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Rugantino

Play · 1805

Rugantino is an 1805 melodrama by the British writer Matthew Lewis. An afterpiece, it was originally staged at the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden on 18 October 1805. It was inspired by the 1801 French play L'Homme à Trois Visages by René-Charles Guilbert de Pixérécourt. The original cast included Charles Murray as Andreas, Duke of Venice, John Liston as Meme, William Abbot as Poole, Henry Erskine Johnston as Rugantino and Isabella Mattocks as Camilla. It premiered in Ireland at Dublin's Crow Street Theatre on 26 January 1807. It was revived at Drury Lane in 1820 with a cast featuring James William Wallack as Rugantino, Thomas Cooke as Contarino, William Oxberry as Memme, John Pritt Harley as Stephane, Walter Maddocks as Harald, Sarah Sparks as Camilla and Charlotte Tidswell as Bettina.

Rutherford and Son

Play · 1912

Rutherford, "a bull-headed capitalist who crushes his own children beneath the wheels of industry" has built a glassmaking business which he has always intended to pass onto his son, John. He sent John to Harrow School to have him educated as a gentleman, but to his disgust John turned his back on the business and went to London, where he married a working-class girl, Mary. When John and Mary had a child, Tony, they could not afford to feed and look after the baby properly, and they have come back to live in Rutherford's house. Rutherford dominates the household, consisting of Ann, his sister, and his children John, Richard and Janet; he barely acknowledges Mary's existence. John, trained in chemistry, has developed a metal which he believes can save the business a great deal of money; but rather than giving it to his father to benefit the business, he regards it as his to sell to make his fortune. He tries to sell it to his father, who turns him down as he believes that John owes him it both in return for bringing him up and to benefit the business which will ultimately come to John. To support his estimation of the value of his invention, John says that he has shared it with his father's right-hand man Martin, whose opinion of it was favourable. Martin is seen sharing a passionate kiss with Rutherford's daughter Janet, and they arrange a further meeting in secret. Rutherford's other son Richard (Dick), who is a curate, comes to ask his father's permission to leave the house and take a position in Blackpool. He also asks his father to see Mrs Henderson, the mother of a lad Rutherford has sacked. During the course of an acrimonious discussion she tells him that Janet and Martin are carrying on. After Dick has gone, Rutherford summons Martin from the mill, and persuades him to betray John's trust and give him the recipe. He argues that this is needed to save the business, which he tells him has been losing money for seven years. When Martin has left, Janet comes in and Rutherford asks her how long it has been going on. She does not attempt to deny the affair, and tells her father what she has long wanted to say to him about her life and how he bullies her and her brothers. Rutherford tells her that she may stay the night, but when he comes home tomorrow she is to be gone and will never be mentioned in the house again. In the morning Janet is euphoric about her coming freedom and new life with Martin. Martin comes in dazed: after he delivered the recipe, Rutherford dismissed him. He does not respond to Janet's euphoria at all; but he says he will make an honest woman of her, and tries to give her some money. She eventually realises that her dream is not to be, and leaves the house alone. Martin has come not to see Janet, but to tell John that he has betrayed him. John is furious and despairs, thinking that his one hope of a life of his own has vanished. He steals all the money he finds in his father's desk, against his wife's begging him not to: he is convinced that by right it is his. He is talking of their going to Canada to make a new life; but Mary persuades him that it is better for him to go alone, and send for her and Tony when he is established. With all three children gone, Mary speaks up to Rutherford, and offers him a bargain: if he will keep and clothe her and her son for ten years, she will then hand the boy over to him entirely to be trained to take over the business. Rutherford accepts, and tells her "I'm known as a hard man. But I don't know that I could have stood there and spoken as you have".

STEW

Play · 2020

The plot centers on the Tucker family, three generations of women grappling with their personal choices. Characters include Mama, the family matriarch, Nelly, a 17-year-old who lives with Mama, Mama's 30-something daughter Lillian, who is visiting with her preteen daughter Li'l Mama and her son Junior, who does not appear in the play. It takes place in Mama's kitchen. Mama is making a stew for a church event later in the day that is very important to her, and the rest of the family is helping or keeping her company in the kitchen. The women are all stressed for various reasons—Mama because of the event and her health issues, Lillian because she is having marital issues, and Nelly because she is pregnant—and they bicker, sometimes comically. A loud bang is heard outside the house while all but Mama are sleeping, and Lillian, Nelly, and Li'l Mama run outside, concerned about Junior, while Mama, still inside stirring her pot, resigns herself to the worst. The play ends with the audience believing he has been shot.

