Production History
The play’s first production ran for three months, and was soon followed (from October 11, 1841, at the Park Theatre) by its first New York production, with Charlotte Cushman as Lady Gay Spanker. The play's popularity has continued through the decades, as it was produced in New York in 1869, 1905, 1937 and 1997.
A 1974 Royal Shakespeare Company production (directed by Ronald Eyre, with Donald Sinden as Sir Harcourt Courtly, Roger Rees as Charles, Judi Dench as Grace and Dinsdale Landen as Dazzle ) in 1974 transferred to the Albery Theatre in London and toured to New York. In 1976 the play was adapted for television by the BBC in the Play of the Month strand, with Anthony Andrews as Charles Courtly and Landen reprising his role of Dazzle. It also featured Judy Cornwell as Lady Gay, James Bee as her husband Adolphus, Charles Gray as Sir Harcourt, Jan Francis as Grace, Clifford Rose as Cool and Nigel Stock as Max.
A 1989 stage production at the Chichester Festival Theatre (directed by Sam Mendes and featuring Paul Eddington as Sir Harcourt) later transferred to London. Its cast also included John Warner as Adolphus. Other productions include one at the Royal Exchange Theatre Manchester in 2004, and a 2008 production at the Watermill Theatre in Bagnor, which toured to Guildford.
The Royal National Theatre revived the play in a sold-out production beginning March 2010, directed by Nicholas Hytner and featuring Simon Russell Beale as Sir Harcourt and Fiona Shaw as Lady Gay. A live performance was simulcast to thousands of people in cinemas around the world through their NTLive! program.
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