The Devil of a Wife, or A Comical Transformation is a 1686 comedy play by the English writer and actor Thomas Jevon.[1] It was first performed by the United Company at the Dorset Garden Theatre in London.
| The Devil of a Wife | |
|---|---|
| Written by | Thomas Jevon |
| Date premiered | March 1686 |
| Place premiered | Dorset Garden Theatre, London |
| Original language | English |
| Genre | Restoration Comedy |
The original Dorset Garden cast included Philip Griffin as Sir Richard Lovemore, John Bowman as Rowland, Carey Perin as Longmore, Richard Saunders as Butler, Thomas Percival as Cook, Henry Norris as The Ladies Father, George Powell as Noddy, Thomas Jevon as Jobson, John Freeman as Doctor, Sarah Cooke as Lady Lovemore, Emily Price as Jane, Susanna Percival as Nell.[2]
In 1724 the play was revived at the Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre with a cast featuring John Ogden, William Bullock and Jane Egleton. In 1731 it was adapted into a ballad opera The Devil to Pay, following the fashion for musical plays by The Beggar's Opera.
Jobson routinely abuses his kind wife, Nell, while Sir Richard Lovemore's servants are constantly harangued by their master's prudish wife, Lady Lovemore, who is accompanied by a hypocritical preacher. Sir Richard's servants devise a scheme to pretend to be demons in order to scare the preacher, who has been staying with the Lovemores. The servants are successful in their endeavors. Meanwhile, after being rudely addressed by Lady Lovemore, a doctor resolves to cast a spell that makes Lady Lovemore appear to the world as Nell, and Nell as Lady Lovemore. The next morning the women wake up in the beds of the other's spouse. The doctor decides to rescind the spell; by that point Lady Lovemore's treatment of Jobson has taught him to appreciate his wife, and Jobson's behavior towards Lady Lovemore has made her attitude gentler.
References edit
Bibliography edit
- Canfield, J. Douglas: Tricksters and Estates: On the Ideology of Restoration Comedy (Lexngton: University Press of Kentucky, 2014).
- Van Lennep, W.: The London Stage, 1660–1800: Volume One, 1660–1700 (Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1960).
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