The Actress

A new drama about the first women to perform on the English stage after the Restoration, playing at East Riding Theatre in February 2027.

A drama set in London in 1660, when Charles II reopened the theatres and women were permitted to perform on the English stage for the first time. Theatre manager Thomas Killigrew seeks a woman for a leading role, settling on two unlikely candidates: ageing courtesan Peggy Hughes and educated but penniless Puritan Anne Marshall. As rehearsals progress towards opening night, the line between empowerment and exploitation blurs. Adapted and expanded from an acclaimed Edinburgh Fringe one-act version and inspired by true events, the play explores the forgotten pioneers of British theatre.