Child's Play (play)
Encyclopedia
Child's Play is a stage play written by Robert Marasco
. It opened on Broadway on February 12, 1970 at the Royale Theatre, and ran for 342 performances, closing on December 12, 1970. The production was produced by David Merrick
and directed by Joseph Hardy
.
at St. Charles, an exclusive Roman Catholic boarding school for boys. Joe Dobbs is an easy-going, well-liked English
teacher, while Latin
and Greek
instructor Jerome Malley is feared and hated by his students for his strict disciplinary methods. Malley is caring for his dying mother, and his stress is exacerbated by a series of threatening phone calls and written notes he receives. He's certain Dobbs is the source, but his caustic personality prevents him from winning any sympathy or support. Into the fray comes Paul Reese, a former student who has been hired to teach PE, and he soon finds his loyalty torn between the friendly Dobbs and Malley, as he becomes increasingly aware of the latter's personal torments. Compounding his situation is the realization that the unbridled violence practiced by the students may be the result of demonic possession
.
Robert Marasco
Robert Marasco was an American horror writer best known for the 1970 Broadway play Child's Play....
. It opened on Broadway on February 12, 1970 at the Royale Theatre, and ran for 342 performances, closing on December 12, 1970. The production was produced by David Merrick
David Merrick
David Merrick was a prolific Tony Award-winning American theatrical producer.-Life and career:Born David Lee Margulois to Jewish parents in St. Louis, Missouri, Merrick graduated from Washington University, then studied law at the Jesuit-run Saint Louis University School of Law...
and directed by Joseph Hardy
Joseph Hardy (director)
Joseph Hardy is an American Tony Award-winning stage director, film director, television producer, and occasional performer....
.
Plot synopsis
The play centers on the rivalry between two faculty membersTeacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
at St. Charles, an exclusive Roman Catholic boarding school for boys. Joe Dobbs is an easy-going, well-liked English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
teacher, while Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
instructor Jerome Malley is feared and hated by his students for his strict disciplinary methods. Malley is caring for his dying mother, and his stress is exacerbated by a series of threatening phone calls and written notes he receives. He's certain Dobbs is the source, but his caustic personality prevents him from winning any sympathy or support. Into the fray comes Paul Reese, a former student who has been hired to teach PE, and he soon finds his loyalty torn between the friendly Dobbs and Malley, as he becomes increasingly aware of the latter's personal torments. Compounding his situation is the realization that the unbridled violence practiced by the students may be the result of demonic possession
Demonic possession
Demonic possession is held by many belief systems to be the control of an individual by a malevolent supernatural being. Descriptions of demonic possessions often include erased memories or personalities, convulsions, “fits” and fainting as if one were dying...
.
Opening night cast
- Ken HowardKen HowardKenneth Joseph "Ken" Howard, Jr. is an American actor, best known for his roles as Thomas Jefferson in 1776 and as basketball coach and former Chicago Bulls player Ken Reeves in the television show The White Shadow...
...Paul Reese - David RoundsDavid RoundsDavid Rounds was an American actor of stage and screen. He received both a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award in 1980 for his role in Morning's at Seven....
...Father George Penny - Peter MacLean...Father William Griffin
- Fritz WeaverFritz WeaverFritz William Weaver is an American actor and voice actor.-Life and career:Weaver was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the son of Elsa W. and John Carson Weaver. His mother was of Italian descent and his father was a social worker from Pittsburgh. Weaver attended Peabody High School...
...Jerome Malley - Pat HinglePat HingleMartin Patterson "Pat" Hingle was an American actor.-Early life:Hingle was born Martin Patterson Hingle in Miami, Florida, the son of Marvin Louise , a schoolteacher and musician, and Clarence Martin Hingle, a building contractor. Hingle enlisted in the U.S. Navy in December 1941, dropping out of...
...Joseph Dobbs - Michael McGuireMichael McGuireMichael Thomas Francis McGuire is a British Labour Party politician.McGuire was a branch secretary of the National Union of Mineworkers. McGuire was Member of Parliament for Ince from 1964 to 1983, and for Makerfield from 1983 to 1987 when he retired...
...Father Frank Mozian
Awards and nominations
- Tony Award for Best PlayTony Award for Best PlayThe Tony Award for Best Play is an annual award celebrating achievements in live American theatre, including musical theatre, honoring productions on Broadway in New York. It currently takes place in mid-June each year.There was no award in the Tony's first year...
(nominee) - Tony Award for Best Actor in Play (Fritz Weaver, winner)
- Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play (Ken Howard, winner)
- Tony Award for Best Scenic Design (Jo MielzinerJo MielzinerJoseph "Jo" Mielziner was an American theatrical scenic, and lighting designer born in Paris, France. He is "the most successful set designer of the Golden era of Broadway", and worked on both stage plays and musicals.-Career:He was the son of artist Leo Mielziner, Sr...
, winner) - Tony Award for Best Lighting Design (Jo Mielziner, winner)
- Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play (Joseph Hardy, winner)
- Theatre World AwardTheatre World AwardThe Theatre World Award, first awarded for the 1945-46 season, is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or off-Broadway.-History:...
(David Rounds, winner) - Drama Desk AwardDrama Desk AwardThe Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category...
for Outstanding Set Design (Jo Mielziner, winner) - Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Performance (Fritz Weaver, winner)
- Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director (Joseph Hardy, winner)
Trivia
- This was the only play that Marasco ever wrote. He initially wrote the script in 1966 under the title The Dark.
- The atmosphere of the play, although not the plot, was derived from Marasco's experiences as a teacher of Latin and Greek at Regis High SchoolRegis High School (New York City)Regis High School is a private Jesuit university-preparatory school for academically gifted Roman Catholic young men located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Annual class enrollment is limited to approximately 135 male students from the New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut tri-state area...
, a highly regarded Jesuit school in ManhattanManhattanManhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
. - Sidney LumetSidney LumetSidney Lumet was an American director, producer and screenwriter with over 50 films to his credit. He was nominated for the Academy Award as Best Director for 12 Angry Men , Dog Day Afternoon , Network and The Verdict...
directed a 1972 screen adaptationChild's Play (1972 film)Child's Play is a 1972 American drama-mystery film directed by Sidney Lumet. The screenplay by Leon Prochnik is based on the 1970 play of the same title by Robert Marasco. It has never been available on home video in the United States in any format....
.