''The Outsider'' is a play by the British writer Dorothy Brandon. It portrays the struggle of an unorthodox medical practitioner to gain acceptance by the medical establishment. It was subsequently revised to show the unconventional triumphing over the conventional, whereas the play had originally had the opposite ending. It premiered at the

Pleasure Gardens Theatre The Pleasure Gardens Theatre was a theatre in Folkestone in Kent. It was opened in 1886 in a building that had previously been constructed as an Exhibition Hall in 1851. It was later converted into a cinema before closing in 1964. In the interw ...

in Folkestone in April 1923, before transferring to the

St James's Theatre The St James's Theatre was in King Street, St James's, London. It opened in 1835 and was demolished in 1957. The theatre was conceived by and built for a popular singer, John Braham; it lost money and after three seasons he retired. A succ ...

for a West End run lasting for 107 performances between May and September the same year. The cast included Leslie Faber, Charles Kenyon and

Isobel Elsom Isobel Elsom (born Isabelle Reed; 16 March 1893 – 12 January 1981) was an English film, theatre, and television actress. She was often cast as aristocrats or upper-class women. Early years Born in Chesterton, Cambridge, Elsom attend ...

. A New York run in 1924 played at the 49th Street Theatre, produced by William Harris Jr. The cast included

Lionel Atwill Lionel Alfred William Atwill (1 March 1885 – 22 April 1946) was an English stage and screen actor. He began his acting career at the Garrick Theatre. After coming to the U.S., he subsequently appeared in various Broadway plays and Hollywood f ...

as Anton, Katharine Cornell as Lalage, Fernanda Eliscu as Madame Klost,

Whitford Kane Whitford Kane (born Thomas Wheeler Kane, January 30, 1881 – December 17, 1956) was a noted Irish-born American stage and screen character actor remembered for playing the First Gravedigger in numerous productions of Shakespeare's ''Hamlet'' and ...

as Frederick and

Pat Somerset Pat Somerset (28 February 1897 – 20 April 1974) was an English stage and film actor. Biography Born Patrick Holme-Sumner, after appearing in some British silent films early in his career, he moved to the United States. In 1922 he starred on ...

as Basil. It has had a number of revivals. In 1931 a run at London's

Apollo Theatre The Apollo Theatre is a Grade II listed West End theatre, on Shaftesbury Avenue in the City of Westminster, in central London.

lasted for 66 performances. The cast featured

Harold Huth Harold Huth (20 January 1892 – 26 October 1967) was a British actor, film director and producer. Biography Early life He was born in Huddersfield, Yorkshire, in 1892. He was a nephew of Eva Moore and a cousin of the actor Roland Pertwee. Fo ...

in the title role along with

Annie Esmond Annie Esmond (27 September 1873 – 4 January 1945) was a British stage and film actress. Esmond was born in Surrey, England. She made her stage debut in pantomime in Sheffield in 1891 and later appeared on the American as well as British stage ...

and Sebastian Shaw. Isobel Elsom reprised her role from the original production.

Adaptations

It has been turned into films on three occasions. A 1926 American

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized Sound recording and reproduction, recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) ...

'' The Outsider'' directed by Rowland V. Lee, a 1931 British film '' The Outsider'' directed by Harry Lachman and a 1939 British film '' The Outsider'' directed by Paul L. Stein with

George Sanders George Henry Sanders (3 July 1906 – 25 April 1972) was a British actor and singer whose career spanned over 40 years. His heavy, upper-class English accent and smooth, bass voice often led him to be cast as sophisticated but villainous chara ...

in the title role.Goble p.899

References

Bibliography

* Goble, Alan. ''The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film''. Walter de Gruyter, 1999. * Wearing, J. P. ''The London Stage 1920-1929: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel''. Rowman & Littlefield, 2014. * Wearing, J. P. ''The London Stage 1930–1939: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel''. Rowman & Littlefield, 2014. 1923 plays Plays by Dorothy Brandon Plays set in London British plays adapted into films West End plays {{1920s-play-stub