Why is this theatre called restoration theatre?

Answer 1

Restoration Theatre refers to theatre done after the end of the Puritan government in England. Public stage plays had been banned by the Puritan government. With the return to the monarchy( although now severely limited) and specifically the reign of Charles II, the English theatres were once again opened, in 1660. Drama and Comedies flourished, and works written at this time eventually came to be known as Restoration Comedy or Drama, or simply Restoration Theatre. Comedy was the preferred form of theatre, and scholars have suggested it was welcomed especially because of the extreme tensions and sorrows suffered by the English people during the English Civil War and during the restrictive rule of the Puritans. Restoration Comedy therefore reaped the benefit of new found freedoms and enthusiastically dealt with subjects of love and courtship, often pushing the boundaries of acceptable society. Restoration Theatre also ushered in the appearance of actresses, as previously women's roles were played by young boys. Nell Gwyn, the mistress of Charles II, was among the famous women actresses of the period.

Restoration Theatre thrived until the end of the 17th Century. With the events of the Glorious Revolution and Ascension to the English throne , of William and Mary, came a more sober period in the arts and specifically within the theatre. By the start of the 18th C. subject matter for the Theatre had for the most part, shifted from the ribald and witty comedies that so marked the Restoration Period, to more social and political themes.