Brooks, Helen (2017) Sex and Sexuality. In: A Cultural History of Theatre. Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-1-4725-8584-4
Sex and Sexuality (Download) (88kB)
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| Type of Research: | Book Section |
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| Creators: | Brooks, Helen |
| Description: | During the Enlightenment a radical change took place in English theatre: the introduction and establishment of the actress. For centuries women had been prohibited from performing on the legitimate stage, and whilst they had long been a lively presence in non-legitimate contexts - appearing in court masques, parish dramas, festive pageants and fairs - it was only with the re-establishment of theatre in England after the hiatus of the Interregnum, that they were permitted to perform in licensed spaces. It is uncertain who exactly the first actress was - Anne Marshall and Margaret Hughes both having some claim to the title - however what is known is that when Othello was performed on 8 December 1660, at Gibbon’s Tennis Court Theatre on Vere Street, the part of Desdemona was played by a woman. This actress was not however a solitary presence. Despite taking the name the ‘King’s Men’ for his company of players, Thomas Killigrew – who, along with William Davenant, had been given a royal license to produce theatre in July 1660 - employed a number of women including Katherine Corey, Mrs Eastland and Mrs Weaver. Initially these actresses’ performances were something of a novelty, however it was not long before women become firmly established within the theatre industry: not only as actresses, but also as playwrights, dancers, singers, and, albeit to a lesser degree, house servants such as dressers, and box keepers. |
| Keywords/subjects not otherwise listed: | Theatre History, Eighteenth-Century Theatre, Gender, Actresses, Cross-dressing, Drag |
| Publisher/Broadcaster/Company: | Bloomsbury |
| Your affiliations with UAL: | Colleges > Central Saint Martins |
| Date: | September 2017 |
| Date Deposited: | 11 Mar 2026 15:54 |
| Last Modified: | 11 Mar 2026 15:54 |
| Item ID: | 25935 |
| URI: | https://ualresearchonline.arts.ac.uk/id/eprint/25935 |
| Licence: |
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