Michael: But who is this? the painter, m...
Overview
- Female: 0
- Male: 2
Context
Occurring amidst the escalating conspiracy against Thomas Arden, this brief confrontation centers on Michael, Arden’s anxious servant, and Clarke, the painter who previously supplied poison for the murder scheme. Both men are fiercely vying for the romantic favor of Susan, Mosby’s sister, who has been dangled as a pawn and romantic prize by the conspirators. When their paths cross, Michael carries a sharp, defensive jealousy into the space, immediately baiting Clarke over his profession and
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Michael: But who is this? the painter, my corrival, that would needs win Mistress Susan.
Clarke: How now, Michael? how doth my mistress and all at home?
Michael: Who? Susan Mosby? she is your mistress, too?
Clarke: Ay, how doth she and all the rest?
Michael: All’s well but Susan; she is sick.
Clarke: Sick? Of what disease?
Michael: Of a great fever.
Clarke: A fear of what?
Michael: A great fever.
Clarke: A fever? God forbid!
Michael: Yes, faith, and of a lordaine, too, as big as yourself.
Clarke: O, Michael, the spleen prickles you. Go to,you carry an eye over Mistress Susan.
Michael: I’ faith, to keep her from the painter.
Clarke: Why more from a painter than from a serving creature like yourself?
Michael: Because you painters make but a painting table of a pretty wench, and spoil her beauty with blotting.
Clarke: What mean you by that?
Michael: Why, that you painters paint lambs in the lining of wenches’ petticoats, and we serving-men put horns to them to make them become sheep.
Clarke: Such another word will cost you a cuff or a knock.
Michael: What, with a dagger made of a pencil? Faith,’tis too weak, and therefore thou too weak to win Susan.
Clarke: Would Susan’s love lay upon this stroke.
[Then he breaks Michael’s head.]
Anonymous, Arden of Faversham, Scene 10, ll.47-72.
Performance Tips
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Lean heavily into the Elizabethan double entendres ("painting table," "horns," "pencil") so the audience understands Michael is deliberately attacking Clarke's pride rather than making casual conversation.
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Keep the vocal pacing crisp and rhythmic, treating the dialogue like a rapid tennis rally where neither man is willing to yield ground or lose face.
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Utilize physical props and costume elements—such as Clarke's artist tools or Michael's servant gear—to emphasize their contrasting
Emotional Beat Breakdown
Territorial Posturing
What shifts: The interaction shifts from a deceptive, surface-level inquiry into an overt declaration of rivalry over Susan.
Character objectives: Michael aims to provoke Clarke with cryptic news about Susan's health, while Clarke seeks to gather genuine news about her while defending his romantic claim.
Performance note: Maintain a light, casual vocal tone on the surface, but ground the physical staging in tense, territorial eye contact that makes it clear both
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