The Cocktail Hour
Encyclopedia
The Cocktail Hour is a comedy of manners
by A. R. Gurney
. It premiered in June 1988 in San Diego, California
at the Old Globe Theatre
and, on October 20, 1988, in New York City
at the Off Broadway Promenade Theatre. The original cast consisted of Keene Curtis
as the father, Bradley; Nancy Marchand
as the mother, Ann; Bruce Davison
as their son John; and Holland Taylor
as their daughter, and John's younger sister, Nina. It was directed by Jack O’Brien
, who at that time was the Artistic Director of the Old Globe.
Like many of Gurney’s plays, The Cocktail Hour is a comedy
exploring the world of upper-class families in the Northeastern United States
. A review in The New York Times
described it as "an examination of an overprivileged family that fights domestic battles while downing drinks."
The setting is an upper-class home in the 1970s. The play opens on Bradley and Ann having preprandial cocktail
s with their middle-aged, apparently single son and daughter. The cocktail hour stretches out because "the maid doesn't know how to cook a roast". So the little family carries on consuming increasing amounts of alcohol leading to increasing arguments. Their son, John, is an editor at a publishing company and a part-time playwright
. He has written a play that seems to present an unflattering picture of the family, and the parents are upset. The discussion of John's play, which is also called The Cocktail Hour, gives Gurney a lot of opportunity to lampoon the theatre scene.
The New York Times
review in 1988 found the laughter in the first act to be "almost continuous", with the second act being less successful. Nevertheless, "Mr. Gurney still has new and witty observations to make about a nearly extinct patrician class that regards psychiatry as an affront to good manners, underpaid hired help as a birthright and the selling of blue-chip stocks as a first step toward Marxism."
Nancy Marchand
won an Obie
and was nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play
. Keene Curtis was nominated for an Obie. Holland Taylor was nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play
.
Playwright
Gurney has said the play was "probably the most personal thing I had written up to this time". He also revealed that he promised his parents it would not be produced in Buffalo, New York
, his hometown where they still resided, during their lifetimes because "the details are so close to home." He added, "The play tries to work within the traditions of a comedy of manners, and simultaneously challenge those traditions as outmoded if not destructive."
Comedy of manners
The comedy of manners is a genre of play/television/film which satirizes the manners and affectations of a social class, often represented by stock characters, such as the miles gloriosus in ancient times, the fop and the rake during the Restoration, or an old person pretending to be young...
by A. R. Gurney
A. R. Gurney
A. R. Gurney is an American playwright and novelist. He is known for works including Love Letters, The Cocktail Hour, and The Dining Room. Gurney currently lives in both New York and Connecticut....
. It premiered in June 1988 in San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
at the Old Globe Theatre
Old Globe Theatre
The Old Globe is a professional theatre company located in Balboa Park in San Diego, California. It produces about 15 plays and musicals annually in summer and winter seasons...
and, on October 20, 1988, in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
at the Off Broadway Promenade Theatre. The original cast consisted of Keene Curtis
Keene Curtis
Keene Holbrook Curtis was an American character actor.-Film career:Curtis made his film debut in the 1948 Orson Welles adaptation of Macbeth...
as the father, Bradley; Nancy Marchand
Nancy Marchand
Nancy Marchand was an American actress, whose career encompassed both stage and screen. She appeared in various theatre productions throughout the early 1950s, before being offered roles on film and television....
as the mother, Ann; Bruce Davison
Bruce Davison
Bruce Davison is an American actor and director.-Early life:Davison was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the son of Marian E. , a secretary, and Clair W. Davison, a musician, architect, and draftsman for the Army Engineers. His parents divorced when he was three years old. He was raised by his...
as their son John; and Holland Taylor
Holland Taylor
Holland Virginia Taylor is an American actress of film, stage and television. Her notable television roles include Ruth Dunbar in Bosom Buddies, senator's wife Margaret Powers on Norman Lear's The Powers That Be, Judge Roberta Kittleson in The Practice and Evelyn Harper in Two and a Half...
as their daughter, and John's younger sister, Nina. It was directed by Jack O’Brien
Jack O'Brien (director)
Jack O'Brien is an American director, producer, writer and lyricist. He served as the Artistic Director of the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, California from 1981 through the end of 2007....
, who at that time was the Artistic Director of the Old Globe.
Like many of Gurney’s plays, The Cocktail Hour is a comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
exploring the world of upper-class families in the Northeastern United States
Northeastern United States
The Northeastern United States is a region of the United States as defined by the United States Census Bureau.-Composition:The region comprises nine states: the New England states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont; and the Mid-Atlantic states of New...
. A review in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
described it as "an examination of an overprivileged family that fights domestic battles while downing drinks."
The setting is an upper-class home in the 1970s. The play opens on Bradley and Ann having preprandial cocktail
Cocktail
A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink that contains two or more ingredients—at least one of the ingredients must be a spirit.Cocktails were originally a mixture of spirits, sugar, water, and bitters. The word has come to mean almost any mixed drink that contains alcohol...
s with their middle-aged, apparently single son and daughter. The cocktail hour stretches out because "the maid doesn't know how to cook a roast". So the little family carries on consuming increasing amounts of alcohol leading to increasing arguments. Their son, John, is an editor at a publishing company and a part-time playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
. He has written a play that seems to present an unflattering picture of the family, and the parents are upset. The discussion of John's play, which is also called The Cocktail Hour, gives Gurney a lot of opportunity to lampoon the theatre scene.
The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
review in 1988 found the laughter in the first act to be "almost continuous", with the second act being less successful. Nevertheless, "Mr. Gurney still has new and witty observations to make about a nearly extinct patrician class that regards psychiatry as an affront to good manners, underpaid hired help as a birthright and the selling of blue-chip stocks as a first step toward Marxism."
Nancy Marchand
Nancy Marchand
Nancy Marchand was an American actress, whose career encompassed both stage and screen. She appeared in various theatre productions throughout the early 1950s, before being offered roles on film and television....
won an Obie
Obie
Obie may refer to:* Bill "Obie" O'Billovich , a former coach in the Canadian Football League* Obie Award, off-Broadway Theater Award* Obie Baizley , Canadian politician* Obie Bermúdez , pop singer and composer...
and was nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play
The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play was first awarded at the 1974–1975 Drama Desk Awards and has been awarded every year since...
. Keene Curtis was nominated for an Obie. Holland Taylor was nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play
The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play was first awarded at the 1974-1975 Drama Desk Awards and has been awarded every year since...
.
Playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
Gurney has said the play was "probably the most personal thing I had written up to this time". He also revealed that he promised his parents it would not be produced in Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, his hometown where they still resided, during their lifetimes because "the details are so close to home." He added, "The play tries to work within the traditions of a comedy of manners, and simultaneously challenge those traditions as outmoded if not destructive."