<P> The male leads Horner and Harcourt were played by the contrasted actors Charles Hart and Edward Kynaston ( or Kenaston ) . The forcefully masculine 45 - year - old Hart `` was celebrated for superman roles , notably the arrogant , bloodthirsty Almanzor in John Dryden 's Conquest of Granada '' , and also for playing rakish comedy heroes with nonchalance and charisma . Many critics credit the personalities and skills of Hart and Nell Gwyn with creating , as much as any playwright did , the famous flirting / bantering Restoration comedy couple . The beautiful androgynous Kynaston , probably in his early thirties , was a different kind of hero . He had started his career in 1660 as the outstanding Restoration female impersonator -- `` the prettiest woman in the whole house '' -- before real women entered the profession in the fall of 1660 . ( The 2004 movie Stage Beauty is loosely based on Kynaston 's career . ) </P>
<P> The male leads Horner and Harcourt were played by the contrasted actors Charles Hart and Edward Kynaston ( or Kenaston ) . The forcefully masculine 45 - year - old Hart `` was celebrated for superman roles , notably the arrogant , bloodthirsty Almanzor in John Dryden 's Conquest of Granada '' , and also for playing rakish comedy heroes with nonchalance and charisma . Many critics credit the personalities and skills of Hart and Nell Gwyn with creating , as much as any playwright did , the famous flirting / bantering Restoration comedy couple . The beautiful androgynous Kynaston , probably in his early thirties , was a different kind of hero . He had started his career in 1660 as the outstanding Restoration female impersonator -- `` the prettiest woman in the whole house '' -- before real women entered the profession in the fall of 1660 . ( The 2004 movie Stage Beauty is loosely based on Kynaston 's career . ) </P>
the main character in wycherley 's the country wife
the main character in wycherley 's the country wife
Horner Harcourt
Horner Harcourt