This is a very interesting piece to research because there is so much information about the time period. While there is a great deal of information on the 1660s in England I do feel, as a dramaturg, there is very little ambiguity with the script because of the timeline. April De Angelis plays with the timeline quite a bit, that being said I am also well aware that this is also historical fiction piece and even so every character in this script is or was a person that lived during that time. I found all of the information quite interesting and it was hard to weed out the information that wasn't relevant because English history in this time period is very linked together. The Interregnum segues into the Restoration which segues in women performing on stage. While women performing is something new to England itself it isn't new to the world. The royal theatres and public theatres in France were beginning to have women on the stage much more before this time period. However, the reaction in England was much stronger than the other areas of the world because of what England had just come out of and I believe, as a dramaturg, that it is part of the reason De Angelis wrote this piece. The playwright had specific intentions with this script and those intentions are very apparent through the historical relevance of the script.
The cast of characters in this script have a very distinct and wide range of characteristics beginning with the cynical Doll Common to the young and naive Nell Gwyn. Nell, I found to be treated rather well late in her career as an actress by the King because he adored her performances and that is one of the things included in the script with a scene where Nell is waiting for the King to arrive. I think as a courtesan to the King adds a different dynamic to the character to get by with what she has to do to keep up her work with as an actress.
Another interesting thing I found was the differences in the two editions of the scripts with the editions of the two male characters that were added later. I did not find a production history of with the additional two characters. I think finding a production with those characters in there would be incredibly difficult to find because that version of the play is not particularly well known and is apart of a collection of plays by De Angelis. Even finding the rights to the script itself was more time consuming than necessary because the rights are with the Samuel French company in England. I feel that in some ways the two additional characters, if coordinated correctly, can have a much greater impact on the story in bringing a bigger audience closer to the story as a whole.
This script has some problems with it. The first that would need to be addressed is the set design. The play takes place backstage of a stage. Creating a difference between when the actors are on the stage and when they are not would be part of this issue. The most common way is for a curtain to be raised when on stage and lowered when off. While this is a great and easy solution a different style would be a refresher to someone who has seen the show before. Another issue to watch for is placement of a specific time period. The best recommendation that I would give is to pick a specific year in the 1660s. Based on the research I have completed the recommended year would be between 1662 to 1665. Those few years were the beginning of Nell Gwyn’s career at Betterton’s Theatre which is most ideal for the setting of the play.
The cast of characters in this script have a very distinct and wide range of characteristics beginning with the cynical Doll Common to the young and naive Nell Gwyn. Nell, I found to be treated rather well late in her career as an actress by the King because he adored her performances and that is one of the things included in the script with a scene where Nell is waiting for the King to arrive. I think as a courtesan to the King adds a different dynamic to the character to get by with what she has to do to keep up her work with as an actress.
Another interesting thing I found was the differences in the two editions of the scripts with the editions of the two male characters that were added later. I did not find a production history of with the additional two characters. I think finding a production with those characters in there would be incredibly difficult to find because that version of the play is not particularly well known and is apart of a collection of plays by De Angelis. Even finding the rights to the script itself was more time consuming than necessary because the rights are with the Samuel French company in England. I feel that in some ways the two additional characters, if coordinated correctly, can have a much greater impact on the story in bringing a bigger audience closer to the story as a whole.
This script has some problems with it. The first that would need to be addressed is the set design. The play takes place backstage of a stage. Creating a difference between when the actors are on the stage and when they are not would be part of this issue. The most common way is for a curtain to be raised when on stage and lowered when off. While this is a great and easy solution a different style would be a refresher to someone who has seen the show before. Another issue to watch for is placement of a specific time period. The best recommendation that I would give is to pick a specific year in the 1660s. Based on the research I have completed the recommended year would be between 1662 to 1665. Those few years were the beginning of Nell Gwyn’s career at Betterton’s Theatre which is most ideal for the setting of the play.
As a dramaturg for this show, the past productions would have some to little impact on the originality of designers because of the few productions of this show that have been done, particularly the newer version of the script with the addition of the two male characters.
This show has a few things that would be great to utilize and some that are not so great. I think for a specific setting with a specific audience it could be a great show with the research used accordingly. Making this show feel period will be a great challenge for the designers to transport an audience to the 17th century.
