The Restoration

In the 1660s, the Puritan rule in the church made it very difficult for theatre to flourish. 

They were normally forced to be performed in private and segregated areas in secrecy, due to the passing of the laws from Oliver Cromwell, banning all kinds of theatre as it was starting to mock the Christian religion, by twisting Bible stories. Over these times called the 'Commonwealth' people performed theatre inside their own homes, and in generally smaller places, therefore 'Drolls' became popular, where they were short pieces of theatre in very small places.

  After Charles II was reinstated after being exiled to France, he started the performances again after admiring the work of French theatrical styles. However, the theatre was still heavily suppressed by the Puritan church, only allowing Biblical stories to be performed, but soon evolving to being satirical and mocking the upper class.

During this Jacobean era, new styles of theatre began to arise, such as the staging; Proscenium arch. There was also a common tend of creating interpretations of older plays such as Shakespearean plays, being reformed to appeal to a larger audience.  

Women also began to feature more in the performances, with playwrights such as Killigrew and Davenant gaining more popularity over time, and therefore they began to appear more and more over time in the theatrical world. After women started to be allowed into the performances, sexual jokes began to surface, as well as sexually suggestive scenes.