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Poster for an 1807 production of The Wonder: a woman keeps a secret

The Wonder: A Woman Keeps A Secret is a a 5 act farce by Susanna Centlivre, the most successful female playwright in the 18th century in England. It was written in 1714 and was performed over 200 times before 1800. During this time period there were very few female writers. This play featured two women unlike herself, they both had no worries outside of who they got to marry. The play was put on for the Duke of Cambridge, who later became the King of England.

The setting of The Wonder: A Woman Keeps A Secret is in Libson, Portugal. The two main characters are women named Lady Violante, and Isabella, who is the sister of Lady Violante's lover Don Felix. Lady Violante secretly helps Isabella hide in her estate from her home. While Isabella escaped her home from the window in her bedroom, a British soldier caught her, who she has fallen in love with. Isabella is hiding from her home because she does not want to be forced by her father to marry an old, but rich merchant. Because of Lady Violante's secrecy of hiding Isabella her lover Don Felix suspects that she is hiding a man in their home. Then when the British soldier is around the Estate, Lady Violanete still cannot tell Don Felix that he is Isabella's lover, because it would break the secret and he would know where Isabella was. Although, Don Felix accuses her she still keeps the secret out of loyalty to Isabella. Another love issue takes place in this estate too, the two chambermaids are in love with the same valet. What makes this play a comedy is all the romantic relationships and the problems that they bring to the live’s of the characters in The Wonder: A Woman Keeps A Secret. The type of romance Centlivre wrote about was much more about jealousy than a loving relationship.

This play is a farce and uses hiding and miscommunications as it's comical elements. In recent times there have been a few productions of The Wonder: A Woman Keeps A Secret and many reviews suggest that this play is hilarious. Many reviewers believe that much of her work has been neglected, but her work is still considered to be excellent writing. This play however is quite different from most of Susanna Centlivre's work. She typically features strong, independent, and ambitious women in her plays and poems, much like herself. The play ends with the line "No more, let us Thy Sex's Conduct blame, Since thou'rt a Proof to their eternal Fame, That Man has no Advantage but the Name." which reflects Centlivre's feminist beliefs during a time of male superiority.

References

category:British plays Category:1714 plays Category:Plays by Susanna Centlivre Category:Restoration comedy category:Plays set in the 18th century Category:English Restoration plays Category:18th-century plays Category:farcical plays