''The Rival Queens, or the Death Of Alexander the Great'' is a Restoration tragedy written by Nathaniel Lee . Regarded as one of his best tragedies, the play revolves around

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...

and his two wives,

Roxana Roxana (c. 340 BC – 310 BC, grc, Ῥωξάνη; Old Iranian: ''*Raṷxšnā-'' "shining, radiant, brilliant"; sometimes Roxanne, Roxanna, Rukhsana, Roxandra and Roxane) was a Sogdian or a Bactrian princess whom Alexander the Great married ...

and Statira, whose competition for his affections ends in tragedy. The play was largely influenced by French dramatist La Calprenède's historic romance ''Cassandre''.

Performance history

The play was first performed at the Theatre Royal in London by the King's Company. The original cast included Charles Hart as Alexander, Michael Mohun as Clytus, Philip Griffin as Lysimachus, Thomas Clark as Hephestion, Cardell Goodman as Polyperchon, Edward Kynaston as Cassander, Martin Powell as Philip, John Wiltshire as Thessalus, Edward Lydall as Perdiccas, Marmaduke Watson as Eumenes, Carey Perin as Meleager, John Coysh as Aristander, Katherine Corey as Sysigambis, Elizabeth Boutell as Statira and Anne Marshall as Roxana.Van Lennep p.255

Footnotes

Bibliography

* Van Lennep, W. ''The London Stage, 1660-1800: Volume One, 1660-1700''. Southern Illinois University Press, 1960. {{DEFAULTSORT:Rival Queens, The English Restoration plays Plays by Nathaniel Lee Tragedy plays Plays set in ancient Greece Cultural depictions of Alexander the Great West End plays Plays set in the 4th century BC