''Sir Martin Mar-all, or The Feign'd Innocence'' is an English Restoration comedy, first performed on 15 August 1667. Written by

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 ...

and based on a translation of ''L'Étourdi'' by

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, ; ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the great writers in the French language and world liter ...

, it was one of Dryden's earliest comedies, and also one of the greatest theatrical successes of his career. The play's 1666 entry into the

Stationers' Register The Stationers' Register was a record book maintained by the Stationers' Company of London. This was a trade guild given a royal charter in 1557 to regulate the various professions associated with England's publishing industry, including prin ...

assigned it to

William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle upon Tyne, KG, KB, PC (25 December 1676), who after 1665 styled himself as Prince William Cavendish, was an English courtier and supporter of the arts. He was a renowned horse breeder, as well as being ...

. John Downes, in his ''Roscius Anglicanus'' (1708), maintained that Newcastle executed "a bare translation" of Molière's play, which was revised and adapted by Dryden. The play was first published in

quarto Quarto (abbreviated Qto, 4to or 4º) is the format of a book or pamphlet produced from full sheets printed with eight pages of text, four to a side, then folded twice to produce four leaves. The leaves are then trimmed along the folds to produc ...

in 1668, in an anonymous volume, which was re-issued in 1678; a third edition in 1691 carried Dryden's name, and the play was included in the 1695 edition of Dryden's collected works. The initial production of the play was a huge success; it ran for thirty-two performances and was acted four times at Court.

Samuel Pepys Samuel Pepys ( ; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English writer and Tories (British political party), Tory politician. He served as an official in the Navy Board and Member of Parliament (England), Member of Parliament, but is most r ...

saw the play seven times, and called it "the most entire piece of mirth...that certainly was ever writ." According to Downes, the play made "more money than any preceding comedy" at the Duke of York's Theatre. ''Sir Martin Mar-all'' was referenced by other poets for the foolishness of the title character, who, in order to impress his mistress Millicent, mimes playing a

lute A lute ( or ) is any plucked string instrument with a neck (music), neck and a deep round back enclosing a hollow cavity, usually with a sound hole or opening in the body. It may be either fretted or unfretted. More specifically, the term "lu ...

and lip-syncs while another character makes music from within. Of course, he continues lip-syncing and strumming his quiet lute after the true player ceases to make any sounds and exposes himself as a fraud. The original

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 ...

cast included James Nokes as Sir Martin Marall, William Smith as Sir John Swallow, John Young as Lord Dartmouth,

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 ...

as Old Moody and Henry Harris as Warner. In addition to Newcastle's translation of Molière, Dryden also adapted material from ''L'Amant Indiscrit'' by

Philippe Quinault Philippe Quinault (; 3 June 1635 – 26 November 1688) was a French dramatist and librettist. Biography Quinault was born in Paris. He was educated by the liberality of François Tristan l'Hermite, the author of ''Marianne''. Quinault's fi ...

, from the ''Francion'' of Charles Sorel, and from ''The Antiquary'' by

Shackerley Marmion Shackerley Marmion (January 1603 – 1639), also Shakerley, Shakerly, Schackerley, Marmyon, Marmyun, or Mermion, was an early 17th-century dramatist, often classed among the Sons of Ben (literary group), Sons of Ben, the followers of Ben Jons ...

.Allen, Ned Bliss. ''The Sources of John Dryden's Comedies.'' Ann Arbor, MI, University of Michigan Press, 1935.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sir Martin Mar-all 1677 plays Plays based on works by Molière English Restoration plays Plays by John Dryden Plays based on other plays