Mary Kent facts for kids

Mary Kent was a talented English actress who performed on stage from 1692 to 1718. She was married to another actor named Thomas Kent, who worked at the famous Drury Lane theatre. We don't know exactly when Mary was born or when she passed away.

Mary Kent started her acting career in London in 1692. She often played smaller parts with a group called the United Company. This company faced a lot of changes and eventually broke up in 1695.

Early Acting Career (1692-1697)

After the United Company split, many senior actors left to start their own theatre group. Mary and her husband stayed with the original company at Drury Lane. Because there were fewer actors, Mary got the chance to play bigger and more important roles.

One of her notable roles was Flareit in a play called Love's Last Shift by Colley Cibber in 1696. The next year, in 1697, she played young Tom Fashion in John Vanbrugh's play The Relapse. This was a special type of role called a "breeches role". In these roles, actresses would dress up as young men, which was quite common in theatre at that time.

From Minor Roles to Lead Parts (1697-1710)

Mary Kent continued to act in smaller roles at the Drury Lane theatre until 1710. That year, she had her first and only chance to play lead female roles. This happened during the summer season at a theatre in Greenwich run by William Penkethman.

New Adventures in Theatre (1710-1718)

After experiencing lead roles, Mary decided not to go back to playing only supporting characters. Instead, she explored a different kind of performance! From 1710 to 1714, she worked at a puppet theatre.

Mary Kent returned to the main stage in December 1714. This was when John Rich opened his new theatre company in Lincoln's Inn Fields. She appeared in plays for Rich's company until 1718. One of her last known performances was in a play called The Traitor by Christopher Bullock in that same year.

Notable Performances

Mary Kent performed in many plays throughout her career. Here are some of the roles she played:

• Rosamond's Woman in Henry II (1692)
• Florence in The Maid's Last Prayer (1693)
• Nurse in Love Triumphant (1694)
• Bianca in Agnes de Castro (1695)
• Flareit in Love's Last Shift (1696)
• Tom Fashion in The Relapse (1697)
• Lettice in Woman's Wit (1697)
• Gusset in The Campaigners (1698)
• Irene in The Generous Conqueror (1701)
• Isabella in The False Friend (1702)
• Widow Purelight in Vice Reclaimed (1703)
• Lady Youthful in The Doating Lovers (1715)
• Lady Cardivant in The Northern Heiress (1716)
• Orian's Mother in The Traitor (1718)
• Mrs Prim in A Bold Stroke for a Wife (1718)