This is a comprehensive listing of the theatre work of Orson Welles.
There isn't one person, I suppose, in a million, who knows that I was ever in the theatre.
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
July 10 | Madame Butterfly | Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, libretto Giacomo Puccini, score | Trouble | Chicago Opera | Ravinia Opera House | Cleofonte Campanini | [a] | [1] : 58 [3] : 326 |
1918 | Samson and Delilah | Ferdinand Lemaire, libretto Camille Saint-Saëns, score | walk-on | Chicago Opera | [b] | [3] : 326 |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1925 | Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde | Robert Louis Stevenson, novella) Orson Welles, adaptation | Dr. Henry Jekyll/Edward Hyde | Camp Indianola | Governor Nelson State Park | Orson Welles | [c] | [3] : 326 |
1925 | A Christmas Carol | Charles Dickens, novella Orson Welles, adaptation | Scrooge | Washington School, Madison, Wisconsin | Orson Welles | [3] : 326 [5] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1926 | Nativity play | Mary | Todd Seminary for Boys | Todd Seminary for Boys | Roger Hill | [d] | [2] : 12 [3] : 326 | |
1926 | The Servant in the House | Charles Rann Kennedy | Jesus | Todd Seminary for Boys | Todd Seminary for Boys | Roger Hill | [2] : 12 | |
1926 | Dust of the Road | Judas Iscariot | Todd Seminary for Boys | Todd Seminary for Boys | Roger Hill | [2] : 12 |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
May 27 | It Won't Be Long Now | Roger Hill, libretto Carl Hendrickson, music | Jim Bailey | Todd Troupers | Durand Art Institute | Roger Hill | [e] | [1] : 135, 275–276 |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
May 5 | Finesse the Queen | Roger Hill, libretto Carl Hendrickson, music | William J. Spurns | Todd Seminary for Boys | Lindo Theatre, Freeport, Illinois | Roger Hill | [f] | [1] : 135 [7] [8] : 49–50 [9] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1929 | Julius Caesar | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Mark Antony Cassius | Todd Troupers | Todd Seminary for Boys | Orson Welles | [g] | [3] : 327 |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1930 | Androcles and the Lion | George Bernard Shaw, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Ferovious | Todd Troupers | Todd Seminary for Boys | Orson Welles | [h] | [3] : 327 |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1931 | Winter of Our Discontent | William Shakespeare, plays Orson Welles, adaptation | Richard III | Todd Troupers | Todd School for Boys | Orson Welles | [i] [j] [k] | [3] : 327 [10] |
October 13–31 | Jew Süss | Lion Feuchtwanger, novel Ashley Dukes, adaptation | Duke Karl Alexander of Württemberg | Dublin Gate Theatre Company | Gate Theatre, Dublin | Hilton Edwards | [l] [m] [n] [o] | [3] : 327 |
November 3–14 | The Dead Ride Fast | David Sears | Ralph Bentley | Dublin Gate Theatre Company | Gate Theatre, Dublin | Hilton Edwards | [p] | [3] : 328 |
November 20– December 5 | The Archdupe | Percy Robinson | Marshal François Bazaine Mexican Colonel | Dublin Gate Theatre Company | Gate Theatre, Dublin | Hilton Edwards | [q] | [3] : 328 [17] : 105 |
December 6 | The Circle | W. Somerset Maugham | Lord Porteous | Abbey Theatre, Dublin | [r] | [3] : 329 [17] : 105 | ||
December 26– January 9, 1932 | Mogu of the Desert | Padraic Colum | Chosroes, King of Persia | Dublin Gate Theatre Company | Gate Theatre, Dublin | Hilton Edwards | [s] [t] | [3] : 328 [19] |
December 27 | Alice in Wonderland USA | Lewis Carroll, novel William Sherwood, adaptation | Peacock Players | Peacock Theatre, Dublin | [u] [v] [w] [x] | [3] : 329 [17] : 102 [22] : 75 | ||
1931 | The Lady from the Sea | Henrik Ibsen | Dublin | Orson Welles | [3] : 329 [22] : 75 | |||
1931 | Three Sisters | Anton Chekhov | Dublin | [y] | [22] : 75 | |||
1931–32 | Hay Fever | Noël Coward | Dublin | Orson Welles | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | Mr. Wu | Harry M. Vernon and Harold Owen | Mr. Wu | Dublin | Orson Welles | [3] : 329 | ||
