Katherine Corey
Encyclopedia
Katherine Corey was an English actress of the Restoration
era, one of the first generation of female performers to appear on the public stage in Britain. Corey played with the King's Company
and the United Company
, and had one of the longest careers of any actress in her generation. In "The humble petition of Katherine Corey" (see below), she stated that she "was the first and is the last of all the actresses that were constituted by King Charles the Second at His Restauration."
Correy started her career under her maiden name, Mitchell, but was Mrs. Corey by 1663. "Mrs Corey was a big woman with a gift for comedy. She was popular in a variety of roles, but especially in old women parts: scolding wives, mothers, governesses, waiting women, and bawds." In his Diary, Samuel Pepys
, who admired Corey's talents, calls her "Doll Common" after her part in Ben Jonson
's The Alchemist
.
In her three decades on the stage, Corey played a wide range of roles; in revivals of plays from the period of English Renaissance theatre
:
— and in contemporary works, by John Dryden
:
— and by William Wycherley
:
— and Nathaniel Lee
:
— and other authors:
— and many other parts, in plays by Edward Ravenscroft
, Thomas Southerne
, Thomas Shadwell
, and others. Corey had a notable success as Strega, the title character in Thomas Duffet
's The Amorous Old Woman in 1674. She played in other Duffet works too:
Corey's performance as Sempronia in Catiline was a focus of controversy. Nell Gwyn
was quarreling with the noblewoman Lady Elizabeth Harvey in 1669; Gwyn called the Lady a hermaphordite and claimed to have repulsed her lesbian advances. Gwyn also bribed and coached Corey into mimicking Harvey in her role as Sempronia. Lady Harvey hired thugs to hiss Corey onstage and throw oranges at her. The matter caused a major scandal. Lady Harvey prevailed upon the Lord Chamberlain
(her cousin Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester
) to arrest Corey and interrogate her; but Harvey's rival Lady Castlemaine
got the King to release the actress. (Gwyn and Lady Harvey later became friends).
In the Spring of 1689, Mrs. Corey became involved in an attempt by some actors in the United Company to form an independent troupe under the management of Henry Killigrew. When that effort failed, manager Charles Killigrew would not allow Corey back into the United Company; she appealed to the Lord Chamberlain, with the "humble petition" cited above, to be re-admitted, and won re-instatement.
She continued to act a variety of parts —
— and others during the final phase of her career. (Though in her 1689 "humble petition" to the Lord Chamberlain, she noted that she was never paid more the 30 shillings a week.)
As one of the earliest actresses with the King's Company, Corey has been nominated as a possibility for the honor of the "first English actress," who played Desdemona
in the 8 December 1660 performance of Othello
. Most commentators, however, think Corey's lack of physical beauty makes her an unlikely Desdemona, and prefer Margaret Hughes
or Anne Marshall
for the distinction.
English Restoration
The Restoration of the English monarchy began in 1660 when the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II after the Interregnum that followed the Wars of the Three Kingdoms...
era, one of the first generation of female performers to appear on the public stage in Britain. Corey played with the King's Company
King's Company
The King's Company was one of two enterprises granted the rights to mount theatrical productions in London at the start of the English Restoration. It existed from 1660 to 1682.-History:...
and the United Company
United Company
The United Company was a London theatre company formed in 1682 with the merger of the King's Company and the Duke's Company.Both the Duke's and King's Companies suffered poor attendance during the turmoil of the Popish Plot period, 1678–81...
, and had one of the longest careers of any actress in her generation. In "The humble petition of Katherine Corey" (see below), she stated that she "was the first and is the last of all the actresses that were constituted by King Charles the Second at His Restauration."
Correy started her career under her maiden name, Mitchell, but was Mrs. Corey by 1663. "Mrs Corey was a big woman with a gift for comedy. She was popular in a variety of roles, but especially in old women parts: scolding wives, mothers, governesses, waiting women, and bawds." In his Diary, Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys FRS, MP, JP, was an English naval administrator and Member of Parliament who is now most famous for the diary he kept for a decade while still a relatively young man...
, who admired Corey's talents, calls her "Doll Common" after her part in Ben Jonson
Ben Jonson
Benjamin Jonson was an English Renaissance dramatist, poet and actor. A contemporary of William Shakespeare, he is best known for his satirical plays, particularly Volpone, The Alchemist, and Bartholomew Fair, which are considered his best, and his lyric poems...
's The Alchemist
The Alchemist (play)
The Alchemist is a comedy by English playwright Ben Jonson. First performed in 1610 by the King's Men, it is generally considered Jonson's best and most characteristic comedy; Samuel Taylor Coleridge claimed that it had one of the three most perfect plots in literature...
.
In her three decades on the stage, Corey played a wide range of roles; in revivals of plays from the period of English Renaissance theatre
English Renaissance theatre
English Renaissance theatre, also known as early modern English theatre, refers to the theatre of England, largely based in London, which occurred between the Reformation and the closure of the theatres in 1642...
:
- Lady Would-be in Jonson's VolponeVolponeVolpone is a comedy by Ben Jonson first produced in 1606, drawing on elements of city comedy, black comedy and beast fable...
