''Ion, a Tragedy'' is a

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 British writer Thomas Talfourd. Published in 1835, it was first performed at the

Theatre Royal, Covent Garden The Royal Opera House (ROH) is a theatre in Covent Garden, central London. The building is often referred to as simply Covent Garden, after a previous use of the site. The ROH is the main home of The Royal Opera, The Royal Ballet, and the Orch ...

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 ...

on 26 May 1836.Nicoll p.177 The Covent Garden cast included

William Macready William Charles Macready (3 March 179327 April 1873) was an English stage actor. The son of Irish actor-manager William Macready the Elder he emerged as a leading West End performer during the Regency era. Career Macready was born in London ...

as Ion,

Ellen Tree Ellen Kean (12 December 1805 – 20 August 1880) was an English actress. She was known as Ellen Tree until her marriage in 1842, after which she was known both privately and professionally as Mrs Charles Kean and always appeared in productions ...

(and subsequently

Helena Faucit Helena Saville Faucit, Lady Martin (11 October 1817 – 31 October 1898) was an English actress. Early life Born in London, she was the daughter of actors John Saville Faucit and Harriet Elizabeth Savill. Her parents separated when she was a ...

) as Clemanthe,

John Vandenhoff John Michael Vandenhoff (31 March 1790 – 4 October 1861) was an English actor. He performed in London theatres, and also in Edinburgh and Liverpool; he played leading roles including those in Shakespearean tragedy. Life Vandenhoff was born in ...

as Adrastus, King of Argos, Charles Thompson as Medon,

George John Bennett George John Bennett (1800–1879) was for nearly 40 years a Shakespearian actor on the London stage, notably Covent Garden and Drury Lane. Life He was the son of the comedian George Bennett anHarriet Morland, the daughter of an ancient family ...

as Phocion, Henry John Wallack as Ctesiphon,

John Langford Pritchard John Langford Home Pritchard (1799 – 5 August 1850) was an English actor, known as "Gentleman Pritchard".Parker, Herschel (2011)''The Powell Papers: A Confidence Man Amok Among the Anglo-American Literati'' Northwestern University Press. P.33 ...

as Agenor,

Harriette Deborah Lacy Harriette Deborah Lacy (1807–1874) was an English actress. Born in London, she was the daughter of a tradesman named Taylor. Her first appearance on the stage was at Bath, Somerset, Bath in 1827 as Julia in ''The Rivals'', and she was immedia ...

as Abra.

References

Bibliography

* Nicoll, Allardyce. ''A History of Early Nineteenth Century Drama 1800-1850''. Cambridge University Press, 1930. * Woolford, John & Karlin, Daniel (ed.) ''The Poems of Browning: Volume Two: 1841-1846''. Routledge, 2014. 1836 plays West End plays British plays Tragedy plays Historical plays Plays set in ancient Greece {{19thC-play-stub