''The Man of Destiny'' is an 1897 play by George Bernard Shaw, set in Italy during the early career of Napoleon. It was published as a part of ''Plays Pleasant'', which also included ''

Arms and the Man ''Arms and the Man'' is a comedy by George Bernard Shaw, whose title comes from the opening words of Virgil's ''Aeneid'', in Latin: ''Arma virumque cano'' ("Of arms and the man I sing"). The play was first produced on 21 April 1894 at the Aven ...

'', '' Candida'' and '' You Never Can Tell.'' Shaw titled the volume ''Plays Pleasant'' in order to contrast it with his first book of plays, ''Plays Unpleasant''.

Characters

*Napoleon Bonaparte *Sub-Lieutenant *Giuseppe Grandi *Strange Lady

Plot

12 May 1796, an inn at Tavazzano. After his victory at the Battle of Lodi, Napoleon eats his meal, works on his plans and talks with the innkeeper Giuseppe Grandi. A lieutenant arrives with bad news. The dispatches he was carrying have been stolen by a youth who tricked him out of them. Napoleon says he will be arrested for dereliction of duty. The lieutenant says he can hear the voice of the youth who tricked him. A woman appears. She says that the dispatches were stolen by her brother. Napoleon is unconvinced. He orders the lieutenant out and tells the woman to hand over the dispatches. A battle of wits ensues between Napoleon and the woman, but she eventually concedes and hands over the documents. However she says he should not read one of the documents. It is a letter claiming that Napoleon's wife Josephine has been having an affair with Paul Barras. If he is known to have read the letter it will cause a duel. Napoleon, concerned about a public scandal, decides to pretend that the dispatches are still missing. He calls the lieutenant back, and tells him to go and find the missing documents or be court martialed. To save the lieutenant from disgrace, the lady leaves and switches to her male disguise. As soon as she reappears the lieutenant recognises the "brother" who robbed him. Pretending to have magical powers, she finds the dispatches in Napoleon's coat. Napoleon says he's been outwitted by an Englishwoman, and makes a series of comments about the English ability to constantly have things both ways ("As the great champion of freedom and national independence, he conquers and annexes half the world, and calls it Colonization"). He gives the woman the letter unopened; she burns it.

Productions

The play was written for Ellen Terry and Richard Mansfield, but was first performed, on 1 July 1897, at the Grand theatre, Croydon with

Murray Carson Murray may refer to: Businesses * Murray (bicycle company), an American manufacturer of low-cost bicycles * Murrays, an Australian bus company * Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trust * D. & W. Murray Limited, an Australian whol ...

and Florence West in the principal roles. The play was the first Shaw work performed in the German language when it was given in a translation by Siegfried Trebitsch at the Schauspielhaus in Frankfurt on 20 April 1903. On 28 March 1928, the play had its first radio broadcast with Esme Percy as Napoleon. A version aired on BBC television in 1939, and is believed to be lost. A version of it aired on Australian television in 1963. An American television version was broadcast on 21 November 1973, with Stacy Keach as Bonaparte and Samantha Eggar as The Lady. A radio production directed by Pat Trueman was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on 8 May 1980, with

David Suchet Sir David Courtney Suchet''England & Wales, Civil Registration Birth Index, 1916–2007'' ( ; born 2 May 1946) is an English actor known for his work on British stage and television. He portrayed Edward Teller in the television serial '' Oppenh ...

as Napoleon and

Paola Dionisotti Paola Dionisotti (; born 1946) is an Italian-British actress active on stage and British television since 1975. A character actress best known on television for recurring roles as Lady Patricia Broughall in ''Forever Green'' and Aunt Nicholls i ...

as The Lady. A BBC TV version was broadcast on 5 May 1981, with Simon Callow as Napoleon,

Delphine Seyrig Delphine Claire Beltiane Seyrig (; 10 April 1932 – 15 October 1990) was a Lebanese-born French actress and film director. She came to prominence in Alain Resnais's 1961 film ''Last Year at Marienbad'', and later acted in films by Francois ...

as The Lady and David Troughton as The Lieutenant.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Man of Destiny, The 1897 plays Plays by George Bernard Shaw 1963 television films 1963 films Australian television plays 1939 television films 1939 films Lost BBC episodes Plays about Napoleon Plays set in the 18th century Plays set in France Plays adapted into television shows Plays adapted into radio programs 1939 in British television