User:Jezhotwells/corn
The Corn Is Green is a semi-autobiographical play by Welsh playwright Emlyn Williams, which premièred at the Duchess Theatre, London in 1938. It later enjoyed a run on Broadway in 1940. A film adaptation followed in 1945. A musical theatre version, Miss Moffat, was attempted in 1974 and a made-for-television movie was broadcast in 1979. The play was revived on Broadway in 1983 and in London in 1985.
Plot[edit]
Miss Moffat, a strong-willed English school teacher is working in a small, poverty-stricken coal mining village in Wales in the late 19th century. She coaches an illiterate teenager, Morgan Evans, who eventually wins a scholarship to Oxford University. Moffat adopts Evans' illegitimate child to enable him to escape to a more promising future.
Background[edit]
Emlyn Williams was taught by Miss Sarah Cooke at Holywell High School in Flintshire, north Wales, from age ten to seventeen. Cooke recognised his ability and paid for his further studies in France. Williams based the character of Miss Moffat on Cooke and he introduced Bette Davis to her before the making of the 1945 film.[1]
Production[edit]
The play received its first production at the Duchess Theatre in September 1938, with Sybil Thorndike playing Miss Moffat and Emlyn Williams taking the role of Evans.[2]
The first Broadway production, directed by Herman Shumlin, opened on 26 November 1940 at the National Theatre and later transferred to the Royal Theatre, running a total of 477 performances. The cast included Ethel Barrymore, Rhys Williams, Mildred Dunnock, and Richard Waring. It was named Best Foreign Play of the Year by the New York Drama Critics Circle.[3] On May 3, 1943, a revival with Barrymore again in the lead opened at the Martin Beck Theatre, where it ran for 56 performances.
In 1945, a film adaptation was made, with Bette Davis (herself of Welsh descent) as Moffat.[4] In the late 1970s, Davis returned to the role in a musical stage adaptation, Miss Moffat, that proved to be a disaster. The setting was changed to the American South, with the young man transformed into an African-American college student (portrayed by Dorian Harewood) ignoring his studies in favour of football. It was Miss Moffat's responsibility to help him raise his grades so he can remain on the team. At this point in her life, Davis was far too old for the role and was unable to carry a tune.[citation needed] When the pre-Broadway run opened in Boston, the show was derided by the critics, and it underwent major changes before moving to Philadelphia. There audiences greeted it with catcalls, and it closed before its opening night, never making it to Broadway.[citation needed]
A 1979 made-for-television movie, directed by George Cukor and starring Katharine Hepburn, was filmed on location in Wales.
After 21 previews, another Broadway revival, directed by Vivian Matalon, opened on August 22, 1983, at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. In a case of colour-blind casting, Cicely Tyson portrayed Miss Moffat, with Peter Gallagher, Marge Redmond, and Mia Dillon in supporting roles. Critics found the play hopelessly dated, and it ran for only 32 performances.[citation needed]
In 1985, however, the play enjoyed a successful revival at the Old Vic Theatre, London, starring Deborah Kerr.[citation needed]
References[edit]
- ^ "The Corn is Green". The Bramley History Community Archive. 2010 [last update]. Retrieved 13 August 2011.
Holywell Country School
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|year=(help) - ^ Staff (21 September 1938). "The Corn is Green" (Subscription required). The Times, archived at the Times Digital Archive. Retrieved 13 August 2011.
- ^ "At This Theatre: Nederlander Theatre - Broadway History". playbill.com. 2011 [last update]. Retrieved 13 August 2011.
New York Drama Critics Circle
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|year=(help) - ^ "The Corn is Green". tcm.com. 2011 [last update]. Retrieved 13 August 2011.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|year=(help)