Berkeley Square (play)

Berkeley Square
Berkeley Square
Original language	English
Written by	John L. Balderston
Based on	The Sense of the Past; by Henry James
Premiere
Date	1926
Place	St Martin's Theatre

Berkeley Square is a play in three acts by John L. Balderston (in collaboration with J. C. Squire) which tells the story of a young American who is transported back to London in the time of the American Revolution and meets his ancestors. The plot is loosely based on Henry James' posthumous 1917 novel The Sense of the Past.

The play premiered at the St Martin's Theatre in London's West End in 1926, where it ran for 179 performances. Its production on Broadway in 1929 was an enormous success with Leslie Howard (who also co-produced and co-directed the play with Gilbert Miller) in the role of time traveler Peter Standish and ran for 229 performances, a substantial run for its time. The costumes were designed by Helene Pons and B. J. Simmons & Co.

The play was later adapted into a 1933 film version with Howard repeating his stage role of Peter Standish, winning him an Academy Award nomination. The play was also produced for a 1959 BBC television production and the 1951 film The House in the Square (released in the United States as I'll Never Forget You). Burton Lane and Alan Jay Lerner adapted the basic plot for their 1965 musical, On a Clear Day You Can See Forever.

Original London cast

Tom Pettigrew – Brian Gilmour
Mr. Throstle – Ivor Barnard
The Ambassador – J. Fisher White
Peter Standish – Lawrence Anderson
Maid – Jane Millican/Edith Martyn
Lady Anne Pettigrew – Beatrice Wilson/Georgina Wynter
Miss Pettigrew – Valerie Taylor
Helen Pettigrew – Jean Forbes-Robertson
Mrs. Barwick – Frances Ruttledge
Marjorie Frant – Grizelda Hervey/Juliet Mansell/Jane Millican

Original Broadway cast

Mrs. Barwick – Lucy Beaumont
Miss Barrymore – June English
Marjorie Frant – Ann Freshman
Helen Pettigrew – Margalo Gillmore
Tom Pettigrew – Brian Gilmour
H. R. H. The Duke of Cumberland – Robert Greig
Maid – Irene Howard
Peter Standish – Leslie Howard
The Lady Anne Pettigrew – Alice John
Mr. Throstle – Tarver Penna
The Duchess of Devonshire – Louise Prussing
Major Clinton – Charles Romano
Kate Pettigrew – Valerie Taylor
Lord Stanley – Henry Warwick
The Ambassador – Fritz Williams

References

1 2 "Sunday-Night Theatre presents: Berkeley Square". BBC Programme Index. May 31, 1959. p. 11.
1 2 "Berkeley Square – Broadway Play – Original". Internet Broadway Database.
↑ Wearing, J. P. (March 27, 2014). The London Stage 1920–1929: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 9780810893023 – via Google Books.
↑ "Lyceum: Berkeley Square". Billboard. November 16, 1929. p. 7.

External links

Full text of Berkeley Square at Internet Archive
Berkeley Square at the Internet Broadway Database
1959 BBC TV adaptation at IMDb

This article on a play from the 1920s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by adding missing information.

[genome-1] 1 2 "Sunday-Night Theatre presents: Berkeley Square". BBC Programme Index. May 31, 1959. p. 11.

[ibdb-2] 1 2 "Berkeley Square – Broadway Play – Original". Internet Broadway Database.

[3] Wearing, J. P. (March 27, 2014). The London Stage 1920–1929: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 9780810893023 – via Google Books.

[4] "Lyceum: Berkeley Square". Billboard. November 16, 1929. p. 7.