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The Non-Juror

Play · 1717

The Non-Juror is a 1717 comedy play by the British writer Colley Cibber. It is inspired by Molière's 1664 work Tartuffe. The original Drury Lane Theatre cast featured John Mills as Sir John Woodvil, Barton Booth as Colonel Woodvil, Robert Wilks as Hearty, Cibber himself as Doctor Wolf, Thomas Walker as Charles, Mary Porter as Lady Woodvil and Anne Oldfield as Maria. Produced three years after the Hanoverian Succession and two after the outbreak of the 1715 Rebellion, the play was sharply critical of Jacobites and their Tory allies. It mockingly exaggerated the position of those who refused to swear allegiance to George I. Cibber himself played the title role of Doctor Wolf, a nonjuring Church of England clergyman who claims that "a Protestant Church can never be secure, till it has a Popish Prince to defend it". The play was a hit, and George I himself commended Cibber with a reward of two hundred pounds. The anti-Catholic tone of the work offended Alexander Pope, himself a nonjuring Catholic, who lamented "the great success of so damn'd a play". It contributed to the growing rivalry between the two writers. The prologue by Nicholas Rowe contained jibes against Catholics currently buying up property in Urbino, the Italian residence of the Jacobite pretender James III. When it was published in 1718, Cibber dedicated the play to King George. In 1768 a rewritten version The Hypocrite by Isaac Bickerstaffe appeared at Drury Lane. This removed many of the political caricatures of Cibber's play which had by now lost their relevance in the changed context, and the principal character was changed to be a Methodist.

The Noose

Play · 1926

Act I (Governor Bancroft's official residence, evening) Nickie Elkins has been condemned for the murder of bootlegger Buck Gordon. He offered no defense or explanation for his action, even to his attorney Bill Chase. Chase, with the assistance of Stella Bancroft who is strangely moved by the young man's plight, persuades the Governor to see Elkins. Chase hopes the youthful appearance of his client will move the Governor to pardon him. Craig escorts Warden Hughes and Elkins into the Governor's office. There Chase recounts the boy's background: no known parents, raised by criminals including Buck Gordon, he'd recently gotten a bank clerk's position. Stella tries to encourage the boy to talk, but he merely asks her not to worry about him. He covertly hands her a sealed letter. To the others, Elkins doesn't deny the killing, but will only say "the man was no good". Warden Hughes then returns Elkins to the nearby state prison. Act II (The Back Stall Night Club, two months earlier, evening. This flashback is only for the audience, there is no suggestion characters from Act I are aware of it.) The bootlegging gang operates out of the night club. Elkins is seen associating there with other members of the gang, such as Buck Gordon and Come-On Conley. Phyllis is at the night club with Mrs. Anderson. Elkins knows her, and they have a mutual interest in each other. The night club's chorus girls do a dance number. Dot is in love with Elkins, but accepts that he only feels friendship for her. Elkins sneaks Phyllis into the back office where they confess their love and kiss. Dot warns them that Buck is coming and escorts Phyllis back to Mrs. Anderson. Elkins tells Buck he's leaving the gang. Buck becomes enraged; he reveals to Elkins that he is his father. His mother is a woman whose politically well-connected husband will have to help him beat an indictment or he'll make the old liaison public. Elkins draws his gun and shoots Buck dead. Act III (Same place and time as Act I) The Governor has still not made up his mind about Elkins' fate. As the Governor ponders his decision, a telephone call is made to the state prison, cancelling the execution by order of the Governor. The Governor is puzzled, and so is the audience, for the playwright never explains what happened. Craig then lets Dot into the office, where she pleads to be allowed Elkins' body, since he has no relatives. The Governor discerns her love and tells her Elkins is still alive. He arranges for Dot to see him. Hughes brings Elkins back to the Governor's office, where Stella hands him back his envelope, still sealed. They depart and the Governor asks his wife for something to eat. (Curtain)

The Northern Heiress

Play · 1716

The Northern Heiress is a 1716 comedy by the Irish-born writer Mary Davys. Its fuller title is The Northern Heiress, or, The Humours of York. The play satirizes the contemporary marriage market. It was dedicated to Princess Anne, daughter of George, Prince of Wales. Because of this it has been inferred that Davys was a strong Whig supporter of the Hanoverian Succession. However, the dedication may have been the attempt of a struggling author to try to secure patronage in the wake of the recent Jacobite rebellion. The original cast featured John Leigh as Gamont, Christopher Bullock as Welby, William Bullock as Sir Loobily Joddrell, Sarah Thurmond as Isabella, Jane Rogers as Louisa, Mary Kent as Lady Cardivant and Frances Maria Knight as Lady Ample.

The Note of Hand

Play · 1774

The Note of Hand, or Trip to Newmarket is a 1774 comedy play by the British writer Richard Cumberland. A farce it was the final play performed by David Garrick at the Drury Lane Theatre in London before his retirement. The Irish premiere took place at the Capel Street Theatre in Dublin on 10 March 1774. The original London cast included John Palmer as Revell, Samuel Cautherley as Rivers, Thomas Jefferson as Elder Rivers, John Moody as O'Connor MacCormuck, William Palmer as Francis, James William Dodd as Sapling, James Wrighten as Putty and Susan Greville as Mrs Cheveley. It is set against the backdrop of Newmarket Racecourse. The play mocked some of the leading Whig politicians of the era such as Charles Fox and the Duke of Devonshire. This may have been the cause of Cumberland's dispute with Richard Brinsley Sheridan who was a Whig. Sheridan went on to create a comedy character Sir Fretful Plagiary closely based on Cumberland in the 1779 play The Critic.

