Showing results by author "William Wycherley" in All Categories

Raunchy, risqué and rebellious, early Restoration comedies were a breath of fresh air for 17th century theatregoers. With Charles II restored to the throne in 1660, Oliver Cromwell's ban on stage performances was rescinded, and for the first time, women were invited to tread the boards as actresses. Playwrights developed a new style of social comedy, packed with amorous escapades, bawdy humour, wicked wit and sexual innuendo. This scintillating anthology showcases six leading lights of early Restoration drama.

Considered too obscene to be staged in its original form for nearly 200 years, William Wycherley’s bawdy comedy tells the tale of Mr Horner - a notorious rake who spreads the false rumour that he is impotent in order to gain free access to other men’s wives. When he meets the young...

Dive into one of the most scandalous Restoration comedies ever penned, William Wycherley’s *The Country Wife*. This vibrant and uproarious play offers a captivating look at the interplay between courtly and urban life in the seventeenth century, a time brimming with unrelenting sexual intrigue and conquest. Wycherley takes inspiration from Molière, yet he expands upon the French master’s themes with an array of interwoven storylines and colorful characters, all vying for your attention through his sharp, colloquial dialogue and clever double entendres. At the heart of the tale is the ...