Sabrina Fair

Play · 1953

Sabrina Fairchild is the daughter of a chauffeur to the wealthy Larrabee family, who live in a mansion on the North Shore of Long Island. Returning from a stay in Paris after working as the private secretary to the "Assistant Economic Commissioner Office of Special Representative for Europe Economic Cooperation Administration", she presents herself as a young woman of beauty, charm, incredible sophistication and zest for living, so different from the domestic's daughter the family had largely ignored. She proclaims her desire "to do everything and see everything, sense everything; to know that life is an enormous experience and must be used. To be in the world, and of the world, and never stand aside and watch." Although she once had a crush on David Larrabee, the young playboy of the family, and returns to America with a wealthy French suitor in tow, she finds herself drawn to Linus Larrabee, whose intelligence, lack of sentimentality, and knowledge of the world stimulate her. He, of all the Larabees, is the one she is attracted by. When it is revealed that Sabrina's father has amassed a fortune on the stock market over the past decades, she wants to return to Paris, which she feels is her home. As her financial, as well as intellectual, equal, she falls in love with Linus. The title cites John Milton's song from his masque Comus (1634), which is quoted in the play: With its patrician setting, witty dialogue, and development of a romantic plot between two clever and committed idealists across class lines, Sabrina Fair has much in common with Philip Barry's 1928 comedy Holiday.

Sadie Love

Play · 1915

Sadie Love, a young widow, marries an Italian prince. When the prince's previous girlfriend, the Comtesse de Mirabole, tries to lure him back, Sadie realizes the prince still has romantic feelings for the comtesse. Sadie wants a divorce, but to avoid public embarrassment, she insists that they go on their honeymoon first. The comtesse wants to go along to prevent the newlyweds from consummating their marriage. Sadie agrees, but only if she can bring her own ex-boyfriend, Jim Wakeley. Jim is followed by his wife, Lilian, who brings her own romantic interest, Mumford Crewe. The six travel first to the home of Sadie's aunt, Mrs. Warrington, who disapproves of the group's romantic complications, then to the cruise ship the prince has booked for the honeymoon.