1931–32 | The Only Way | Frederick Longbridge and Freeman Wills | Dublin | Orson Welles | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | Peer Gynt | Henrik Ibsen | Peer Gynt | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | The Father | August Strindberg | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | The Rivals | Richard Brinsley Sheridan | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | The Emperor Jones | Eugene O'Neill | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | La locandiera | Carlo Goldoni | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | The Play's the Thing | P. G. Wodehouse and Ferenc Molnár | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | Man and Superman | George Bernard Shaw | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | Grumpy | Horace Hodges and T. Wrigley Percival | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | The Makropulos Affair | Karel Čapek | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | The Dover Road | A. A. Milne | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | Volpone | Ben Jonson | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | Rope | Patrick Hamilton | Ronald Kentley | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | Richard III | William Shakespeare | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | Timon of Athens | William Shakespeare | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 | |||
1931–32 | King John | William Shakespeare | Acting role | Dublin | [3] : 329 |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 12–26 | Death Takes a Holiday | Alberto Casella, play Walter Ferris, adaptation | Baron Lamberto | Dublin Gate Theatre Company | Gate Theatre, Dublin | Hilton Edwards | [z] | [3] : 328 |
February 2–13 | Hamlet | William Shakespeare | The Ghost Fortinbras | Dublin Gate Theatre Company | Gate Theatre, Dublin | Hilton Edwards | [aa] [ab] | [3] : 328 |
1932 | Dr. Knock | Jules Romains | Peacock Players | Peacock Theatre, Dublin | [ac] | [3] : 329 [17] : 106 | ||
1932 | The Chinese Bungalow | Marion Osmond and James Corbet | acting role | Dublin | Orson Welles | [ad] | [8] : 337 | |
February 16 - 27 | The All Alone | Henry B O'Hanlon | The Dublin Repertory Theatre | Peacock Theatre, Dublin | William Sherwood | [ae] [af] [ag] | [17] : 106 [24] [25] [26] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
May | Twelfth Night | William Shakespeare | Todd Troupers | Todd School for Boys | Roger Hill and Orson Welles | [ah] [ai] [aj] | [3] : 330 | |
July | Twelfth Night | William Shakespeare | Todd Troupers | Chicago Drama Festival, A Century of Progress Exposition, English Village | Roger Hill and Orson Welles | [ak] [al] [am] | [3] : 330 [28] | |
November 29– June 20, 1934 | Romeo and Juliet | William Shakespeare | Mercutio Chorus | Katharine Cornell repertory company | National tour beginning at the Erlanger Theatre in Buffalo, New York, Cornell's hometown | Guthrie McClintic | [an] [ao] [ap] [aq] | [29] |
December 2– June 20, 1934 | The Barretts of Wimpole Street | Rudolf Besier | Octavius Moulton-Barrett | Katharine Cornell repertory company | National tour beginning at the Erlanger Theatre in Buffalo, New York | Guthrie McClintic | [ar] [as] | [3] : 330 [29] |
December– June 20, 1934 | Candida | George Bernard Shaw | Eugene Marchbanks | Katharine Cornell repertory company | National tour | Guthrie McClintic | [at] | [3] : 331 |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
July 12–22 | Trilby | George du Maurier | Svengali | Todd School for Boys | Woodstock Opera House | Orson Welles | [au] [av] [aw] | [1] : 165 [2] : 58 [32] : 76 |
July 26– August 5 | Hamlet | William Shakespeare | Claudius Ghost of Hamlet's Father | Todd School for Boys | Woodstock Opera House | Hilton Edwards | [ax] [ay] | [1] : 165 [2] : 62 [32] : 74 [34] |
August 9–19 | Tsar Paul | Dmitry Merezhkovsky | Count Pahlen | Todd School for Boys | Woodstock Opera House | Hilton Edwards | [az] | [1] : 165 [2] : 62 [3] : 331 |
August 22–25 | The Drunkard | William H. Smith | Cameo appearance | Todd School for Boys | Woodstock Opera House | Charles O'Neal | [ba] [bb] | [3] : 331 [20] : 49 |
December 3–9 | Romeo and Juliet | William Shakespeare | Tybalt Chorus | Katharine Cornell repertory company | Cass Theatre, Detroit, Michigan | Guthrie McClintic | [bc] [bd] [be] [bf] | [37] : 7 |
December 10–11 | Romeo and Juliet | William Shakespeare | Tybalt Chorus | Katharine Cornell repertory company | Hanna Theatre, Cleveland, Ohio | Guthrie McClintic | [bg] | [39] [40] |
