Theatres today are so fixated with new writing that successful playwrights of the past are too often ignored. Modern theatregoers could be forgiven for thinking that the only plays worth reviving in the second half of the 18th century are Goldsmith’s She Stoops to Conquer and Sheridan’s The Rivals and The School for Scandal. Garrick and Colman’s The Clandestine Marriage is occasionally performed. A few years back The Orange Tree in Richmond rediscovered Arthur Murphy’s All in the Wrong; but he still has not had a production at either the National Theatre or the RSC.
Hannah Cowley’s long-neglected The Belle’s Stratagem now gets a welcome revival. It was a huge success in 1780 and ranked amongst the top four most popular plays for the following thirty years. It owes something to the comedies of Farquhar, Congreve and Wycherley. The main plot has a witty, independent and intelligent young woman (Gina Beck), who does not want an arranged marriage with a man, who is indifferent to her. Her ruse is to enchant him with the sweetest song whilst she is in disguise at a masked ball. The sub-plot concerns an innocent, country-bred young wife who rebels against her jealous husband’s restrictions and determines to enjoy herself in London’s beau monde and very nearly suffers a fate worse than death. Jessica Swale’s fast-paced production would be even more enjoyable if some of the actors didn’t shout and mug quite so much.