Saint Joan

Play · 1923

Shaw characterised Saint Joan as "A Chronicle Play in 6 Scenes and an Epilogue ". Joan, a simple peasant girl, claims to experience visions of Saint Margaret, Saint Catherine, and the archangel Michael, which she says were sent by God to guide her conduct. Scene 1 (23 February 1429): Robert de Baudricourt complains about the inability of the hens on his farm to produce eggs. Joan claims that her voices are telling her to lift the siege of Orléans, and to allow her several of his men for this purpose. Joan also says that she will crown the Dauphin in Reims Cathedral. Baudricourt ridicules Joan, but his Steward feels inspired by her words. Baudricourt eventually begins to feel the same sense of inspiration, and gives his consent to Joan. The Steward enters at the end of the scene to exclaim that the hens have begun to lay eggs again. Baudricourt interprets this as a sign from God of Joan's divine inspiration. Scene 2 (8 March 1429): Joan talks her way into being received at the court of the weak and vain Dauphin. There, she tells him that her voices have commanded her to help him become a true king by rallying his troops to drive out the English occupiers and restore France to greatness. Joan succeeds in doing this through her excellent powers of flattery, negotiation, leadership, and skill on the battlefield. Scene 3 (29 April 1429): Dunois and his page are waiting for the wind to turn so that he and his forces can lift the Siege of Orléans. Joan and Dunois commiserate, and Dunois attempts to explain to her more pragmatic realities of an attack, without the wind at their back. Her replies eventually inspire Dunois to rally the forces, and at the scene's end, the wind turns in their favour. Scene 4 (June 1429): Warwick and Stogumber discuss Joan's stunning series of victories. Joined by the Bishop of Beauvais, they are at a loss to explain her success. Stogumber decides Joan is a witch. Beauvais sees Joan as a threat to the Church, as she claims to receive instructions from God directly. He fears she wants to instil national pride in the people, which would undermine the Church's universal rule. Warwick thinks she wants to create a system in which the king is responsible to God only, ultimately stripping him and other feudal lords of their power. All agree that she must die. Scene 5 (17 July 1429): the Dauphin is crowned Charles VII at Reims Cathedral. A perplexed Joan asks Dunois why she is so unpopular at court. He explains that she has exposed very important people as incompetent and irrelevant. She talks to Dunois, Bluebeard, and La Hire about returning home. Charles, who complains about the weight of his coronation robes and smell of the holy oil, is pleased to hear this. She then says to Dunois "Before I go home, let's take Paris", an idea which horrifies Charles, who wants to negotiate a peace immediately. The Archbishop berates her for her "sin of pride". Dunois warns her that if she is captured on a campaign he deems foolhardy, no one will ransom or rescue her. Now realising that she is "alone on earth", Joan declares that she will gain the strength to do what she must from the people and from God. She leaves, leaving the men dumbfounded. Scene 6 (30 May 1431): deals with her trial. Stogumber is adamant that she be executed at once. The Inquisitor, the Bishop of Beauvais, and the Church officials on both sides of the trial have a long discussion on the nature of her heresy. Joan is brought to the court, and continues to assert that her voices speak to her directly from God and that she has no need of the Church's officials. This outrages Stogumber. She does not acquiesce to the pressure of torture, but is finally convinced her visions have betrayed her once the court tells her they are ready to execute her at a moment's notice. She agrees to sign a confession relinquishing the truth behind her voices. When she learns she will be imprisoned for life without hope of parole, she renounces her confession: Joan accepts death at the stake as preferable to such an imprisoned existence. Stogumber vehemently demands that Joan then be taken to the stake for immediate execution. The Inquisitor and the Bishop of Beauvais excommunicate her and deliver her into the hands of the English. The Inquisitor asserts that Joan was fundamentally innocent, in the sense that she was sincere and had no understanding of the church and the law. Stogumber re-enters, screaming and severely shaken emotionally after seeing Joan die in the flames, the first time that he has witnessed such a death, and realising that he has not understood what it means to burn a person until he has actually seen it happen. A soldier had given Joan two sticks tied together in a cross before the moment of her death. Bishop Martin Ladvenu also reports that when he approached with a crucifix to let her see it before she died, and he approached too close to the flames, she warned him of the danger from the stake, which convinced him that she could not have been under the inspiration of the devil. Epilogue: 25 years after Joan's execution, a retrial has cleared her of heresy. Brother Martin brings the news to Charles VII. Charles then has a dream in which Joan appears to him. She begins conversing cheerfully not only with Charles, but with her old enemies, who also materialise in the King's bedroom. The visitors include the English soldier who gave her a cross. Because of this act, he receives a day off from Hell on the anniversary of Joan's death. An emissary from the present day (the 1920s) brings news that the Catholic Church is to canonise her. Joan says that saints can work miracles, and asks if she can be resurrected. At this, all the characters desert her one by one, asserting that the world is not prepared to receive a saint such as her. The last to leave is the English soldier, who is about to engage in a conversation with Joan before he is summoned back to Hell at the end of his 24-hour respite. The play ends with Joan ultimately despairing that mankind will never accept its saints:

Sally and Marsha

Play · 1981

Sally, a housewife from South Dakota, moves into an apartment in New York City. She is an unsophisticated young mother with two small children, whose husband travels. She meets her neighbor, Marsha, whose husband is a resident in orthopedics. Marsha is a cynical and neurotic native New Yorker. Throughout the course of the time they spend together, the women discuss their respective views on life. Although outwardly different, they come to be supportive of each other.

