Widowers' Houses
Encyclopedia
Widowers' Houses was the first play by Nobel Prize in literature
winner George Bernard Shaw
to be staged. It premièred on 9 December 1892 at the Royalty Theatre
, under the auspices of the Independent Theatre Society
— a subscription club, formed to escape the Lord Chamberlain's Office
censorship.
The play had originally been written in 1885, as a collaboration with William Archer
; but the two fell out and this first attempt was abandoned. Shaw reorganised his fragments, and added a third act for the production, at the invitation of Jakub Grein
.
This is one of three plays Shaw published as Plays Unpleasant in 1898; they were termed "unpleasant" because they were intended, not to entertain their audiences—as traditional Victorian
theatre was expected to—but to raise awareness of social problems and to censure exploitation of the laboring class by the unproductive rich. The other plays in the group are The Philanderer
and Mrs Warren's Profession
.
In Act I a poor but aristocratic young doctor named Harry Trench and his friend William Cokane are vacationing at Remagen
on the Rhine. There, they encounter fellow travelers: Mr Sartorious, a self-made businessman, and his daughter Blanche. Harry and Blanche fall in love and become engaged.
Act II opens with everyone back at home in London: Sartorius, is talking to Mr Lickcheese, whom he employs as a rent-collector, reveals himself to be a slumlord. He discharges Lickcheese for dealing too leniently with tenants. Trench and Cokane arrive to visit, but when Trench discovers that Sartorius makes his money by renting slum housing to the poor, he is disgusted and refuses to allow Blanche to accept money from her father after they are married and insists they must live on Harry's small income. They break up over this, after a bitter argument. Sartorius reveals that Trench's income depends on interest from mortgaged tenements and, therefore, is as dirty as the money made by Sartorious, but the lovers do not reconcile: Blanche utterly rejects Harry because of her wounded feelings.
In Act III, Trench, Cokane and Lickcheese return to Sartorius' house to plan a shady business venture (Trench, disillusioned and coarsened by knowing his income is tainted by its source, no longer takes the moral high-ground). In the final scene, notable for its erotic tension, Harry and Blanche reunite.
In performance=
http://www.shawfest.com/Home/About-The-Shaw/History Shaw Festival, 2003
On 3 July 2011, a radio adaptation directed by Martin Jarvis was broadcast on BBC Radio 3
starring Ian McKellen
as Sartorius, Charles Dance
as William Cokane, Honeysuckle Weeks
as Blanche, Dan Stevens
as Harry Trench and Tim Pigott-Smith
as Lickcheese.
Nobel Prize in Literature
Since 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
winner George Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw was an Irish playwright and a co-founder of the London School of Economics. Although his first profitable writing was music and literary criticism, in which capacity he wrote many highly articulate pieces of journalism, his main talent was for drama, and he wrote more than 60...
to be staged. It premièred on 9 December 1892 at the Royalty Theatre
Royalty Theatre
The Royalty Theatre was a small London theatre situated at 73 Dean Street, Soho and opened on 25 May 1840 as Miss Kelly's Theatre and Dramatic School and finally closed to the public in 1938. The architect was Samuel Beazley, a resident in Soho Square, who also designed St James's Theatre, among...
, under the auspices of the Independent Theatre Society
Independent Theatre Society
The Independent Theatre Society was a by-subscription-only organisation in London from 1891 to 1897, founded by Dutch drama critic Jacob Grein to give "special performances of plays which have a literary and artistic rather than a commercial value." The society was inspired by its continental...
— a subscription club, formed to escape the Lord Chamberlain's Office
Lord Chamberlain's Office
The Lord Chamberlain's Office is a department within the British Royal Household. It is presently concerned with matters such as protocol, state visits, investitures, garden parties, the State Opening of Parliament, royal weddings and funerals. For example, in April 2005 it organised the wedding of...
censorship.
The play had originally been written in 1885, as a collaboration with William Archer
William Archer (critic)
William Archer , Scottish critic, was born in Perth, and was educated at the University of Edinburgh, where he received the degree of M.A. in 1876. He was the son of Thomas Archer....
