''A Bill of Divorcement'' is a play by English author

Clemence Dane Clemence Dane CBE is the pseudonym of Winifred Ashton (21 February 1888 – 28 March 1965), an English novelist and playwright. Life and career After completing her education, Dane went to Switzerland to work as a French tutor, but returned ...

. It was her first play, and her most popular, and was adapted to films of the same name three times, in

1922 Events January * January 7 – Dáil Éireann (Irish Republic), Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes. * January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éirean ...

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

, and

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *January ...

Synopsis

Though it was premiered in 1921, the play is set in the early 1930s. Margaret Fairfield divorces her husband, who has been in a mental hospital for many years, in order to remarry. Their daughter cares for the father and faces the fact that his mental illness may be hereditary. Although not permitted at the time in Britain, the play imagines a future where divorce is permitted where a spouse is incurably insane. Due to evolving cultural views, divorce was a popular subject in novels and drama of the time.D'Monte, Rebecca
British Theatre and Performance 1900-1950
p. 130 (2015)

London production

The play was first performed in London on March 14, 1921 at

St Martin's Theatre St Martin's Theatre is a West End theatre which has staged the production of ''The Mousetrap'' since March 1974, making it the longest continuous run of any show in the world. The theatre is located in West Street, near Shaftesbury Avenue, in t ...

, with

Basil Dean Basil Herbert Dean CBE (27 September 1888 – 22 April 1978) was an English actor, writer, producer and director in the theatre and in cinema. He founded the Liverpool Repertory Company in 1911 and in the First World War, after organising unoff ...

as producer, and ran for 402 performances. The cast included

Lilian Braithwaite Dame Florence Lilian Braithwaite, (9 March 1873 – 17 September 1948), known professionally as Lilian Braithwaite, was an English actress, primarily of the stage, although she appeared in both silent and talkie films. Early life She was born ...

Malcolm Keen Malcolm Keen (8 August 1887 – 30 January 1970) was an English actor of stage, film and television. He was sometimes credited as Malcolm Keane.Meggie Albanesi Margherita Cecilia Brigida Lucia Maria Albanesi (8 October 1899—9 December 1923) was a British stage and film actress. Life and career She was born in London on 8 October 1899. Her father was Italian-born Carlo Albanesi (1856-1926), a piani ...

.Pollack, Rhoda-Gale (14 March 2018)
Clemence Dane's A Bill of Divorcement
''World War One: Plays, Playwrights & Productions''(21 January 2004)
A Bill of Divorcement, Long, March 1921
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

London cast

as Margaret Fairfield *Agnes Thomas as Miss Hester Fairfield *

Meggie Albanesi Margherita Cecilia Brigida Lucia Maria Albanesi (8 October 1899—9 December 1923) was a British stage and film actress. Life and career She was born in London on 8 October 1899. Her father was Italian-born Carlo Albanesi (1856-1926), a piani ...

as Sydney Fairfield *Dorothy Martin as Bassett * Charles Aubrey Smith as Grey Meredith (appears in 1940 film by Dr. Alliot) * Ian Hunter as Kit Pumphrey *

Malcolm Keen Malcolm Keen (8 August 1887 – 30 January 1970) was an English actor of stage, film and television. He was sometimes credited as Malcolm Keane.Fewlass Llewellyn Fewlass Llewellyn (5 March 1886 – 16 June 1941) was a Welsh actor, playwright and theatrical producer. Previously an engineer, he made his stage debut in 1890, and appeared in various film roles, often as authority figures. A play he co-wrote w ...

as The Rev. Christopher PumphreyDane, Clemenc
A Bill of Divorcement: A Play in Three Acts
(1921) (play, includes London cast listing)

Broadway production

The English actor Allan Pollock saw the play in London, and intrigued by the character of Hilary Fairfield, bought the American rights. Broadway producer