Salome

Play · 1896

Herod Antipas, Tetrarch of Judea Jokanaan, the Prophet The young Syrian, Captain of the guard Tigellinus, a young Roman A Cappadocian A Nubian First soldier Second soldier The page of Herodias Jews, Nazarenes, etc. A slave Naaman, the Executioner Herodias, Wife of the Tetrarch Salome, daughter of Herodias The slaves of Salomé Jokanaan (John the Baptist, Iokanaan in the original French text) has been imprisoned by Herod Antipas in a cistern below the terrace of Herod's palace, for his hostile comments about Herodias, Herod's second wife. A young captain of the guard admires the beautiful princess Salome, Herod's stepdaughter. A page warns the captain that something terrible may happen if he continues to stare at the princess. Salome is fascinated by Jokanaan's voice. She persuades the captain to open the cistern so that the prophet can emerge, and she can see him and touch him. Jokanaan appears, denouncing Herodias and her husband. At first frightened by the sight of the holy man, Salome becomes fascinated by him, begging him to let her touch his hair, his skin and kiss his mouth. When she tells him she is Herodias's daughter, he calls her a "daughter of Sodom" and bids her keep away from him. All Salome's attempts to attract him fail, and he swears she will never kiss his mouth, cursing her as the daughter of an adulteress and advising her to seek the Lord. He returns to his underground confinement. The young captain of the guard, unable to bear Salome's desire for another man, fatally stabs himself. Herod appears from the palace, looking for the princess and commenting on the strange look of the moon. When he slips in the captain's blood, he suddenly panics. Herodias dismisses his fears and asks him to go back inside with her, but Herod's attention has turned libidinously towards Salome, who rejects his advances. From the cistern, Jokanaan resumes his denunciation of Herodias; she demands that Herod hand the prophet over to the Jews. Herod refuses, maintaining that Jokanaan is a holy man and has seen God. His words spark an argument among the Jews concerning the true nature of God, and two Nazarenes talk about the miracles of Jesus. As Jokanaan continues to accuse her, Herodias demands that he is silenced. Herod asks Salome to dance for him. She refuses, but when he promises to give her anything she wants, she agrees. Ignoring her mother's pleas – "Ne dansez pas, ma fille" – "Do not dance, my daughter" – Salome performs the dance of the seven veils. Delighted, Herod asks what reward she would like, and she asks for the head of Jokanaan on a silver platter. Horrified, Herod refuses, while Herodias rejoices at Salome's choice. Herod offers other rewards, but Salome insists and reminds Herod of his promise. He finally yields. The executioner descends into the cistern, and Salome impatiently awaits her reward. When the prophet's head is brought to her, she passionately addresses Jokanaan as if he were still alive and finally kisses his lips: Herod, frightened and appalled at Salome's behaviour, orders the soldiers, "Tuez cette femme!" – "Kill that woman!", and they crush her to death under their shields.

Same Time, Next Year

Play · 1975

New Jersey accountant George Peters and Oakland housewife Doris meet at a Northern California inn in February 1951. They have an affair, and agree to meet once a year, despite the fact both are married to others and have six children between them. There are six scenes over the course of the next 24 years which develop an emotional intimacy deeper than what one would expect to find between two people meeting for a clandestine relationship just once a year. During the time they spend with each other, they discuss the births, deaths, and marital problems each is experiencing at home, while they adapt themselves to the social changes affecting their lives. Between the six scenes are tapes (speeches, songs, sports broadcasts) of that time period that have impacted the characters.

Samuel Weller, or, The Pickwickians

Play · 1837

Samuel Weller, or, The Pickwickians is an 1837 comedy in three acts adapted from Dickens's novel The Pickwick Papers by William Thomas Moncrieff. It was first performed at the Royal Strand Theatre in London on 17 July 1837. W. T. Moncrieff's 'Farcical Comedy' Sam Weller; or the Pickwickians opened at the Royal Strand Theatre in 1837 in a production directed by William John Hammond (1797–1848) The production was memorable for the Alfred Jingle of John Lee and the Sam Weller of Hammond. In the same year a production opened in New York and Philadelphia where it had a good run despite poor reviews. Dickens complained against this adaptation While Moncrieff had apologised to ‘Boz’ in his notes on the playbill this failed to placate Dickens, who caricatured Moncrieff as the 'literary gentleman' and actor-manager Vincent Crummles in his novel Nicholas Nickleby "who had dramatized in his time two hundred and forty-seven novels, as fast as they had come out – some of them faster than they had come out". Moncrieff's response was to plagiarise Nickleby in another production in 1839. As the title suggests, Moncrieff decided to focus on Sam Weller, the main comic character in the novel, rather than on Samuel Pickwick himself. The play had a revival at the New Strand Theatre in May and July 1838 with largely the original cast. The play was adapted in 1850 by Thomas Hailes Lacy as The Pickwickians; or the Peregrinations of Sam Weller as a comic drama in three acts in prose.