The Notorious Mrs. Ebbsmith

Play · 1895

Agnes, a 33-year-old widow, is staying in Venice with Lucas, to whom she is not married, though the servants and her friend Gertrude have assumed so. Lucas was a rising young Conservative politician who abandoned his wife and career for Agnes. They met when she was sent to Italy to nurse him through a bout of malaria contracted in Rome. She had been married unhappily, and after her husband died became a prominent radical lecturer, and then a nurse to earn a living. Lucas was also unhappy in his marriage and they fell in love. Now they (or at least she) envision a future of writing passionate essays against marriage, lecturing and campaigning. His relatives do not accept his decision. His uncle, the Duke, comes to Venice to "arrange" matters. He suggests a sham reconciliation between Lucas and his wife, and for Agnes, "The suburban villa, the little garden, a couple of discreet servants—everything à la mode." Agnes sneers at this, of course, but is horrified to discover that Lucas actually considers it. She reluctantly agrees. Gertrude, though shocked by Agnes' open "immorality", has come to appreciate her philosophy. She now urges Agnes to reject this hypocritical arrangement, and instead to come with her and Amos to their home in Yorkshire. Amos also appeals to her, urging her to pray for guidance. Agnes agrees to go with them. Lucas now rejects the Duke's proposal, and the Duke asks Gertrude and Amos to stop interfering. Sybil Lucas now appears. She confronts Agnes, and bizarrely asks her to return to Lucas and get him to return to London. She despises Lucas, but she loved him once, and doesn't want to see him "utterly wasted". She implies that her apparent reconciliation with Lucas would relieve her of a great humiliation, even though he made her as miserable as Agnes' husband did her. Agnes breaks down and agrees. However, Gertrude intervenes, fearing that this path will corrupt and destroy Agnes. Sybil breaks down and repudiates the deal. Lucas makes a last effort to join with Agnes, and resume their "free love" life, but Agnes has had enough; she thought she was a leader, a moral example, who would show the world "how men and woman may live independent and noble lives without rule, guidance or sacrament", but she proved weak and corruptible. She feels that she cannot sit in judgment of Sybil any longer; she will go with Amos and Gertrude; and she urges Lucas to learn to pray.

The Octette Bridge Club

Play · 1984

The Octette Bridge Club is a play by P.J. Barry. Set in Providence, Rhode Island, it focuses on eight sisters of Irish descent who meet on alternate Friday evenings to play bridge and gossip. The first act, which opens with the women posing for a photograph for the Sunday rotogravure section of the local newspaper, takes place in October 1934, and the second act is set just prior to Halloween ten years later. Ann Conroy, married to a man who drinks too much, is a no-nonsense schoolteacher who hosts the bridge nights. Martha McDermitt, the widowed eldest sister, is known for her sense of responsibility and stern personality. Mary Margaret Donovan is a spinster who lives with younger sister Alice Monahan and her husband Walter, who have no children. In the second act, Mary Margaret uses a wheelchair and has a slight speech impediment due to a stroke. Nora Hiller is an easy-going woman devoted to her husband Lawrence and their children. Connie Emerson is always quick with a wisecrack. Lil Carmody is a free spirit who plays piano, and Betsy Bailey is the youngest, a melancholy married woman with two children who is struggling to find her own identity. The play premiered at the Humana Festival of New American Plays, an annual event presented by the Actors Theatre of Louisville, in 1984. The Broadway production, directed by Tom Moore, opened at the Music Box Theatre on March 5, 1985 following eight previews and closed after 24 performances. The cast included Elizabeth Huddle as Ann, Anne Pitoniak as Martha, Bette Henritze as Mary Margaret, Lois De Banzie as Alice, Elizabeth Franz as Nora, Nancy Marchand as Connie, Peggy Cass as Lil, and Gisela Caldwell as Betsy. In his review for The New York Times, Frank Rich observed, "This synthetic play... has not so much been written as mechanically mapped out according to an open-and-shut formula. The exposition of each character's one or two stereotypical traits is accomplished by the photographer's rapid-fire journalistic questions in the opening scene; then the author slowly rolls out the skeleton in each sister's closet. Complexities of emotion and dramatic structure are neatly avoided by keeping all the menfolk offstage... Although the evening runs less than two hours, most of it is padding designed to space out the delayed plot revelations. There is plenty of gratuitous nostalgia... as well as an extremely tedious intrafamily talent contest performed after intermission." Pitoniak and Marchand were nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play but lost to Judith Ivey in Hurlyburly. John Lee Beatty was nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design but lost to Heidi Ettinger for Big River. Carrie Robbins was nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design but lost to Alexander Reid for Much Ado About Nothing.

