Elizabeth Knepp

Elizabeth Knepp, born Elizabeth Carpenter, married Christopher Knepp in 1659 and became an actress and singer in the newly revived Restoration theatre. Samuel Pepys mentions her repeatedly in his diary and admired both her acting and her singing, making her one of the more visible female performers in his record of London theatrical life.

Knepp worked at a moment when women were appearing professionally on the English public stage for the first time. Details of her birth, death and private life remain incomplete, and some sources call her Mary. Her career is nevertheless valuable evidence of the new possibilities and persistent vulnerabilities experienced by actresses in the 1660s and 1670s.