern Language Association of America, 1937. * Wood, Edward Rudolf. ''Plays by David Garrick and George Colman the Elder''. Cambridge University Press, 1982. Plays by David Garrick 1772 plays {{1770s-play-stub