The Odd Couple

Play · 1965

The Odd Couple is a play by Neil Simon. Following its premiere on Broadway in 1965, the characters were revived in a successful 1968 film and 1970s television series, as well as several other derivative works and spin-offs. The plot concerns two mismatched roommates: the neat, uptight Felix Ungar and the slovenly, easygoing Oscar Madison. Simon adapted the play in 1985 to feature a pair of female roommates (Florence Ungar and Olive Madison) in The Female Odd Couple. An updated version of the 1965 show appeared in 2002 with the title Oscar and Felix: A New Look at the Odd Couple.

The Old Maid

Play · 1934

The play as published has a program facsimile from the premiere that shows a different timeline from later programs, though the time intervals between scenes are the same. Charlotte stops them and sends them home. Bridget takes Tina away for her supper, while Charlotte offers Jennie Meade work in the day-nursery since she has been dismissed from her position. Dr. Lanskell arrives, bringing Mrs. Mingott, just arrived from Paris. Delia, James, and Joseph arrive as well. Mrs. Mingott asks to see Charlotte's waifs, but only Tina remains. Tina is shy, responding only to Delia, which alarms Charlotte. After the others leave, Joseph tries to persuade Charlotte to leave running the day-nursery to someone else. He is afraid for her health, remembering she spent a year in the South to recoup from illness. Act II Later that same evening in the drawing room at Delia Ralston's home, Charlotte tells Delia the wedding is off because Joseph wants to separate her from the day-nursery. She confesses that Clementina is her own daughter. Delia is sympathetic until she learns that Clem Spender is the father. Charlotte pleads for her help, but Delia says she will do what she thinks best. She sends Charlotte away, then joins Dr. Lanskell, Mrs. Mingott, James, and Joseph. She tells them that Charlotte cannot marry Joseph because her illness has returned. Joseph is distraught, but James persuades him it is for the best. When the others leave, Dr. Lanskell confronts Delia with her lie. She says she'll adopt Tina, but the doctor persuades her not to separate Charlotte and Tina. Instead, Delia will convince her husband to buy a house for Chatty and Tina to live together. Act III The first scene occurs in 1853, again at the Ralston drawing-room. James Ralston died twelve years previously, so Charlotte and Tina now live with Delia, whose own daughter Dee is married to John Halsey. Delia, Dee, Tina, John, and Lanning Halsey are singing in the parlor (off-stage). Dr. Lanskell sits with Charlotte, who complains Delia is spoiling Tina. Tina still has no idea that Charlotte is her real mother, which is how Charlotte wants it. When the others join them in the drawing-room (on stage), Charlotte scolds Tina for being late to a party, but Tina and Lanning poke fun at her severity. The second scene opens later that evening, with just Delia and Charlotte. Charlotte confronts her cousin over the romance between Tina and Lanning, which Delia is encouraging. The two women argue forcefully over the past and what's best for Tina. Delia finally begins to comprehend Charlotte's true concern for her daughter. The final scene occurs in June 1854, the night before Tina's marriage to Lanning Halsey. Delia tells Tina, that after the ceremony, be sure to kiss Charlotte the last of all, before she enters the carriage to depart for her honeymoon. Tina is startled at the request; she seems to be wondering about her old maid Aunt Chatty. But she promises Delia to do so as the play ends.