Sardanapalus

Play · 1834

In a soliloquy Salemenes deplores the life of slothful luxury led by his brother-in-law Sardanapalus, king of Assyria. The king enters, and Salemenes reproaches him with his lack of ambition for military glory and his unfaithfulness to his queen, Salemenes' sister. He warns him of possible rebellion by treacherous courtiers. Sardanapalus answers by extolling the virtues of mild and merciful rule and condemning bloodshed, but is finally persuaded to give Salemenes his signet so that he can arrest the rebel leaders. Salemenes leaves, and Sardanapalus reflects, Till now, no drop from an Assyrian vein Hath flow'd for me, nor hath the smallest coin Of Nineveh's vast treasures e'er been lavish'd On objects which could cost her sons a tear: If then they hate me, 'tis because I hate not: If they rebel, 'tis because I oppress not. The Greek slave-girl Myrrha, Sardanapalus' favourite, enters; when Sardanapalus proposes to spend the evening banqueting by the Euphrates she persuades him not to go, fearing some danger there. The Chaldean astrologer Beleses predicts the downfall of Sardanapalus, then meets the satrap Arbaces and plots the king's murder with him. Salemenes enters and tries forcibly to arrest both men, but Sardanapalus arrives unexpectedly and, not wanting to believe that Beleses and Arbaces could be traitors, breaks up the struggle. Salemenes and the king leave, and Arbaces, shamed by the king's clemency, momentarily abandons his regicidal intentions. A messenger arrives from the king, telling the two satraps to return to their respective provinces without their troops. Beleses believes this to be the prelude to a death sentence. Arbaces agrees: Why, what other Interpretation should it bear? it is The very policy of orient monarchs – Pardon and poison – favours and a sword – A distant voyage, and an eternal sleep […] How many satraps have I seen set out In his sire's day for mighty vice-royalties, Whose tombs are on their path! I know not how, But they all sicken'd by the way, it was So long and heavy. They leave, resolving to defend themselves by rebellion. Sardanapalus and Salemenes enter, and it becomes clear that Sardanapalus is now persuaded of the plotters' guilt, but still does not repent of sparing them. Myrrha joins the king and urges him to execute Beleses and Arbaces, but he, as ever, rejects the shedding of blood. The king is banqueting when news reaches him that the two satraps have refused to leave the city and have led their troops in rebellion. Sardanapalus arms himself and, after admiring his newly martial appearance in a mirror, goes to join Salemenes and his soldiers, now the only ones loyal to him. Myrrha, left behind, hears reports that a battle is in progress, and is going badly for the king. Sardanapalus and Salemenes return, closely followed by the rebels, but they beat the attack off and congratulate themselves on a victory. Sardanapalus admits to being slightly wounded. Sardanapalus awakes from a troubled sleep and tells Myrrha that he has had a nightmare of banqueting with his dead ancestors, the kings of Assyria. Salemenes now brings in his sister, Zarina, Sardanapalus' long-estranged wife, and these two are left alone together. Zarina proposes to take their children abroad for safety, and makes it clear that she still loves him. As they talk the king gradually becomes reconciled to his wife. She faints at the prospect of parting, and is carried out. Myrrha enters, and the king, initially embarrassed by her presence, falls under her spell again. I thought to have made mine inoffensive rule An era of sweet peace 'midst bloody annals, A green spot amidst desert centuries, On which the future would turn back and smile, And cultivate, or sigh when it could not Recall Sardanapalus' golden reign. I thought to have made my realm a paradise, And every moon an epoch of new pleasures. I took the rabble's shouts for love – the breath Of friends for truth – the lips of woman for My only guerdon – so they are, my Myrrha: [He kisses her] Kiss me. Now let them take my realm and life! They shall have both, but never thee! Salemenes enters, and the king orders an immediate attack on the rebels. As Myrrha waits in the palace, conversing with one of the courtiers, a wounded Salemenes is brought in, a javelin protruding from his side. He draws out the javelin and dies of the consequent blood-loss. Sardanapalus, who has also returned, desponds about his prospects in the unfolding battle. Then he is told that the Euphrates, being in violent flood, has torn down part of the city wall, leaving no defence against the enemy except the river itself, which must presently recede. A herald arrives and offers Arbaces' terms: Sardanapalus' life if he will surrender. The king refuses these terms, but asks for a truce of one hour. He uses this interval to have a pyre erected under his throne, and bids his last faithful officer save himself by fleeing. Sardanapalus and Myrrha say their last farewells to each other and to the world, then he climbs to the top of the pyre, and she throws a torch into it and joins him.