- Mrs. Otter in EpiceneEpicoene, or the Silent WomanEpicœne, or The silent woman, also known as The Epicene, is a comedy by Renaissance playwright Ben Jonson. It was originally performed by the Blackfriars Children, a group of boy players, in 1609...
- Sempronia in Catiline
- Arane in Beaumont and FletcherBeaumont and FletcherBeaumont and Fletcher were the English dramatists Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher, who collaborated in their writing during the reign of James I ....
's A King and No KingA King and No KingA King and No King is a Jacobean era stage play, a tragicomedy written by Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher and first published in 1619. It has traditionally been among the most highly-praised and popular works in the canon of Fletcher and his collaborators.The play's title became almost... - Abigail in The Scornful LadyThe Scornful LadyThe Scornful Lady is a Jacobean era stage play, a comedy written by Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher, and first published in 1616, the year of Beaumont's death...
- Duchess Sophia in Rollo Duke of NormandyRollo Duke of NormandyRollo Duke of Normandy, also known as The Bloody Brother, is a play written in collaboration by John Fletcher, Philip Massinger, Ben Jonson, and George Chapman. Scholars have disputed almost everything about the play; but it was probably written sometime in the 1612–24 era and later revised,...
- Quisania in The Island PrincessThe Island PrincessThe Island Princess is a late Jacobean tragicomedy by John Fletcher, initially published in the first Beaumont and Fletcher folio of 1647.-The play:...
- Mrs. Trainwell in Brome'sRichard BromeRichard Brome was an English dramatist of the Caroline era.-Life:Virtually nothing is known about Brome's private life. Repeated allusions in contemporary works, like Ben Jonson's Bartholomew Fair, indicate that Brome started out as a servant of Jonson, in some capacity...
The Northern LassThe Northern LassThe Northern Lass is a Caroline era stage play, a comedy by Richard Brome that premiered onstage in 1629 and was first printed in 1632. A popular hit with its audience, and one of his earliest successes, the play provided a foundation for Brome's career as a dramatist.-Performance and...
— and in contemporary works, by John Dryden
John Dryden
John Dryden was an influential English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who dominated the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the period came to be known in literary circles as the Age of Dryden.Walter Scott called him "Glorious John." He was made Poet...
:
- Octavia in All for Love
- Melissa in The Maiden QueenThe Maiden QueenSecret Love, or The Maiden Queen is a 1667 tragicomedy written by John Dryden. The play, commonly known by its more distinctive subtitle, was acted by the King's Company at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane . The premiere occurred on 2 March, and was a popular success...
- an Englishwoman in AmboynaAmboyna (play)Amboyna, or the Cruelties of the Dutch to the English Merchants is a tragedy by John Dryden written in 1673. Its subject is the Amboyna massacre that took place on Ambon Island in 1623....
- Bromia in AmphitryonAmphitryon (play)Amphitryon is a Latin play for the early Roman theatre by playwright Titus Maccius Plautus. Plautus’ only play on a mythological subject, he refers to it as a tragicomoedia in the prologue...
— and by William Wycherley
William Wycherley
William Wycherley was an English dramatist of the Restoration period, best known for the plays The Country Wife and The Plain Dealer.-Biography:...
:
- Lucy in The Country WifeThe Country WifeThe Country Wife is a Restoration comedy written in 1675 by William Wycherley. A product of the tolerant early Restoration period, the play reflects an aristocratic and anti-Puritan ideology, and was controversial for its sexual explicitness even in its own time. The title itself contains a lewd pun...
- Widow Blackacre in The Plain Dealer
- Mrs. Joyner in Love in a Wood
— and Nathaniel Lee
Nathaniel Lee
Nathaniel Lee was an English dramatist.He was the son of Dr Richard Lee, a Presbyterian clergyman who was rector of Hatfield and held many preferments under the Commonwealth...
:
- Agrippina in The Tragedy of Nero
- Cumana in Sophonisba, or the Death of Hannibal
- Sysigambis in The Rival Queens
— and other authors:
- Cleorin in Boyle'sRoger Boyle, 1st Earl of OrreryRoger Boyle redirects here. For others of this name, see Roger Boyle Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery was a British soldier, statesman and dramatist. He was the third surviving son of Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Cork and Richard's second wife, Catherine Fenton. He was created Baron of Broghill on...
The Black PrinceThe Black Prince (play)The Black Prince is a Restoration era stage play, a historical tragedy written by Roger Boyle, 1st Earl of Orrery. It premiered on stage in 1667 and was first published in 1669... - Rosellia, leader of the Amazons, in D'Urfey'sThomas d'UrfeyThomas D'Urfey was an English writer and wit. He composed plays, songs, and poetry, in addition to writing jokes. He was an important innovator and contributor in the evolution of the Ballad opera....
The Commonwealth of Women - Mrs. Touchstone in Tate'sNahum TateNahum Tate was an Irish poet, hymnist, and lyricist, who became England's poet laureate in 1692.-Life:Nahum Teate came from a family of Puritan clergymen...