The Old Man and the Old Moon

Play · 2012

The company of storytellers perform "Song from the Stone" to greet the audience. Matheson, the play's narrator, offers to the audience the tale of why the Moon changes shape: there once was an Old Man whose job it was to fill the moon with liquid light. He lived a peaceful life with his wife, but they had lived so long they forgot why they needed to fill the moon. One day, the Old Woman hears a mysterious melody she associates with their forgotten past, and runs away to find its source. The Old Man chases after her ("The Rain Will Fall"). Learning she is heading west in a boat, the Old Man fails to charter a boat: the shop owner gives him the hat of his clerk Mickey, despite Mickey's protests that the hat belonged to his grandfather. The Old Man manages to board a warship when he is mistaken for the legendary First Naval Lieutenant Pericles Llewellyn McWallander by the ship's quartermaster Llewellyn, due to the hat ("The Sailor's Anthem"). However, the ship is actually headed south for war. He soon notices that, due to abandoning his duty, the moon is continuing to lose its light. Matheson, who is also the ship's first mate, tells the crew the tale of Pericles Llewellyn McWallander, claiming he sailed west in search of a mysterious city at the end of the world, and was last seen at the port of Malefria, before his crew allegedly mutinied and threw him overboard. Continuing his charade, the Old Man proposes the crew follow him to the infamous city, but they are interrupted when a rebel ship attacks, and their captain is killed in the skirmish ("The Rain Will Fall (Reprise)"). Facing either certain death in war or returning home to be charged with desertion, the Old Man proposes a third option: they head west in search of the city. At first lying about what is there, the Old Man is struck by a strange memory and tells them that the city is filled with light. He rallies the crew and they sail westward ("Sail for Love"), but encounter several obstacles that cause the crew to lose faith in him, and grow concerned at the fact the moon is continuing to lose its light. Matheson privately reveals to the Old Man he knows he is lying and warns him not to take his crew for granted like McWallander. At the port of Malefria, the Old Man encounters two men who recognize his hat, revealing they were part of McWallander's mutinous crew. He learns they recently met his wife, who has continued west. The Old Man forces the crew to re-board the ship, and ends up sailing them straight through a field of volcanoes, severely damaging the ship and leading the ship's cook to flee ("Sail for Love (Reprise)"). The crew finally confront the Old Man, and Matheson finally reveals he is not McWallander, having himself served as McWallander's cabin boy as a child. Just as the crew is ready to throw the Old Man overboard, the moon finally loses all of its light and a sudden storm destroys the ship, sending everyone into the sea. As the Old Man sinks ("Just Like the Sea") he is swallowed by a giant fish. Awakening in its stomach, he encounters a strange man named Perry, who claims to have been swallowed by the fish a long time ago and has given up hope of rescue ("Prison Fish Interlude #1"). Perry reveals he ended up in the fish while he was on a quest to find the city of the light, only to be thrown overboard by his crew ("Prison Fish Interlude #2"). The Old Man finally realizes they can tear the fish apart from the inside by pulling at two ends of a particular bone, something he learned from his wife. Perry initially refuses to help, revealing to the stunned Old Man he is actually a ghost, and he has nothing to go home to. Realizing Perry is the real Pericles Llewellyn McWallander, the Old Man reveals he got his hat from Perry's grandson Mickey, and convinces Perry there are people still out there waiting for him. Perry elects to help the Old Man, but knowing he cannot really return home, he gives the Old Man the hat and instructs him to bring it back to his grandson ("Prison Fish Interlude #3"). After destroying the fish, the Old Man awakens alone on a deserted island. He encounters a dog―which once belonged to Mabelu, a member of the ship's crew. With the dog's help, the Old Man builds a raft that they use to sail away. The water around them dissolves into vapor, until they are left in a desert ("I Crash"). Continuing on but lacking drinking water, the Old Man passes out after drinking the moisture from a psychedelic weed. He and the dog are picked up in a hot air balloon flown by Solomon and Bartley Montgolfier, two scientists studying the change in weather since the moon ran out of light. They encounter the rest of the Old Man's former crew and pick them up, but the added weight causes the balloon to spin out of control. The Old Man leaps out in order to save weight. He lands in what he realizes is the city of the light, unearthed due to the disappearance of the ocean, and his memories of the past finally come back: he was once a resident of the city, which tapped into a well spring of liquid light. But the residents' use of the light brought on a massive thunderstorm, flooding the city. The Old Man saved a bucket of light but was nearly swept away himself, saved at the last second by a young woman. The two decided to keep it safe by hanging it in the sky from a lantern, which became the moon, and was able to calm the storm. The two decided to go exploring the world after saving the light, only to notice there was a leak in the lantern, and so they elected to stay so the Old Man could keep refilling it. The Old Man climbs the cliffs with a bucket of liquid light and refills the moon ("Bremen"). Realizing he has gone so far around the world he has made it back home, he goes to his house to find his wife waiting for him, and the two decide to go exploring as they pledged to years ago. Before they leave, the Old Man reunites with Llewellyn, who reveals the entire crew made it home safely as well. The Old Man convinces Llewellyn to take up his old duty of refilling the moon, but assures him it is alright for the moon to not always be full. He also gives Llewellyn the hat, telling him to return it to Mickey, before boarding a boat with the Old Woman and sailing off to parts unknown.

The Old Masters

Play · 2004

The play opens on the garden of Villa I Tatti near Florence. The famous art critic Bernard Berenson, referred to as ‘BB’, is fearful of the rising power of Mussolini, who he refers to as ‘the Duck’, and increasingly anxious about the state of his finances. His wife, Mary, is in poor health while he continues having an affair with his secretary, Nicky. Duveen's assistant Fowles arrives to deliver a copy of a painting, and to tell Berenson that Duveen would like him to reconsider his attribution of a painting, The Adoration of the Shepherds. Berenson has already declared it to be by Titian, but Duveen would like him to change his mind and attribute it to Giorgione, and so increase its value considerably. Duveen is keen to sell the painting to the art collector, Mellon. Other art critics have already decided it is a Giorgione, but Berenson, whose reputation is pre-eminent, refuses to change his mind. Fowles leaves. Later that evening Duveen arrives, unannounced, to convince Berenson to change his mind in person. From there the intense and turbulent nature of their long working relationship unfolds.

The Old Mode and the New

Play · 1703

The Old Mode and the New is a 1703 comedy play by the English writer Thomas d'Urfey. The original Drury Lane cast included Benjamin Johnson as Sir Fumbler Oldmode, Robert Wilks as Frederick, John Mills as William Queenlove, William Bowen as Monsieur de Pistole, Colley Cibber as Tom Pistole, William Pinkethman as Misterious Maggothead, Richard Cross as Major Bombard, William Bullock as Abram, Henrietta Moore as Lady Oldmode, Frances Maria Knight as Probleme and Anne Oldfield as Lucia. The play was dedicated to Duke of Richmond, a son of Charles II.

The Opportunity

Play · 1634 est

Aurelio, visiting Urbino, is mistaken for the banished Borgia and lets the confusion continue. He falls for Cornelia, Borgia’s sister, while Ursini also seeks her and the Duchess becomes enamored of Aurelio. A balcony scene of mistaken identities and overheard conversation deepens the confusion until Cornelia admits the deception; further mix-ups resolve in the Duchess marrying the Duke of Ferrara and Cornelia marrying Ursini, while Aurelio leaves.

