Woman's Plot, The

Massinger, Philip (1621)

Historical Records

Payments for Court Performance

That "The Woman's Plot" by Massinger was performed at Whitehall by the King's company on 05 November 1621 is confirmed by the following sources:

Chamber Accounts, Payments to Players, etc

Item 149a (Cook 76):

To Iohn Hemyngs in the behalfe of himselfe and the rest of his fellowes his Ma^te sevaunts for presenting sixe severall Plaies before his Ma^tie by warr^t of the xxvij^th of Marche 1622 ..... lx^li

Inner Temple Library MS 515, no.7

This Inner Temple Library MS, found by Murray (English Dramatic Companies 2.193), adds detail to the Chamber Accounts payment above:

27 Marcii. A warrant for allowance of lx^li to John Hemmings and his fellowes the Kings Ma^ts Players for 6 plaies vizt The womas Plott plaid before his Mat^ie 5^o Novembris last, The Woman is to Hard for him 26^o of the same Monethe, The Island Princes vppon St Stephens day The Pilgrim on new yeares day, The Wildgoose Chase the xxiiii of Januarie, The Coxcombe the 5 of this instant Marche

Lord Chamberlain's office-books

On 7 August 1641, the Earl of Essex (now Lord Chamberlain) required the Stationers' Company to forbid the printing of King's Men plays without the company's consent (the desire to protect their plays having been occasioned by the onset of plague and the consequent closure of the theatres from 5 August til the end of November 1641) (Bentley 1.65). The list of plays specified includes "The womans Plott":

...The particulars to which they now lay claime are contained in a List inclosed, and if any of those Playes shall bee offered to y^e Presse vnder another name then is in the List expressed, I shall desire yo^r care that they may not bee defrauded by that meanes but that they may bee made acquainted w^th it, before they bee recorded in y^r Hall & soe haue Oportunity to shew their right vnto them. ...

A List of y^e Playes followes

The wild goose chase	Bunduca.	The discontented Colonell
The litle french Lawyer.	The inconstant Lady	The Brothers
The Loyall subject.	Chances	Mineruae's sacrifice
The spanish Curat.	The maid of the Mill	The Iudge.
The martiall maide	The Bridegroome & ye Madma	The Citty madam.
Beauty in a Trance	The Queene of Corinth	The Corporall.
The forc'd Lady	The Coxcombe	Alfonso Emperor of Germany
Alexius	The noble gentleman	The Nobleman.
The Custom o'th Cuntry	Beggars	The bashfull Louer
The double marriage	The honest mans fortune	Loue & honor.
A wife for a moneth	The vnfortunate Louers	The 1st & 2nd pt of ye Passiont louer
The Island Princes	The faire fauorite	The Guardian.
The mad Louer.	The Emperour Valentinian	The Duke of Lerma or ye spanish Duke.
The Pilgrim	The Goblins	The Prophetesse
The Maior of Quinborow &	The distresses	The Louers Pilgrimage
The womans Plott	The doubtfull heire	The Louers Progresse
The womans prize &c	The Imposture	News from Plimouth.
The Switzar.	The Country Captaine
More dissemblers beside women
The widow
The knt of Malta
The Nouella
The Louesick maid
The Captaine
The humerous Lieuetennt

(from Bentley 1.65-66)

Stationers' Register

09 September 1653 (S.R.II, 1.429 CLIO)

Master Mosely Entred also . . . the severall playes following . . xx^s vj^d

...

The Noble choice, or the orator	}
The wandring lovers or the painter	}
The Italian night-peece, or, the unfortunate piety	}
Alexius, the chast gallant, or The bashfull lover	}
A very woman, or, the woman's plot.	}	by Phill. Massinger.
The Judge, or Believe as you list	}
The Prisoner, or the Faire Anchoress	}
The citie honest man, or the guardian	}
The Spanish Viceroy or the honor of women	}
Minerva's sacrifice, or the forc'd lady	}
The Maids Tragedie, 2d part.

Warburton's list

"The Woman's Plot" appears as the 26th play noted by John Warburton (1682-1759) in his list of the unprinted MS plays allegedly in his collection until destroyed by Warburton’s cook (Greg, "The Bakings of Betsy" 231):

S^t. Geõ. For England by Will. Smithe

The Parliam^t of Love by W^m. Rowley

The Widows Prise C. W^m Sampson

The Inconstant Lady W^m. (sic) Wilson

The Womans Plott Phill. Massinger

See the full list from British Library Lansdowne MS. 807 here.

Theatrical Provenance

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Probable Genre(s)

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Possible Narrative and Dramatic Sources or Analogues

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References to the Play

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Critical Commentary

Fleay notes that a play called The Very Woman, or The Prince of Tarent was licensed by Herbert on 06 June 1634 and later published with The Bashful Lover and The Guardian under Massinger's name in 1655. He argues that the 1653 Stationers' Register entry was in error, and that The Very Woman and "The Woman's Plot" are different plays (BCED 1.215).

For What It's Worth

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Works Cited

Cook, David and F. P. Wilson, eds. "Dramatic Records in the Declared Accounts of the Treasurer of the Chamber 1558-1642". Malone Society Collections VI. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1961.

Murray, John Tucker. English Dramatic Companies, 1558-1642. London: Constable and Company Limited, 1910. Internet Archive

Site created and maintained by David McInnis, University of Melbourne; updated 15 Jan 2016.