; but the two fell out and this first attempt was abandoned. Shaw reorganised his fragments, and added a third act for the production, at the invitation of Jakub Grein
J. T. Grein
Jacob Thomas Grein was a Dutch-born theatre impresario and drama critic who helped establish the modern theatre in London, England.-Biography:...
.
This is one of three plays Shaw published as Plays Unpleasant in 1898; they were termed "unpleasant" because they were intended, not to entertain their audiences—as traditional Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
theatre was expected to—but to raise awareness of social problems and to censure exploitation of the laboring class by the unproductive rich. The other plays in the group are The Philanderer
The Philanderer
The Philanderer is a play by George Bernard Shaw.It was written in 1893 but the strict British Censorship laws at the time meant that it was not produced on stage until 1902....
and Mrs Warren's Profession
Mrs. Warren's Profession
Mrs Warren's Profession is a play written by George Bernard Shaw in 1893. The story centers on the relationship between Mrs Kitty Warren, a brothel owner, described by the author as "on the whole, a genial and fairly presentable old blackguard of a woman" and her daughter, Vivie...
.
Plot
The play comprises three acts:In Act I a poor but aristocratic young doctor named Harry Trench and his friend William Cokane are vacationing at Remagen
Remagen
Remagen is a town in Germany in Rhineland-Palatinate, in the district of Ahrweiler. It is about a one hour drive from Cologne , just south of Bonn, the former West German capital. It is situated on the River Rhine. There is a ferry across the Rhine from Remagen every 10–15 minutes in the summer...
on the Rhine. There, they encounter fellow travelers: Mr Sartorious, a self-made businessman, and his daughter Blanche. Harry and Blanche fall in love and become engaged.
Act II opens with everyone back at home in London: Sartorius, is talking to Mr Lickcheese, whom he employs as a rent-collector, reveals himself to be a slumlord. He discharges Lickcheese for dealing too leniently with tenants. Trench and Cokane arrive to visit, but when Trench discovers that Sartorius makes his money by renting slum housing to the poor, he is disgusted and refuses to allow Blanche to accept money from her father after they are married and insists they must live on Harry's small income. They break up over this, after a bitter argument. Sartorius reveals that Trench's income depends on interest from mortgaged tenements and, therefore, is as dirty as the money made by Sartorious, but the lovers do not reconcile: Blanche utterly rejects Harry because of her wounded feelings.
In Act III, Trench, Cokane and Lickcheese return to Sartorius' house to plan a shady business venture (Trench, disillusioned and coarsened by knowing his income is tainted by its source, no longer takes the moral high-ground). In the final scene, notable for its erotic tension, Harry and Blanche reunite.
In performance=
http://www.shawfest.com/Home/About-The-Shaw/History Shaw Festival, 2003
On 3 July 2011, a radio adaptation directed by Martin Jarvis was broadcast on BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3
BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...
starring Ian McKellen
Ian McKellen
Sir Ian Murray McKellen, CH, CBE is an English actor. He has received a Tony Award, two Academy Award nominations, and five Emmy Award nominations. His work has spanned genres from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction...
as Sartorius, Charles Dance
Charles Dance
Walter Charles Dance, OBE is an English actor, screenwriter and director. Dance typically plays assertive bureaucrats or villains. His most famous roles are Guy Perron in The Jewel in the Crown , Dr Clemens, the doctor of penitentiary Fury 161, who becomes Ellen Ripley's confidante in Alien 3 ,...
as William Cokane, Honeysuckle Weeks
Honeysuckle Weeks
Honeysuckle Weeks is a British actress, best known for her starring role as Samantha Stewart in the British TV series Foyle's War, since 2002.-Background:...
as Blanche, Dan Stevens
Dan Stevens
Daniel Jonathan Stevens is a British actor.-Education:Stevens was educated at Tonbridge School, an independent school in the market town of Tonbridge in Kent, in South East England, followed by Emmanuel College, Cambridge, where he read English...
as Harry Trench and Tim Pigott-Smith
Tim Pigott-Smith
Tim Pigott-Smith is an English film and television actor.-Early life:Pigott-Smith was born in Rugby, Warwickshire, the son of Margaret Muriel and Harry Thomas Pigott-Smith, who was a journalist. He was educated at Wyggeston Boys' School, Leicester, King Edward VI School Stratford-upon-Avon, and...
as Lickcheese.