The Orphan of China

Play · 1759

The Orphan of China is a 1759 tragedy by the Irish writer Arthur Murphy, based on the traditional Chinese play The Orphan of Zhao with the setting moved forwards from the twelfth to the seventeenth century. Although his work, written from 1756, was on a similar topic to Voltaire's play L'Orphelin de la Chine, Murphy asserted that he had written his before he became aware of Voltaire's adaptation. Substantial rewrites took place, including with assistance from Horace Walpole and William Whitehead before Garrick was satisfied and ready to stage it. The original Drury Lane cast included David Garrick as Zamti, Henry Mossop as Etan, Charles Holland as Hamet, Astley Bransby as Octar, William Havard as Timurkan and Mary Ann Yates as Mandane. In his preface to the play Murphy criticised Voltaire for adding a romance to his version to play. The play was met with "great applause" and ran for nine performances in total and was revived a number of times over the next two decades.

The Other Place

Play · 2011

Juliana is fifty two years old and a brilliant drug-company scientist. She is giving a speech to a neurological convention. As she speaks we cut away to scenes with her doctor, phone calls from her estranged daughter, and arguments with her husband who may or may not be divorcing her. Through it all she constantly refers to "the other place", a cottage on Cape Cod that the family once owned, and a place where Juliana feels she may reunite with her missing daughter and find some peace of mind. Juliana becomes argumentative with everyone around her and appears increasingly confused. The phone calls from the missing daughter may be a delusion. Juliana believes that she has a brain tumor and says that her mother and other relatives all died of brain tumors at an early age. Eventually Juliana actually visits the other place and encounters the current owner whom she mistakenly believes to be her daughter. The woman is initially hostile and has problems of her own. But soon the two women find mutual comfort as Juliana's husband arrives to take her home. In a poignant closing monologue she finally confronts what is really going on.

The Outsider

Play · 1923

The Outsider is a play by the British writer Dorothy Brandon. It portrays the struggle of an unorthodox medical practitioner to gain acceptance by the medical establishment. It was subsequently revised to show the unconventional triumphing over the conventional, whereas the play had originally had the opposite ending. It premiered at the Pleasure Gardens Theatre in Folkestone in April 1923, before transferring to the St James's Theatre for a West End run lasting for 107 performances between May and September the same year. The cast included Leslie Faber, Charles Kenyon and Isobel Elsom. A New York run in 1924 played at the 49th Street Theatre, produced by William Harris Jr. The cast included Lionel Atwill as Anton, Katharine Cornell as Lalage, Fernanda Eliscu as Madame Klost, Whitford Kane as Frederick and Pat Somerset as Basil. It has had a number of revivals. In 1931 a run at London's Apollo Theatre lasted for 66 performances. The cast featured Harold Huth in the title role along with Annie Esmond and Sebastian Shaw. Isobel Elsom reprised her role from the original production.

The Patrician's Daughter

Play · 1842

The Patrician's Daughter is an 1842 tragedy by the British writer John Westland Marston. It premiered at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on 10 December 1842. The original cast included William Macready as Mordaunt, Samuel Phelps as the Earl of Lynterne, Edward William Elton as Heartwell, George John Bennett as Lister, Charles Selby as Lord Chatterly, Morris Barnett as Sir Archer Taunton, John Ryder as Physician, George Yarnold as Solicitor, Mary Warner as Lady Lydia Lynterne and Helena Faucit as Lady Mabel Lynterne.

The Patriot

Play · 1702

The Patriot, or, The Italian Conspiracy is a 1702 tragedy by the English writer Charles Gildon. Based on the life of Cosimo de' Medici but also inspired by Nathaniel Lee's 1680 work Lucius Junius Brutus set during the Roman Republic. The original Drury Lane cast included John Mills as Cosimo De Medici, Benjamin Husband as Lorenzo, Thomas Simpson as Uberto, Thomas Kent as Donato, Philip Griffin as Rimini, Jane Rogers as Teraminta and Mary Kent as Honoria. The prologue was by John Dennis and the epilogue by George Farquhar. Incidental music was composed by Daniel Purcell.

The Penitent

Play · 2017

A psychiatrist, Charles (Chris Bauer), has his career and life become derailed after he refuses to testify on behalf of a former patient who had become clinically violent and unstable, resulting in the deaths of multiple people following a tragic breakdown of his mental complications. The patient then claims that Charles will not testify in court or to the police because the patient is openly part of the LGBT community. Further, the patient claims that Charles has recently gone through a religious conversion in his own personal identity which has resulted in a fully prejudiced reassessment of the gay community as a whole. Charles claims that the basis of these accusations are false and due to a misunderstanding. The misunderstanding resulted from an innocent mistyping of the title of an article that Charles wrote years ago about homosexuality where the title was "Homosexuality as an Adaptation," though the published version was released by the editor as the mistyped "Homosexuality as an Aberration." The resulting recriminations put Charles's entire career at risk and threaten to end his practice permanently.

