''The Will for the Deed'' is an 1804

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 British writer Thomas Dibdin. It premiered at the

Theatre Royal, Covent Garden The Royal Opera House (ROH) is an opera house and major performing arts venue in Covent Garden, central London. The large building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. It is the home of The Royal Ope ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on 24 March 1804. Nicoll p.288 The original cast included

Joseph Shepherd Munden Joseph Shepherd Munden (1758 – 6 February 1832) was an English actor. He had a long provincial experience as actor and manager. His first London appearance was in 1790 at Covent Garden, where he mostly remained until 1811, becoming a lea ...

as Old Harebrain,

William Thomas Lewis William Thomas Lewis (1748?–1811), known as "Gentleman" Lewis, due to his refined acting style, was an English actor. He was said to be "the most complete fop on the stage". In later life he went into theatrical management. Early days in Ir ...

as Harry Harebreain, William Blanchard as Antimony,

Samuel Simmons Samuel Simmons (1640–1687) was an English printer, best known as the first publisher Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditional ...

as Capias, John Fawcett as Motto,

Charles Farley Charles Farley (1771–1859) was an English actor and dramatist. Career Farley was born in London and entered the theatrical profession at an early age, making his first appearance as a page at Covent Garden Theatre, London, in 1782. He came to ...

as Reference, John Emery as Acorn, William Chapman as Manly and

Mary Ann Davenport Mary Ann Davenport ée Harvey(1759 – 8 May 1843) was a British Shakespearean actress. Life She was born at Launceston, Cornwall. She first appeared on the stage at Bath in December 1784, as Lappet in Henry Fielding's ''The Miser''. After two ...

as Mrs. Reference.

References

Bibliography

* Greene, John C. ''Theatre in Dublin, 1745-1820: A Calendar of Performances, Volume 6''. Lexington Books, 2011. * Nicoll, Allardyce. ''A History of English Drama 1660–1900: Volume IV''. Cambridge University Press, 2009. 1804 plays Comedy plays West End plays British plays Works by Thomas John Dibdin Plays set in England {{play-stub