December 14–15 | Romeo and Juliet | William Shakespeare | Tybalt Chorus | Katharine Cornell repertory company | Nixon Theatre, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Guthrie McClintic | [bh] | [41] [42] |
December 20– February 23, 1935 | Romeo and Juliet | William Shakespeare | Tybalt Chorus | Katharine Cornell repertory company | Martin Beck Theatre, New York City | Guthrie McClintic | [bi] [bj] [bk] [bl] | [43] : 144–151 [45] [46] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
March 14–16 | Panic | Archibald MacLeish | McGafferty | Phoenix Theatre | Imperial Theatre, New York City | James Light | [bm] [bn] [bo] [bp] | [43] : 159 |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
April 12 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Lafayette Theatre, Harlem, New York City | Orson Welles | [bq] | [43] : 198 | |
April 14 – June 20 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Lafayette Theatre, Harlem, New York City | Orson Welles | [br] [bs] | [3] : 333 | |
July 6–18 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Adelphi Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [bt] [bu] [bv] | [3] : 333 [49] | |
July 21–25 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Park Theatre, Bridgeport, Connecticut [51] | Orson Welles | [bw] | [49] | |
July 28 – August 1 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Hartford, Connecticut | Orson Welles | [bx] | [49] | |
August 6 – ? | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Exhibit Theatre, Dallas, Texas | Orson Welles | [by] | [49] [52] | |
August 13–23 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Amphitheater, Texas Centennial Exposition, Dallas, Texas | Orson Welles | [bz] [ca] [cb] | [56] | |
August 25–29 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Keith's Theatre, Indianapolis, Indiana | Orson Welles | [cc] [cd] | [58] | |
September 1–13 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Great Northern Theater, Chicago, Illinois | Orson Welles | [ce] | [3] : 333 [59] | |
September 1936 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Detroit, Michigan | Orson Welles | [cf] | ||
September 1936 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Cleveland, Ohio | Orson Welles | [cg] | ||
September 23–25 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Civic University, Syracuse, New York | Orson Welles | [ch] | [60] | |
September 26 – December 5 | Horse Eats Hat | Eugène Labiche and Marc-Michel, play Orson Welles and Edwin Denby, adaptation | Mugglethorp | Federal Theatre Project | Maxine Elliott's Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [ci] [cj] | |
October 6–17 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Federal Theatre Project | Majestic Theatre, Brooklyn, New York | Orson Welles | [ck] | [55] : 393 [62] | |
October 23 – November 1 | Ten Million Ghosts | Sidney Kingsley | André Pequot | St. James Theatre, New York City | Sidney Kingsley | [cl] | [63] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 8 – May 29 | The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus | Christopher Marlowe | Faustus | Federal Theatre Project | Maxine Elliott Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [cm] | [64] |
April 21–23 | The Second Hurricane | Edwin Denby, libretto Aaron Copland, score | Henry Street Settlement Music School | Henry Street Settlement Playhouse, New York City | Orson Welles | [cn] [co] | ||
June 16 – July 1 | The Cradle Will Rock | Marc Blitzstein | Federal Theatre Project | Venice Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [cp] [cq] | ||
Summer | The Cradle Will Rock | Marc Blitzstein | Federal Theatre Project | Tour of steel districts of Pennsylvania and Ohio | Orson Welles | [cr] | [3] : 338 | |
November 11 – May 28, 1938 | Caesar | William Shakespeare, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Marcus Brutus | Mercury Theatre | Mercury Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [cs] [ct] [cu] | [43] : 324 [65] |
December 5–19 | The Cradle Will Rock | Marc Blitzstein | Mercury Theatre | Mercury Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [cv] [cw] | [43] : 325 [66] | |
December 25 | The Shoemaker's Holiday | Thomas Dekker | Mercury Theatre | Mercury Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [cx] [cy] | [67] : 50–51 |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 1 – April 28 | The Shoemaker's Holiday | Thomas Dekker | Mercury Theatre | Mercury Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [cz] | [3] : 341 | |