The Perfect Cure

Play · 1913

The Perfect Cure is a 1913 comedy play by the British writer Stanley Houghton. A father is cured of his selfish habits by a charming widow. His final play, premiering several months before his death, it was not a success unlike other recent hits Hindle Wakes and The Younger Generation. It ran for four performances at the Apollo Theatre in London's West End before being withdrawn. Houghton was present on opening night. The original cast included Cathleen Nesbitt and Charles Hawtrey.It was produced by Henry Lowenfeld.

The Perfidious Brother

Play · 1716

The Perfidious Brother is a 1716 tragedy by the British writer Lewis Theobald. A dispute rose of the authorship of the play when a watchmaker and aspiring playwright Henry Meystayer claimed that Theobald had stolen it from him. Meystayer published his own version of the play presenting it as the work of the "original author". Theobald was later to be involved in a much more controversial dispute in 1727 when he presented Double Falsehood as being based on a lost work of William Shakespeare. The original Lincoln's Inn Fields cast included John Corey as Gonsalvo, Theophilus Keene as Sebastian, Thomas Smith as Roderick, John Leigh as Beaufort, Jane Rogers as Luciana and Jane Bullock as Selinda.

The Perplexities

Play · 1767

The Perplexities is a 1767 comedy play by the British actor and writer Thomas Hull. It was a reworking of an earlier Restoration-era play Adventures of Five Hours by Samuel Tuke, itself based on an original Spanish work. The original Covent Garden cast included Hull himself as Don Juan, William Smith as Don Antonio, David Ross as Don Henriquez, George Mattocks as Don Florio, John Cushing as Ernesto, Maria Macklin as Honoria, Mary Bulkley as Felicia and Jane Green as Rosa.

The Persian Princess

Play · 1708

The Persian Princess is a 1708 tragedy by the British writer Lewis Theobald. It was performed at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. It is also written as The Persian Princess: or, The Royal Villain. The play was not a great success and Theobald himself wrote disparagingly of it, although its acceptance to be staged at a major theatre suggests that it was seen as having merit. Along with his later work The Perfidious Brother, it has been examined for textual clues in light of the authorship of Double Falsehood a play that Theobald claimed to be based on a lost William Shakespeare work. The original Drury Lane cast included Theophilus Keene as Memnon, Robert Wilks as Artaban, John Mills as Oxartes, Barton Booth as Mirvan, John Corey as Barzanes and Thomas Smith as High Priest.

