Theatre and Playwrights Through the Ages

Restoration Theatre and Playwrights

• The Relapse, a comedy of manners, was written by John Vanbrugh and first performed in 1696.
• William Congreve was a prominent Restoration playwright, known for his works such as The Way of the World (1700), Love for Love (1695), and The Old Bachelor (1693).

Adaptations and Influences

• John Dryden's All for Love (1677) is an adaptation of Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra.
• The Jew of Malta features a Machiavellian hero.

20th-Century American Theatre

• Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is a play by Edward Albee, first performed in 1962 and winner of the Tony Award for Best Play.
• Imamu Amiri Baraka was an American playwright and poet, associated with the Black Arts Movement of the 1960s, and founded the Black Arts Repertory Theatre/School in Harlem.

Death of a Salesman and Restoration Comedy

• Willy Loman is a character in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman.
• Restoration comedy flourished between 1660-1710, with pioneer Sir George Etherege, known for his masterpiece "The Comical Revenge or Love in a Tub".
• Other notable Restoration comedy writers include William Congreve, John Dryden, and Richard Sheridan.

Test your knowledge of Restoration theatre, playwrights, and their works. Explore adaptations, influences, and notable plays from the 17th to 20th centuries.