''The Governor's Lady'' is a 1912 play written by Alice Bradley, directed by

David Belasco David Belasco (July 25, 1853 – May 14, 1931) was an American theatrical producer, impresario, director, and playwright. He was the first writer to adapt the short story ''Madame Butterfly'' for the stage. He launched the theatrical career of ...

and produced by Belasco and his son-in-law David Elliott. It is known for its unconventional set.

Production

After previews in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

and

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

''The Governor's Lady'' opened at Belasco's Republic Theatre in New York on September 10, 1912.Mantle and Sherwood, ''The Best Plays of 1909-1919'', p. 475.

Emma Dunn Emma Dunn (26 February 1875 – 14 December 1966) was an English actress. After starting her acting career on stage in London, she became known for her works in numerous films and Broadway productions. Career Emma Dunn appeared onstage in ...

and Emmett Corrigan starred as Mary and Dan Slade,

Gladys Hanson Gladys Hanson (born Gladys Hanson Snook; September 5, 1884 – February 23, 1973) was a stage and silent film actress. Early years Hanson was born Gladys Hanson Snook, the youngest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Peyton Harrison Snook. Career Han ...

played Katherine Strickland and

Milton Sills Milton George Gustavus Sills (January 12, 1882 – September 15, 1930) was an American stage and film actor of the early twentieth century. Biography Sills was born in Chicago, Illinois, into a wealthy family. He was the son of William Henr ...

played Robert Hayes. The three-act contemporary domestic drama dealt with topics of rising social status and the then-little-discussed topic of divorce. The reasonably well-reviewed and moderately commercially successful play ran 135 performances. It is primarily known as an example of Belasco's theatrical naturalism, because he recreated a Childs Restaurant on stage using materials and food from the actual restaurant chain rather than conventional representative stage scenery.Essin, ''Designing American Modernity'', pp. 32-33.

References

Bibliography

*Dodge, Wendell Phillips, "Staging a Popular Restaurant", ''The Theatre Magazine'', v.XVI n.140, October 1912, pp. 104 and x-xi. *"Early Fall Brings Many New Plays...There's 'The Governor's Lady' and Many Others", ''New York Times'', Jun. 17, 1912, p. 9. *Essin, Christin, "Designing American Modernity: David Belasco's ''The Governor's Lady'' and Robert Edmond Jones's ''The Man Who Married a Dumb Wife''", ''Theatre History Studies'', v.29, Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press, 2009, pp. 32–51. *"'Governor's Lady' Shown: Belasco Produces Play of Man and Wife's Rise from Poverty to Riches, ''The New York Times'', May 2, 1912, p. 11. * Mantle, Burns and Garrison P. Sherwood, eds., ''The Best Plays of 1909-1919'', Philadelphia: The Blakiston Company, 1947. *"The New Plays", ''The Theatre Magazine'', v.XVI n.140, October 1912, pp. 100. *"Seeing This Play Seems Like Spying: Such a Sense of Intimacy Is Conveyed in 'The Governor's Lady,' at the Republic, Really Remarkable Acting, Emmett Corrigan and Emma Dunn Give Amazingly Fine Portrayals in a Realistic Belasco Production," (Play Review) ''New York Times'', Sep. 11, 1912, p. 11. *White, Jr., Matthew, "The Stage", ''Munsey's Magazine'', April 1912, v.47 n.1, p 827.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Governor's Lady Broadway plays 1912 plays Childs Restaurants