English Literature / Unit 10 ENL 0902 short lesson, about 20 seconds
1660: The Return of the King and the Theatres
Captions available
The idea
In sixteen sixty Charles the Second returned from exile. One of his first moves was to reopen the theatres, closed for eighteen years. For the first time, women acted on the English stage, and the first professional actresses drew crowds; Pepys records watching them.
In practice
A king, the playhouses, the first actresses.
Where people slip
Before sixteen sixty, boys played women's parts.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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