''The Counterfeits'' is a 1678

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

John Leanerd John Leanerd (fl. 1679) was a British playwright, notorious as a plagiarist. Works Leanerd published: * ''The Country Innocence, The Country Innocence; or, the Chambermaid turn'd Quaker'', London, a comedy acted at the London Theatre Royal in Len ...

. It was staged 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 ...

at the

Dorset Garden Theatre The Dorset Garden Theatre in London, built in 1671, was in its early years also known as the Duke of York's Theatre, or the Duke's Theatre. In 1685, King Charles II died and his brother, the Duke of York, was crowned as James II. When the Du ...

with a cast that included

Anthony Leigh Anthony Leigh (died 1692) was a celebrated English comic actor. Life He was from a Northamptonshire family, and was not closely related to the actor John Leigh (c.1689–1726?). He joined the Duke of York's company about 1672, and appeared in ...

as Don Gomez,

Thomas Gillow Thomas Gillow (died 1687) was an English stage actor of the Restoration era. His name was sometimes written Gilloe or Gillo. His first known role was at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre in Samuel Pordage's '' Herod and Mariamne'' in 1671. He rem ...

as Don Luis, Thomas Betterton as Vitelli, Henry Harris as Antonio,

Matthew Medbourne Matthew Medbourne (died 1680) was an English stage actor and occasional playwright of the Restoration era. A long-standing member of the Duke's Theatre, Medbourne was a victim of the Popish Plot scare and died in Newgate Prison. Medbourne was a ...

as Carles, William Smith as Peralta, Thomas Percival as Dormilon,

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 Fabio, Joseph Williams as Crispin, John Richards as Tonto, Mary Lee as Elvira, Emily Price as Violante and

Anne Shadwell Anne Shadwell was an English stage actor of the seventeenth century. She was one of the first English actresses to appear on stage following the Restoration She was one of six actors recruited in 1660 by William Davenant for the new Duke's Company ...

as Flora.Van Lennep p.270

References

Bibliography

* Canfield, J. Douglas. ''Tricksters and Estates: On the Ideology of Restoration Comedy''. University Press of Kentucky, 2014. * Van Lennep, W. ''The London Stage, 1660-1800: Volume One, 1660-1700''. Southern Illinois University Press, 1960. 1678 plays West End plays Restoration comedy Plays by John Leanerd {{17thC-play-stub