The Petrified Forest

Play · 1934

Act I The play opens inside the Black Mesa Bar-B-Q cafe, with two telegraph linemen eating lunch. Boze Hertzlinger sits with the linemen, while one of them discusses the advantages of Russian communism. Gramp Maple sits in his rocking chair, half-listening to the talk. When the word "pioneer" is used, Gramp perks up and the second lineman draws him into the conversation, hoping to divert it. A car horn is heard; Jason Maples enters and orders Boze outside to fill a customer's gas tank. Paula brings the linemen their dessert. When the linemen leave Jason scolds Gramp for boring the customers, and says he'll report them for being pinkos. Jason argues with Gramp about selling the business to Dana Trimble, so they can relocate to Los Angeles and open a garage. Gabby enters and agrees with Jason, but she wants to use some of the proceeds to live with her mother in France and study art. After Jason leaves for his American Legion meeting, Boze romances Gabby, is rebuffed at first but is making progress when Alan Squier enters. Squier orders a meal; while eating, he and Gabby tell each other their stories. She is fascinated with his conversation. She shows him the book she is reading, poetry by François Villon, with which Squier is familiar. Squier asks where the road outside leads and is told about the petrified forest. He feels that maybe this is his destination. Gabby confesses her dream of painting in France; he counters by musing about French artists yearning to paint the Arizona desert. Herb enters the cafe to pick up some food and beer. He mentions to Boze the Duke Mantee gang seems to be heading their way. Gabby shows Squier some of her watercolor paintings, which he says are in the "Dufy manner". Squier confesses he can't pay for the meal; Boze is angry but Gabby shrugs it off. The Chisholms now enter with Joseph, having arrived in their Duesenberg touring car. Joseph orders gas and oil, which Boze exits to fulfill. Gabby asks them to take Squier in their car to Phoenix. Mr. Chisholm reluctantly agrees, after Joseph searches Squier for weapons. They depart, and Boze now makes the big play for Gabby. Thinking Squier is out of her life, she agrees to go outside with Boze just to see what it's like. But before they can leave, Duke Mantee and his gang enter the cafe, having arrived in the Chisholm's hijacked Duesenberg. Jackie and Ruby carry tommy guns, with Jackie also carrying a sawed-off shotgun. Pyles stays outside in the Duesenberg, watching the road. When Duke takes off his suit coat he has two shoulder holsters with revolvers. The gang brings Gramp and Paula into the lunchroom. Paula is sent to the kitchen to cook food for the gang. Having been abandoned on the road, Squier returns to the cafe to get help, but is re-captured by the gang. Duke is gracious, allowing Squiers to have a drink. (Curtain) Act II (Thirty minutes later) Boze and Squier sit at one table, Gramps and Paula at the other. Only Gabby is free to move around. Duke and Jackie are finishing eating, while Ruby watches the captives. Gramp regales the gangsters with his memories. Boze calls the gangsters yellow. Jackie scares Boze by having him stand up and move away from the others until Duke tells them both to sit down. From the radio they hear that one of the gang's cars with a woman in it has knocked over a police station in a small Texas town, seizing arms and ammo. Duke reacts to Jackie or Ruby mentioning Doris by saying shut up. Ruby is sent to relieve Pyles in the car, so he can come in and eat. Duke tells Paula to cook Pyles some hamburger and sends him along to the kitchen to keep an eye on her and find some rope. Pyles asks when they were going to get moving again; Duke replies when it's time. Jackie winks at Pyles and says the boss has got a heavy date. Pyles suggests getting out of range is more important than a dame. Gramp asks Squier to pass the bottle over, which Gabby nixes. Jackie challenges Gramp when he reaches for his pipe, but Duke tells him to go ahead and smoke. Boze yells at Squier for drinking when can't pay for it, but Squier admits to having a dollar Gabby gave him. Stung, Boze replies that she was going to give him something else, causing Gabby to erupt with fury at Boze. He backs down immediately, begging her forgiveness. Gabby tells Squier about her near fall, who in turns consoles Boze. Jackie is amused and wishes Boze good luck. He goes into the kitchen with the map, leaving the shot gun on the table. Duke Mantee is affable with the philosophical musings of a slightly tipsy Squier, who suggests they both belong in the petrified forest along with the other obsolete detritus of civilization. Gabby in turn declares she's in love with Squier, but knows he doesn't reciprocate the feeling. She tells Boze that's why she was willing to go with him. Squier scolds Gramp for hanging onto his money when it might be better for him to die and let his granddaughter make use of it. This draws a stern rebuke from Duke for talking to an old man that way. With Jackie and Pyles in the kitchen, Boze seizes the shotgun when Duke is distracted. Boze holds Duke at bay, but just then the Chisholms and Joseph enter. Mrs. Chisholm screams, and as Boze swerves the shotgun to cover them, Duke draws a revolver and wounds Boze. Jackie and Pyles burst in; Boze is taken into the kitchen for bandaging by Gabby and to be tied up by Jackie and Pyles. Squier now takes out his life insurance policy, and changes the beneficiary to Gabby. He asks the Chisholms to witness it, and hands it to Gramp for holding. Squier then asks Duke to kill him just before the gang leaves, but admonishes the Chisholms and Gramp to not let Gabby know it wasn't in cold-blood. Duke agrees, and when Pyles comes in they all have a drink. Pyles is ready to hand one to Gramp, but Duke stops him, saying the girl didn't want that. So Pyles hands it to Joseph instead, then gets irked when he looks to Mr. Chisholm for permission to drink it. Pyles again urges Duke to leave now, that Doris and the others must have got lost in the panhandle. Duke says she was the one to pick this rendezvous. Gramp calls Squier a fool, saying no woman was worth $5000. Squier refutes him by pointing out that Duke could have left already but is risking death waiting for Doris. When Gabby returns, Mrs Chisholm urges her to go to France and not sacrifice herself. Her self-confessions are interrupted by the arrival of Jason and two other legionnaires, escorted by Ruby and his tommy gun. The three legionnaires are seated on the floor. Duke smirks at their "pansy uniforms" but is surprised to learn they were hunting the gang here. Hendy tells the gang that the cops caught the other car and the dame in it squealed, so the whole manhunt is shifting this way. Another car stops well short of the cafe; Sheriff and his deputies start flanking the cafe. Duke sends Jackie to cover the rear entrance and has Ruby get the Dusenberg ready. Pyles and Duke begin exchanging shots with the deputies in front. Duke has the three legionnaires, Joseph, and the Chisholms mount the running boards of the Dusenberg as human shields. He sends Pyles to fetch Jackie, but the latter is already dead, gunned down by the Sheriff. Duke sends Pyles to the Dusenberg, and upon Squier's insistence, shoots him just before he leaves, saying they'll be meeting again soon. The Sheriff and two deputies, guns drawn come in through the back entrance. Gabby has moved Squier to a chair at a table where he soon dies. Duke and his gang make their escape, letting their hostages go a mile down the road. Gabby recites Villon's poetry over Squier's body, as Gramp holds the insurance policy.(Curtain)

The Phantom

Play · 1852

The first act begins with two owners of an inn, Janet and Davy, on their wedding night. There is a big storm when the landlord's daughter Lucy Peveryl asks Davy to accompany her to the treacherous Raby Castle to see her love, Roland. The Ruins of the Raby, as the castle is commonly referred as, are abandoned and there is a legend that some sort of demon is there and anyone who goes inside is horrified to death. Davy agrees cautiously to lead Lucy to the ruins of the Raby. They are joined by Lord Albert Clavering, Neville, Guy, Ellen, and Maude, who had all been staying at the inn. When the bridge that leads them to the castle is knocked down by the storm, they have to take shelter in the castle. There they meet a man who identifies as a puritan living in the castle. This is Alan Raby, who is the phantom demon described in the legends. Davy is suspicious, but the others are unbothered by his presence. After discovering Roland is dead, everyone is terrified as a scream is heard from Lucy's room. Lucy runs out of her room into Lord Clavering's arms and dies, appearing to have been murdered. Alan then comes out and is shot by Lord Clavering in the heart. Lord Clavering believes he has mistakenly shot a good puritan and obeys Alan's request to place his body in the moonlight. After the group leaves to return to the inn, Alan is seen resurrecting by the power of the moon. The second act is set many years later and introduces Colonel Raby, Edgar, Dr. Reese and Ada Raby. Outside the castle, Colonel Raby announces that the village citizens will assemble in the castle, where he will wed Ada Raby. Stump and Jenny are introduced as lovers who reveal that Ada had died, but was brought back to life by a mysterious creature. When she was brought back to life, she never had the same personality as before. A will from Alan Raby is discovered and there is a case of Alan Raby being caught living longer than normal under different pen names. Alan forces Ada into a marriage ceremony, but Edgar challenges him to a duel. Alan is killed in the duel, and his body is cast into a dark abyss so the moon will never bring him back to life.