Saturday's Children

Play · 1927

Act I (The Halevy's apartment dining room. A June evening.) Florrie and Willie Sands are visiting her parents. They discuss Bobby's marriage prospects with Mrs. Halevy, while Mr. Halevy works on a radio set he built. Florrie says Bobby is too inexperienced and needs to be taken in hand if she is ever to marry. Willie and her bicker; it is plain she has the upper hand in their marriage. A phone call from Rims O'Neil marks the start of Florrie's campaign. She tells him that Bobby is going out later, but he can see her in thirty minutes. Bobby arrives late, having dined with Mr. Mengle, who offered her a proposal. "A marriage proposal?" asks Mrs. Halevy. Bobby replies no, just a proposal. It is clear she is not naive, nor helpless with men. Florrie tells Bobby about Rims call, and urges her to put on her pink dress for him. While the others leave for a concert in the park, Florrie quickly writes in shorthand some instructions for Bobby on how to maneuver Rims. Bobby doesn't want to trick Rims, but when he mentions that Mr. Mengle wants to send him to Buenos Aires to open a branch office, she realizes she must act fast. Glancing at the shorthand notes, which Rims cannot read, she puts Florrie's plan into action, and before long Rims proposes marriage. (Curtain) Act II (The O'Neil's kitchen-dining room. November.) Married six months now, the O'Neils live in a tiny two room rental house Willie found for them. Bobby quit her job, and Rims' weekly wages are barely enough to support them. Bobby has made out a detailed budget, but Rims resents having to report every expense, particularly his occasional pinochle or poker games. Bobby feels that Rims regrets marrying her, while she hates their arguments and wishes they could go back to being a romantic couple. Florrie and Willie drop by, with the former advising Bobby to have a baby in order to bind Rims more closely. Bobby does not want to trick Rims again, so when her father visits, she asks him what to do. Mr. Halevy suggests it probably wasn't a good idea to get married, but now that you are you should please yourself. Florrie finds a poker IOU that Rims had dropped on the floor, which sets off another argument between Bobby and Rims. Finally, both walk out of the house. (Curtain) Act III (A bedroom at Mrs. Gorlik's boarding house on East 33rd Street. About 9pm, three weeks later.) Bobby returned to her parent's apartment for a week, before finding a room with Mrs. Gorlik. She only rents to women, and bedroom doors, which have no locks, must be kept open while men visit. Bobby has resumed working for Mr. Mengle, who once again has taken her to dinner. Rims, however, has taken a new job working with hydraulic machinery. Mr. Halevy visits Bobby, but finds her still out. He gets an earful of Mrs. Gorlik's opinions while waiting. Next Rims comes calling; he followed Bobby when she left work and found where she now lives. After Bobby arrives, Mr. Halevy leaves. Bobby explains to Rims that she wants their old pre-marriage relationship back, but doesn't insist on divorce. The Chauffeur for Mr. Mengle brings a package to Bobby, containing a bolt lock for her door as a joke. Rims is incensed and takes the bolt, but is kicked out by Mrs. Gorlik as it now 10pm. Bobby falls sobbing onto her bed in the darkened room, but soon sees Rims coming through the open window into her room from the fire escape, carrying the bolt and a screw driver. They embrace then Rims begins to attach the bolt lock. (Curtain)

Scipio Africanus

Play · 1718

Scipio Africanus is a 1718 historical tragedy by the British writer Charles Beckingham. It is inspired by the story of The Continence of Scipio, featuring the Ancient Roman general Scipio Africanus during the Second Punic War. Staged at Lincoln's Inn Fields the cast included James Quin as Scipio, John Leigh as Trebellius, Sarah Thurmond as Almeyda, Jane Rogers as Semanthe, Thomas Smith as Alucius, John Corey as Lelius, John Ogden as Lucilius, Thomas Smith as Alucius, and Mary Kent as Axarte.

