The Other Boleyn Girl

FEMALE CHARACTERS

Anne Boleyn: Late 20’s – mid 30’s
The younger of the two sisters, Anne was raised in the French Court. She is less inhibited than the other ladies around her and has a powerful sexuality that she is willing to use to get what she wants. She has a quick temper but can be calculating when it is called for. When she fails to produce a male heir she is arrested on charges of incest and adultery and is executed.

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Mary Boleyn: Late 20’s – mid 30’s
Mary is the oldest of the Boleyn siblings and is the only one married at the start of the play. She is a puppet for her family’s lust for power and has been made the mistress to the King. She loves her husband and being Henry’s mistress is putting a strain on marital bliss. When Henry is introduced to Anne, Mary is discarded and is no longer of use to her family’s plans for advancement. An even tempered person with a good heart, who only wants to do the right thing.

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Queen Katherine of Aragon: Mid 40’s – early 50’s (Act 1 & Act 2 sc.1)
Katherine is the daughter of the King and Queen of Spain and has been married to Henry VIII for 20 years. She is regal, poised and graceful but is clever and quick witted. She knows that Anne has been brought to court to serve as the King’s mistress and is not best pleased, however, she is unable to do anything about it. When she realises she is to be ousted she tries everything to avoid being divorced and sent to a nunnery. (Actor doubles as other characters)

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Lady Elizabeth Howard: Mid 50’s +
Mother to the Boleyn siblings, wife to Thomas Boleyn and sister to The Duke of Norfolk. Elizabeth is seen by her family to have married beneath her by marrying Boleyn. A shrewd and intelligent woman, she is more than capable of looking out for her interests. Although she loves her children, she is oftentimes harsh and stern with them, especially when they disappoint her.

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Jane Parker: Mid 20’s – Early 30’s
Jane is of high birth but acts as Lady’s Maid to the Boleyn’s and is treated rather badly at times. She is rather dull compared to the other women and eventually marries George Boleyn, however reluctantly.

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Jane Seymour: Mid 20’s – Early 30’s (Act 2 only)
Third wife of Henry VIII. Jane is a Lady of the Queen’s Court. (Actor doubles as other characters)

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Midwife: Early 50’s (Act 2 only)
(Actor doubles as other characters)

MALE CHARACTERS

George Boleyn: Mid 20’s – early 30’s
Younger brother to Mary and Anne – Intelligent, quick-witted and courageous but also arrogant, promiscuous and ruthless – He will do anything for his family. He is accused of incest with Queen Anne and is executed.

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Francis Weston: Mid 20’s – early 30’s
Friend to George Boleyn and member of the King’s Privy Chamber – Pleasant and well-meaning but hot-headed and lustful – He is a staunch ally of the Boleyn family. He is accused of adultery with Queen Anne and is executed.

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William Carey: Early 30’s (Act 1 only)
Husband to Mary Boleyn and member of the King’s Privy Chamber – Devoted to his wife and jealous of her being the mistress to the King – Dies of sweating sickness. (Actor doubles as other characters)

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King Henry VIII: Early 40’s
Henry is at first having an affair with Mary Boleyn but after being introduced to Anne, he becomes devoted to her and seeks to end his marriage to Katherine of Aragon. Later, when Anne fails to produce a son, their relationship sours and he becomes cruel and mistrustful. (In a number of scenes throughout but only speaks in 2 scenes in act 2)

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Cardinal Thomas Wolsey: Late 50’s (Act 1 only)
Lord Chancellor and Rome’s highest authority in England. Top advisor to the King, he feels invincible. Despite his claims of piety, he likes the finer things in life and loves to indulge his every whim. He is ruthless and cunning. His failure to secure the King's divorce from Katherine of Aragon is his downfall. He dies of natural causes before his execution. (Actor doubles as other characters)

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Harry Percy: Late 20’s to mid 30’s (Act 1 only)
Earl of Northumberland, page to Cardinal Wolsey and 1st cousin to William Carey.  He is forced to annul his secret marriage to Anne Boleyn in order to marry Mary Talbot, to whom he had been promised by his father. We can infer that he is easily led and idealistic. Dies of natural causes. (Actor doubles as other characters)

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Thomas Howard – Duke of Norfolk: Approx. 60 y/o
Evil and ruthless, he is sure of his own superiority. His ambition knows no bounds and he will trample over anyone who would get in his way. He sees the chance to exert his will on England by marrying his niece – Anne – to the King. He arrests Queen Anne on charges of adultery and incest on the orders of the King, for which she is executed.

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William Stafford:  Mid 30’s to early 40’s
Second husband of Mary Boleyn. A land owner in Essex, he and Mary marry in secret after the death of her first husband. The marriage is only discovered when Mary falls pregnant. He is a kind and attentive husband. He has a lower social status as a Knight but is devoted to his wife.

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Thomas Boleyn: Mid 50’s +
Father of Mary, Anne and George. Earl of Wiltshire, Earl of Ormand, 1st Viscount of Rochford and Knight of the Garter – of Hever Castle, Kent – A diplomat and politician in King Henry’s Court, he also served King Henry VII's Court. He is an accomplished man but is submissive to his brother-in-law, Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk.

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Mark Smeaton: Early to mid 20’s
A musician at Court. He is accused of adultery with Queen Anne and is executed. (Actor doubles as other characters)

There are also non-speaking roles available

Servants - Maids - Bishops - Priests - Ladies - Attendants - Guards -
Gentlemen - Nurses - Courtiers - Musicians - Dancers