The Piano Lesson

Play · 1987

Scene 1: Boy Willie and Lymon arrive in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from Mississippi and enter the Charles' household at five in the morning. They have brought a truck of watermelons to sell. Against Doaker's advice, Boy Willie wakes his sister Berniece, and tells her of Sutter's death. Berniece accuses Boy Willie of shoving Sutter down a well, and she asks him to leave. Instead, Boy Willie wakes Berniece's daughter, Maretha, causing Berniece to run back up the stairs where she sees Sutter's ghost. Lymon notices the piano which Willie intends to sell to buy Sutter's land. Doaker insists that Berniece will not sell the piano, because she refused to sell when Avery brought a buyer to the house. Willie insists that he will convince her. Maretha comes downstairs, and Willie asks her to play the piano. She plays the beginning of a few simple tunes, and he answers her song with a boogie-woogie. Berniece enters with Avery, and Willie asks whether she still has the prospective buyer's name, explaining he came to Pittsburgh to sell the piano. Berniece refuses to listen and walks out. Scene 2: Wining Boy and Doaker talk in the kitchen when Boy Willie and Lymon enter and claim to have located the piano buyer. Willie's uncles warn him that Sutter will cheat him but Boy Willie refuses to listen. The story behind Lymon and Boy Willie's term in Parchman Prison Farm is revealed. Lymon and Willie both gather different perspectives from their experiences. Lymon wants to flee to the North where he will be better treated, while Willie feels that whites only treat blacks badly if the blacks do not try to stop them. They ask Wining Boy to play the piano, but instead he explains that being seen as nothing more than a piano player became a burden. Doaker then tells the story of the piano's history. Generations earlier, Sutter, their family's slave-owner, broke up a family by selling a mother and child to pay for the piano which he bought for his wife as an anniversary present. The wife was happy with the piano but missed having the slaves, so Sutter had that family's husband/father (who was a carpenter and too valuable to sell), carve their likenesses on the piano. He carved likenesses of his entire history on the piano. In 1911, Boy Willie's father stole the piano from the Sutters; in retaliation he was killed. Willie declares that these are stories of the past and that the piano should now be put to good use. Willie and Lymon attempt to move the piano to test its weight. As soon as they try to move it, Sutter's ghost is heard. Berniece tells Willie to stop and informs him that he is selling his soul for money. Willie refutes her, Berniece blames Crawley's death on Willie, and the two engage in a fight. Upstairs, Maretha is confronted by the ghosts, and she screams in terror. Scene 1: Doaker and Wining Boy are again together in the house alone. Doaker confesses that he saw Sutter's ghost playing the piano and feels that Berniece should discard the piano so as to prevent spirits from traumatizing the Charles family. Wining Boy disagrees. Lymon and Willie walk into the room after a watermelon sale. Wining Boy sells his suit and shoes to Lymon, promising its swooning effects on women. Both Lymon and Willie leave the house in hot pursuit of women. Scene 2: Later that day as Berniece is preparing for her bath, Avery enters and proposes that Berniece should open up and let go. He tells her that she cannot continue to live her life with Crawley's memory shut inside her. Berniece changes the topic and asks Avery to bless the house, hoping to destroy the spirit of the Sutter ghost. Avery then brings up the piano and tells Berniece she should learn to not be afraid of her family's spirits and play it again. Berniece breaks down her story of her mother's tears and blood mingled with her father's soul on the piano and refuses to open her wounds for everyone to see. Scenes 3–5: Boy Willie enters the Charles house with Grace and begins to fool around on the couch. Berniece orders them out and opens the door to see Lymon. Lymon is upset over his inability to woo women and begins to talk about women's virtues to Berniece. The two kiss, breaking Berniece's discomfort over Crawley's death, and Berniece heads back upstairs. The next morning, Lymon and Willie try to move the piano out and are stopped by Uncle Doaker. Willie, frustrated, demands that he will sell the piano no matter what. The day to move the piano draws closer. Excited to sell the piano, Willie quickly partakes on his actions without a care of his sister's words. Berniece appears with Crawley's gun, leading Doaker and Avery to urge them to talk it through first. Sutter's presence as a ghost is suddenly revived. Avery attempts to drive the ghost away with his blessings but is not successful. Suddenly, Berniece knows that she must play the piano again as a plea to her ancestors. Finally, the house is led to a calm aura, and Willie leaves to head back to Mississippi. Before leaving however, he reminds Berniece to keep playing on the piano, or he and Sutter will return.

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