''Herod and Mariamne'' is a 1671

tragedy A tragedy is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a tragic hero, main character or cast of characters. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy is to invoke an accompanying catharsi ...

by the English writer Samuel Pordage. It was first performed 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 that period, theatres ...

at the

Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre Lisle's Tennis Court was a building off Portugal Street in Lincoln's Inn Fields in London. Originally built as a real tennis court, it was used as a playhouse during two periods, 1661–1674 and 1695–1705. During the early period, ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

shortly before they moved to the

Dorset Gardens 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, Charles II of England, King Charles II died and his brother, the Duke of York, was crowned as ...

. It was the company's attempt to respond to the great success of

John Dryden John Dryden (; – ) was an English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who in 1668 was appointed England's first Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, Poet Laureate. He is seen as dominating the literary life of Restoration (En ...

heroic drama Heroic drama is a type of Play (theatre), play popular during the English Restoration, Restoration era in England, distinguished by both its verse structure and its subject matter. The subgenre of heroic drama evolved through several works of the ...

The Conquest of Granada ''The Conquest of Granada by the Spaniards'' (1672), by is a two-part tragedy by John Dryden about the Spanish conquest of Granada (1482–1491), and the fall of Muhammad XII of Granada, the last Nasrit ruler of the Emirate of Granada (1230–1 ...

'' by the rival

King's Company The King's Company was one of two enterprises granted the rights to mount theatrical productions in London, after the London theatre closure 1642, London theatre closure had been lifted at the start of the English Restoration. It existed from 166 ...

. It is inspired by the accounts of

Josephus Flavius Josephus (; , ; ), born Yosef ben Mattityahu (), was a Roman–Jewish historian and military leader. Best known for writing '' The Jewish War'', he was born in Jerusalem—then part of the Roman province of Judea—to a father of pr ...

portraying the reign of

Herod II Herod II (c. 27 BC – 33/34 AD) was the son of Herod the Great and Mariamne II, the daughter of Simon Boethus the High Priest, and the first husband of Herodias, daughter of Aristobulus IV and his wife Berenice. For a brief period he was his fa ...

Cast

Matthew Medbourne Matthew Medbourne (died 19 March 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. Medbou ...

as Herod * John Crosby as Pheroras * John Lee as Alexas *

William Smith William, Willie, Will, Bill, or Billy Smith may refer to: Academics * William Smith (Master of Clare College, Cambridge) (1556–1615), English academic * William Smith (antiquary) (c. 1653–1735), English antiquary and historian of University C ...

as Tyridates * Henry Norris as Arsanes *

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 (18th-century actor), John Leigh (c.1689–1726?). He joined the Duke of York's comp ...

as Polites *

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 r ...

as Sosius *

Mary Betterton Mary Saunderson (1637–1712), later known as Mary Saunderson Betterton after her marriage to Thomas Betterton, was an actress and singer in England during the 1660s and 1690s. She is considered one of the first English actresses. Stage career ...

as Mariamne * Mary Lee as Salome * Margaret Osborne as AlexandraVan Lennep p.188

References

Bibliography

* Howe, Elizabeth. ''The First English Actresses: Women and Drama, 1660-1700''. Cambridge University Press, 1992. * Nicoll, Allardyce. ''History of English Drama, 1660-1900: Volume 1, Restoration Drama, 1660-1700''. Cambridge University Press, 1952. * Van Lennep, W. ''The London Stage, 1660-1800: Volume One, 1660-1700''. Southern Illinois University Press, 1960. 1671 plays West End plays Tragedy plays Plays by Samuel Pordage {{17thC-play-stub