John Whitfield (1752–1814) was a British

stage actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

. He was part of the

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist sit ...

and

Drury Lane Drury Lane is a street on the boundary between the Covent Garden and Holborn areas of London, running between Aldwych and High Holborn. The northern part is in the borough of London Borough of Camden, Camden and the southern part in the City o ...

companies, playing over two hundred roles. He often appeared alongside his wife Mary Whitfield.Cox & Gamer p.426

Selected roles

* Agenor in '' Cleonice, Princess of Bithynia'' by John Hoole (1775) * Edric in '' Percy'' by

Hannah More Hannah More (2 February 1745 – 7 September 1833) was an English religious writer, philanthropist, poet, and playwright in the circle of Johnson, Reynolds and Garrick, who wrote on moral and religious subjects. Born in Bristol, she taught at ...

(1777) * Sir Henry Lovewit in '' Know Your Own Mind'' by Arthur Murphy (1777) * Earl of Surrey in ''

Alfred Alfred may refer to: Arts and entertainment *''Alfred J. Kwak'', Dutch-German-Japanese anime television series * ''Alfred'' (Arne opera), a 1740 masque by Thomas Arne * ''Alfred'' (Dvořák), an 1870 opera by Antonín Dvořák *"Alfred (Interlu ...

'' by

John Home Rev John Home (2 September 1722 – 4 September 1808) was a Scottish minister, soldier and author. His play '' Douglas'' was a standard Scottish school text until the Second World War, but his work is now largely neglected. In 1783, he was ...

(1778) * Villers in ''

The Belle's Stratagem ''The Belle's Stratagem'' is a romantic comedy of manners, the most successful work of its playwright, Hannah Cowley. It received its premiere on 22 February 1780, filling the 2,000-seat Drury Lane theatre.Swale, Jessica. "The Belle of London: H ...

'' by Hannah Cowley (1780) * Don Garcia in ''

A Bold Stroke for a Husband ''A Bold Stroke for a Husband'' is a 1783 comedy play by the British writer Hannah Cowley. The title is a variation on Susanna Centlivre's '' A Bold Stroke for a Wife''. The original Covent Garden cast included William Thomas Lewis as Don Julio, ...

'' by Hannah Cowley (1783) * Camillo in ''

Julia Julia may refer to: People *Julia (given name), including a list of people with the name *Julia (surname), including a list of people with the name *Julia gens, a patrician family of Ancient Rome *Julia (clairvoyant) (fl. 1689), lady's maid of Qu ...

'' by Robert Jephson (1787) * Nicrates in '' The Fate of Sparta'' by Hannah Cowley (1788) * De Courcy in '' The Haunted Tower'' by James Cobb (1789) * Lupercio in '' Marcella'' by

William Hayley William Hayley (9 November 174512 November 1820) was an English writer, best known as the biographer of his friend William Cowper. Biography Born at Chichester, he was sent to Eton in 1757, and to Trinity Hall, Cambridge, in 1762; his connec ...

(1789) * Woodville in '' The Wheel of Fortune'' by

Richard Cumberland Richard Cumberland may refer to: * Richard Cumberland (philosopher) Richard Cumberland (15 July 1631 (or 1632) – 9 October 1718) was an English philosopher, and Bishop of Peterborough from 1691. In 1672, he published his major work, ''De leg ...

(1795) * Redwald in ''

Edwy and Elgiva ''Edwy and Elgiva'' is a historical play, historical tragedy by the English writer Fanny Burney. Written in 1790 it was first performed at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London on 21 March 1795. The original cast included John Philip Kemble as E ...

'' by

Fanny Burney Frances Burney (13 June 1752 – 6 January 1840), also known as Fanny Burney and later Madame d'Arblay, was an English satirical novelist, diarist and playwright. In 1786–1790 she held the post of "Keeper of the Robes" to Charlotte of Mecklen ...

(1795) * Wortimerus in ''

Vortigern and Rowena ''Vortigern and Rowena'', or ''Vortigern, an Historical Play'', is a play that was touted as a newly discovered work by William Shakespeare when it first appeared in 1796. It was eventually revealed to be a Shakespeare hoax, the product of promi ...

'' by

William Henry Ireland William Henry Ireland (1775–1835) was an English forger of would-be Shakespearean documents and plays. He is less well known as a poet, writer of gothic novels and histories. Although he was apparently christened William-Henry, he was known ...

(1796) * Earling in '' False Impressions'' by

(1797) * Delville in '' Laugh When You Can'' by Frederick Reynolds (1798) * Sir Henry Netterville in '' The Eccentric Lover'' by

(1798) * Malcour in ''

Folly as it Flies ''Folly as it Flies'' is an 1801 comedy play by the British writer Frederick Reynolds. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden on 29 October 1801. The original Covent Garden cast included Charles Murray as Sir Herbert Melmoth, Henry Ers ...

'' by Frederick Reynolds (1801) * Melchior in '' Alfonso, King of Castile'' by Matthew Lewis (1801)

References

Bibliography

* Cox, Jeffrey N. & Gamer, Michael. ''The Broadview Anthology of Romantic Drama''. Broadview Press, 2003. * Highfill, Philip H, Burnim, Kalman A. & Langhans, Edward A. ''A Biographical Dictionary of Actors, Actresses, Musicians, Dancers, Managers, and Other Stage Personnel in London, 1660-1800''. SIU Press, 1973. * Straub, Kristina, G. Anderson, Misty and O'Quinn, Daniel. ''The Routledge Anthology of Restoration and Eighteenth-Century Drama''. Taylor & Francis, 2017. 18th-century English people English male stage actors British male stage actors 18th-century English male actors 18th-century British male actors 1752 births 1814 deaths {{UK-stage-actor-stub