Scotch Mist

Play · 1926

Scotch Mist is a 1926 comedy play by the British writer and barrister Patrick Hastings. Star Tallulah Bankhead played the centre of a love triangle and was apparently responsible for the play's commercial success despite critical reviews. It ran for a 117 performances at the St Martin's Theatre in London's West End between 26 January and 3 May 1926. The cast included Bankhead, Godfrey Tearle, Edmund Breon, Abraham Sofaer and Beatrix Lehmann. It was produced by Basil Dean. A Broadway run directed by Edward Childs Carpenter at the Klaw Theatre the same year was less successful, lasting for 16 performances.

Sea Fever

Play · 1931

Sea Fever is a 1931 British play by Auriol Lee and John Van Druten. It is based on the 1929 play Marius by Marcel Pagnol about Marius, a young man in Marseille whose desire to go to sea overcomes his developing romance with a local girl. It was staged at the New Theatre in the West End but was not successful, lasting for only six performances. The Sunday Times described it as being all atmosphere and no plot. The cast included Maurice Evans, Peggy Ashcroft, Norman McKinnel, and Mary Clare.

Seagulls Over Sorrento

Play · 1949

Seagulls Over Sorrento is a play by Hugh Hastings, an Australian who had served in the Royal Navy during the Second World War. It was first staged for a single performance at the Comedy Theatre in London's West End in 1949 before embarking on a lengthy run of 1,551 performances between 14 June 1950 and 13 March 1954 mainly at the Apollo Theatre and then transferring briefly to the Duchess Theatre. The West End cast included John Gregson (replaced by Gordon Jackson), Nigel Stock, Bernard Lee, Ronald Shiner and William Hartnell. Shiner and Hartnell, in particular, were singled out for praised by critics. A Broadway version ran for only 12 performances at the John Golden Theatre.