Cuckolds Haven - Mopsophil in Behn'sAphra BehnAphra Behn was a prolific dramatist of the English Restoration and was one of the first English professional female writers. Her writing contributed to the amatory fiction genre of British literature.-Early life:...
The Emperour of the Moon - Quickthrift in Edward Howard's The Man of Newmarket
— and many other parts, in plays by Edward Ravenscroft
Edward Ravenscroft
Edward Ravenscroft , English dramatist, belonged to an ancient Flintshire family.He was entered at the Middle Temple, but devoted his attention mainly to literature. Among his pieces are...
, Thomas Southerne
Thomas Southerne
Thomas Southerne , Irish dramatist, was born at Oxmantown, near Dublin, in 1660, and entered Trinity College, Dublin in 1676. Two years later he was entered at the Middle Temple, London....
, Thomas Shadwell
Thomas Shadwell
Thomas Shadwell was an English poet and playwright who was appointed poet laureate in 1689.-Life:Shadwell was born at Stanton Hall, Norfolk, and educated at Bury St Edmunds School, and at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, which he entered in 1656. He left the university without a degree, and...
, and others. Corey had a notable success as Strega, the title character in Thomas Duffet
Thomas Duffet
Thomas Duffet , or Duffett, was an Irish playwright and songwriter active in England in the 1670s. He is remembered for his popular songs and his burlesques of the serious plays of John Dryden, Thomas Shadwell, Elkanah Settle, and Sir William Davenant.By profession, Duffet was a milliner; he...
's The Amorous Old Woman in 1674. She played in other Duffet works too:
- Redstreak in Psyche Debauch'd
- Teresa in The Spanish Rogue.
Corey's performance as Sempronia in Catiline was a focus of controversy. Nell Gwyn
Nell Gwyn
Eleanor "Nell" Gwyn was a long-time mistress of King Charles II of England. Called "pretty, witty Nell" by Samuel Pepys, she has been regarded as a living embodiment of the spirit of Restoration England and has come to be considered a folk heroine, with a story echoing the rags-to-royalty tale of...
was quarreling with the noblewoman Lady Elizabeth Harvey in 1669; Gwyn called the Lady a hermaphordite and claimed to have repulsed her lesbian advances. Gwyn also bribed and coached Corey into mimicking Harvey in her role as Sempronia. Lady Harvey hired thugs to hiss Corey onstage and throw oranges at her. The matter caused a major scandal. Lady Harvey prevailed upon the Lord Chamberlain
Lord Chamberlain
The Lord Chamberlain or Lord Chamberlain of the Household is one of the chief officers of the Royal Household in the United Kingdom and is to be distinguished from the Lord Great Chamberlain, one of the Great Officers of State....
(her cousin Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester
Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester
Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester KG, KB, FRS was an important commander of Parliamentary forces in the First English Civil War, and for a time Oliver Cromwell's superior.-Life:...
) to arrest Corey and interrogate her; but Harvey's rival Lady Castlemaine
Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland
Barbara Palmer, 1st Duchess of Cleveland was an English courtesan and perhaps the most notorious of the many mistresses of King Charles II of England, by whom she had five children, all of which were acknowledged and subsequently ennobled...
got the King to release the actress. (Gwyn and Lady Harvey later became friends).
In the Spring of 1689, Mrs. Corey became involved in an attempt by some actors in the United Company to form an independent troupe under the management of Henry Killigrew. When that effort failed, manager Charles Killigrew would not allow Corey back into the United Company; she appealed to the Lord Chamberlain, with the "humble petition" cited above, to be re-admitted, and won re-instatement.
She continued to act a variety of parts —
- Mrs. Bumfiddle in D'Urfey's The Marriage-Hater Matched
- Mrs. Flint in Behn's The Widow Ranter
- The Abbess of Charlton in The Merry Devil of EdmontonThe Merry Devil of EdmontonThe Merry Devil of Edmonton is an Elizabethan era stage play, a comedy about a magician, Peter Fabel, nicknamed the Merry Devil.Scholars have conjectured dates of authorship for the play as early as 1592, though most favor a date in the 1600–4 period...
— and others during the final phase of her career. (Though in her 1689 "humble petition" to the Lord Chamberlain, she noted that she was never paid more the 30 shillings a week.)
As one of the earliest actresses with the King's Company, Corey has been nominated as a possibility for the honor of the "first English actress," who played Desdemona
Desdemona
Desdemona is a character in William Shakespeare's play Othello.Desdemona may also refer to:People* Desdemona , a soprano role in the 1816 opera Otello by Gioachino Rossini...
in the 8 December 1660 performance of Othello
Othello
The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1603, and based on the Italian short story "Un Capitano Moro" by Cinthio, a disciple of Boccaccio, first published in 1565...
. Most commentators, however, think Corey's lack of physical beauty makes her an unlikely Desdemona, and prefer Margaret Hughes
Margaret Hughes
Margaret Hughes , also Peg Hughes or Margaret Hewes, is often credited as the first professional actress on the English stage...
or Anne Marshall
Anne Marshall
Anne Marshall , also Mrs. Anne Quin, was a leading English actress of the Restoration era, one of the first generation of women performers to appear on the public stage in England....
for the distinction.