Charles Dillingham Charles Bancroft Dillingham (May 30, 1868 – August 30, 1934) was an American theatre manager and producer of over 200 Broadway shows. Biography Charles Bancroft Dillingham was born on May 30, 1868 in Hartford, Connecticut to Edmund Bancroft ...

had decided to try producing a serious drama in New York for the next season (instead of his customary musical comedies) and agreed to take it on. In America, the play was premiered at

George M. Cohan's Theatre George M. Cohan's Theatre was a Broadway theatre at Broadway and West 43rd Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It was built in 1911 and demolished in 1938. History The theatre was designed by George Keister, and ope ...

on October 10, 1921. Despite good reviews, audiences were slow to grow. The Cohan theatre had already planned to mount a new show when ''Divorcement'' began to grow popular, so the show was moved to the

Times Square Theater The Times Square Theater is a former Broadway and movie theater at 217 West 42nd Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, near Times Square. Built in 1920, it was designed by Eugene De Rosa and developed by brothe ...

on November 7. It closed in March 1922, after a total run of 173 performances. Mantle, Burns, ed
The Best Plays of 1921-22
pp. 63-95 (includes extended excerpts from the play)(11 October 1921)

''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', p. 22, col. 2.(21 July 1921)

''

'', p. 18, col. 2. After it closed on Broadway, it toured North America, and local revivals on both sides of the Atlantic occurred into the 1940s.

Broadway cast

*John Astley as Kit Pumphrey *

Janet Beecher Janet Beecher (born Janet Meysenberg; October 21, 1884 – August 6, 1955) was an American stage and screen actress. Early years The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. E. A. Von Meysenburg, Beecher was born in Jefferson City, Missouri. Her sister was ...

as Margaret Fairfield *Lillian Brennard as Bassett *

Katharine Cornell Katharine Cornell (February 16, 1893June 9, 1974) was an American stage actress, writer, theater owner and producer. She was born in Berlin to American parents and raised in Buffalo, New York. Dubbed "The First Lady of the Theatre" by critic A ...

as Sydney Fairfield *Fred Graham as The Rev. Christopher Pumphrey *Ada King as Hester Fairfield *Arnold Lucy as Dr. Alliot * Allan Pollock as Hilary Fairfield *

Charles Waldron Charles Waldron (December 24, 1874 – March 4, 1946) was an American stage and film actor, sometimes credited as Charles Waldron Sr., Chas. Waldron Sr., Charles D. Waldron or Mr. Waldron. Early life He was born and grew up in Waterford, New ...

as Gray Meredith

Adaptations

The play has been adapted into films of the same name three times. The 1922 silent version was a British production. The 1932 film was directed by

George Cukor George Dewey Cukor (; July 7, 1899 – January 24, 1983) was an American film director and film producer. He mainly concentrated on comedies and literary adaptations. His career flourished at RKO when David O. Selznick, the studio's Head of ...

and starred

John Barrymore John Barrymore (born John Sidney Blyth; February 14 or 15, 1882 – May 29, 1942) was an American actor on stage, screen and radio. A member of the Drew and Barrymore theatrical families, he initially tried to avoid the stage, and briefly att ...

and

Katharine Hepburn Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12, 1907 – June 29, 2003) was an American actress in film, stage, and television. Her career as a Hollywood leading lady spanned over 60 years. She was known for her headstrong independence, spirited perso ...

. The 1940 film was directed by

John Farrow John Villiers Farrow, KGCHS (10 February 190427 January 1963) was an Australian film director, producer, and screenwriter. Spending a considerable amount of his career in the United States, in 1942 he was nominated for the Academy Award for B ...

. Radio adaptations were broadcast in Britain during December 1935; in the United States during April 1941; and again in the United States on December 1, 1946.

References

External links

*
A Bill of Divorcement: A Play in Three Acts
(full play, published 1921, via gutenberg.org)
Photographs of 1921 British production
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bill of Divorcement (play), A 1921 plays Plays set in the 1930s Plays by Clemence Dane West End plays British plays adapted into films