Seascape

Play · 1975

Seascape opens on a beach. An older couple, Nancy and Charlie, has finished a picnic lunch. As Nancy cleans up, the noise of a jet flying low engulfs the stage. Charlie predicts that a jet will someday smash into a dune. Nancy expresses her desire to be near the water forever. She loves everything about it and would like to travel from beach to beach. Charlie responds negatively to her dreams. He does not want to do anything or go anywhere. Charlie's attitude angers Nancy. She points out that life is short. She threatens to have adventures on her own. Charlie's attitude changes after Nancy's outburst, and she retreats from her plan a bit. She is content to enjoy the moment. After another jet passes by, Nancy reminds Charlie about his childhood desire to live under the water. Charlie tells her how he would sink to the bottom of a pool or lake and sit there until he had to breathe. Nancy encourages him to do this again and get in touch with his youth. Charlie refuses, embarrassed by her insistence. Nancy changes the subject to their sex life. She tells him about a time in their marriage when she thought of divorcing him. There was tension, and she suspected that he was having an affair. Charlie denies this, and Nancy accepts his word. Nancy encourages him to sink under the water again and to show her how he did it. Charlie again refuses and turns the conversation to her. He tells her that she was a good wife. Nancy says the same about him, listing the many ways in which he was a good husband. When she is done, she is bitter because the "good life" they have had seems limited to her. Charlie is hurt by her attitude. They argue. Nancy is still angry that his only interest is to rest, while she wants to experience new things. During a pause at the end of their heated argument, Leslie, a human-sized male lizard, takes a peek at them. Nancy tries to get Charlie to help write postcards, but he declines. Leslie peeks at them again, this time with his female mate, Sarah. Nancy sees the lizards and is intrigued. Charlie is afraid. Charlie demands that Nancy find him something to defend them with. When she can only find a small, thin stick, Charlie is peeved. Nancy remains interested in the lizards, but when Leslie clears his throat, she fears the lizards might hurt them. When Leslie waves his large stick, Nancy and Charlie admit their love for each other, Nancy more reluctantly than Charlie. As Leslie and Sarah move forward, another jet flies by and scares them away. Charlie tries to blame the whole episode on bad liver paste sandwiches. He believes they are dead from food poisoning. Nancy ridicules the idea. Nancy is pleased when Leslie and Sarah return. To protect themselves, Nancy believes they should show submission by lying on their backs with their legs and arms up, as a dog would. Charlie assumes the position, though with great reluctance. Act II opens where act I ended. Leslie and Sarah are unsure about Nancy and Charlie's submissive stance. When Leslie and Sarah approach, Charlie threatens to scream. Nancy is much calmer. Leslie pokes Charlie and Nancy in the side, but neither one moves. Leslie and Sarah decide that Nancy and Charlie are relatively harmless. Charlie is unsure about the creatures, while Nancy is fascinated by everything about them. Leslie and Sarah decide to approach them again. Leslie pokes Charlie hard, causing Charlie to speak. Leslie replies several times, but Charlie will not speak to the creature. Nancy finally sits up and greets Sarah. Charlie only says hello after Nancy encourages him. Sarah and Nancy believe that the tension has been defused, but Leslie and Charlie are still uncertain of each other. With Nancy's prodding, Charlie assures Leslie that they are not unfriendly. Though Leslie and Sarah speak English, they do not understand many of the words and ideas that Charlie and Nancy use. Nancy tries to shake Leslie's flipper, but Leslie cannot grasp the concept. Nancy and Charlie explain the concept of the handshake, as well as their differing anatomy. The lizards have only legs and flippers. Nancy finally shakes hands with the lizards. Charlie tries to shake hands with Leslie, but Leslie is still uncertain about him. Leslie and Charlie talk about their differences. Leslie asks about their clothing. Among other things, Nancy tells them that clothes cover their sexual organs. This leads to a discussion of the humans' sex organs, especially Nancy's breasts. The lizards do not have these organs. Nancy shows Sarah, who is fascinated. Leslie also wants to see, but Charlie is uncomfortable with the idea. To change the subject, Charlie asks about their children. Sarah and Leslie have produced seven thousand eggs. Leslie is appalled when he learns that the humans do not lay eggs. Nancy explains human gestation and that they have three children. When Nancy tells them that they keep their children for many years, she also explains the concept of love. This and all other emotions are foreign concepts to the lizards. Charlie asks how Sarah and Leslie became paired. Leslie fought off other lizards when Sarah reached her maturity and started to mate. He wanted her, but emotions did not play a role. Charlie brings up the idea of disloyalty in Leslie and Sarah's relationship. This upsets Nancy. The issue also confuses Sarah and Leslie. Charlie is nearly attacked by Leslie when he angrily compares the male lizard to a fish. The women calm the men down and Leslie explains his disdainful attitude toward fish. They discuss the ideas of prejudice and difference. Sarah looks up and sees birds flying by. Leslie becomes defensive. Nancy explains to Sarah that the birds are seagulls. The females compare them to underwater rays. Nancy tells Sarah that she has seen photographs of rays. Nancy and Charlie cannot explain what photography is to her, so Sarah believes they are insulting her. When Leslie returns, Sarah explains what has happened. Abruptly changing the subject, Nancy declares that Charlie believes that they are dead. She continues to dig into Charlie, sarcastically saying that no wonders are possible. Leslie and Sarah catch on to her meaning, to some degree, but Leslie is confused by the idea that reality is an illusion. When Leslie asks Charlie to explain it, Charlie becomes angry. After Nancy calms him down, another jet flies by. Leslie and Sarah are fearful. Nancy and Charlie explain the idea of the airplane. Charlie talks about other machines including those that go undersea. Nancy tells the lizards about the times in Charlie's youth when he would sink under water and stay there. Angry at Nancy, Charlie changes the subject and asks the lizards why they came out of the sea in the first place. They do not know, other than they have changed somehow and do not belong there anymore. This prompts Charlie to explain the idea of evolution, but Leslie and Sarah do not understand it fully. The lizards can only think in terms of themselves. When Sarah asks if progress is good, Charlie is uncertain. Every term and idea has to be explained to the lizards, leading to more frustration for Charlie, as well as Leslie and Sarah. Charlie asks Sarah what she would do if Leslie went away and did not come back. Nancy becomes angry at him for asking. Sarah is upset by the question and wants to go back to the sea. Leslie hits and chokes Charlie for making Sarah cry. Leslie and Sarah decide to go back. Nancy tells them to stay because eventually they will have to come back. Nancy, and to some degree Charlie, offer their help. Leslie accepts their offer.

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