''The Hypocrite'' is a 1768 comic play by the Irish writer

Isaac Bickerstaffe Isaac Bickerstaffe or Bickerstaff (26 September 1733 – after 1808) was an Irish playwright and librettist. Early life Isaac John Bickerstaff was born in Dublin, on 26 September 1733, where his father John Bickerstaff held a government pos ...

. It is a reworking of the 1717 play ''

The Non-Juror ''The Non-Juror'' is a 1717 comedy play by the British writer Colley Cibber. It is inspired by Molière's 1664 work ''Tartuffe''. The original Drury Lane Theatre cast featured John Mills as Sir John Woodvil, Barton Booth as Colonel Woodvil, Rob ...

'' by

Colley Cibber Colley Cibber (6 November 1671 – 11 December 1757) was an English actor-manager, playwright and Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, Poet Laureate. His colourful memoir ''An Apology for the Life of Colley Cibber'' (1740) describes his life in ...

, itself inspired 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 ...

's ''

Tartuffe ''Tartuffe, or The Impostor, or The Hypocrite'' (; , ), first performed in 1664, is a theatrical comedy (or more specifically, a farce) by Molière. The characters of Tartuffe, Elmire, and Orgon are considered among the greatest classical theat ...

''. The original play had derived much of its humour from the politics of the era, and revolved around the intrigues of Doctor Wolf, a nonjuring clergyman with strong ties to the underground Jacobite movement. Bickerstaffe altered the role to that of Doctor Cantwell, a hypocritical

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

. The first

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 ...

cast included Thomas King as Doctor Cantwell, John Hayman Packer as Sir John Lambert, Samuel Reddish as Darnley, Samuel Cautherley as Charles, Thomas Weston as Mawworm, Mary Bradshaw as Old Lady Lambert, Ann Street Barry as Lady Lambert and Frances Abington as Charlotte.Hogan It premiered in Bickerstaffe's native

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

in 1772, and was revived in London on several occasions. A 1814 revival featured William Dowton, Benjamin Wrench and William Oxberry amongst others.

References

Bibliography

* Hogan, C.B (ed.) ''The London Stage, 1660–1800: Volume V''. Southern Illinois University Press, 1968. * Kinne, Willard Austin. ''Revivals and Importations of French Comedies in England, 1749-1800''. * Nicoll, Allardyce. ''History of English Drama, 1660-1900, Volume 2''. Cambridge University Press, 2009. 1768 plays West End plays Plays by Isaac Bickerstaffe Comedy plays Plays based on works by Molière Works based on Tartuffe {{play-stub