January 3 – April 2 | The Cradle Will Rock | Marc Blitzstein | Mercury Theatre | Windsor Theatre and Mercury Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [da] [db] | ||
April 29 – June 11 | Heartbreak House | George Bernard Shaw | Captain Shotover | Mercury Theatre | Mercury Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [dc] | |
August 16–29 | Too Much Johnson | William Gillette, play Orson Welles, adaptation | Mercury Theatre | Stony Creek Theatre, Stony Creek, Connecticut | Orson Welles | [dd] [de] [df] [dg] | [22] : 50–51, 152–153 | |
November 2–19 | Danton's Death | Georg Büchner | Louis Antoine de Saint-Just | Mercury Theatre | Mercury Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [dh] [di] | [72] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
February 27 – March | Five Kings (Part One) | William Shakespeare, dialogue Orson Welles, adaptation | Sir John Falstaff | Mercury Theatre | Colonial Theatre, Boston | Orson Welles | [dj] [dk] [dl] [dm] [dn] | [3] : 350 |
March 13 – ? | Five Kings (Part One) | William Shakespeare, dialogue Orson Welles, adaptation | Sir John Falstaff | Mercury Theatre | National Theatre, Washington, D.C. | Orson Welles | [do] [dp] | [3] : 351 |
March 20–25 | Five Kings (Part One) | William Shakespeare, dialogue Orson Welles, adaptation | Sir John Falstaff | Mercury Theatre | Chestnut Street Opera House, Philadelphia | Orson Welles | [dq] [dr] | [43] : 428 |
July–August | The Green Goddess | William Archer | Rajah | Mercury Theatre | RKO Vaudeville Theatre circuit (tour) | Orson Welles | [ds] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
March 24 – June 28 | Native Son | Paul Green and Richard Wright | Mercury Theatre | St. James Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [dt] [du] [dv] | [75] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
October 23 – January 2, 1943 | Native Son | Paul Green and Richard Wright | Mercury Theatre | Majestic Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [dw] | [76] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
August 3 – September 9 | The Mercury Wonder Show | Orson Welles and others | "Orson the Magnificent" | Mercury Theatre | Cahuenga Tent, Cahuenga Boulevard, Hollywood | Orson Welles | [dx] [dy] [dz] | |
September 1943 – 1944 | The Mercury Wonder Show | Orson Welles and others | "Orson the Magnificent" | Mercury Theatre | Nationwide tour of army bases | Orson Welles | [ea] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
April 1–2 | The Airborne Symphony | Marc Blitzstein | Speaker | New York City Symphony Orchestra | New York City Center, New York | Leonard Bernstein | [eb] [ec] [ed] [ee] | [79] |
April 28–May 4 | Around the World | Jules Verne, novel Orson Welles, adaptation Cole Porter, music | Inspector Dick Fix Japanese magician | Mercury Theatre | Boston Opera House, Boston | Orson Welles | [ef] [eg] | |
May 7–11 | Around the World | Jules Verne, novel Orson Welles, adaptation Cole Porter, music | Inspector Dick Fix Japanese magician | Mercury Theatre | Shubert Theatre, New Haven | Orson Welles | [eh] | |
May 31 – August 1 | Around the World | Jules Verne, novel Orson Welles, adaptation Cole Porter, music | Inspector Dick Fix Japanese magician | Mercury Theatre | Adelphi Theatre, New York City | Orson Welles | [ei] | [80] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
May 28–31 | Macbeth | William Shakespeare | Macbeth | Mercury Production, Utah Centennial Festival | Kingsbury Hall, University of Utah, Salt Lake City | Orson Welles | [ej] [ek] [el] [em] | [3] : 401 |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
June 15 – July | The Blessed and the Damned | Orson Welles | Various (Lobster) Faustus (Time Runs…) | Théâtre Édouard VII, Paris | Orson Welles | [en] | ||
August 7 – August | An Evening With Orson Welles | Orson Welles Oscar Wilde | Faustus (Time Runs…) Algernon (Earnest) | Altjakobstheater am Zoo, Frankfurt | Hilton Edwards | [eo] | ||
August 15 – August | An Evening With Orson Welles | Orson Welles Oscar Wilde | Faustus (Time Runs…) Algernon (Earnest) | Hamburg | Hilton Edwards | [ep] | ||
August 21 – August | An Evening With Orson Welles | Orson Welles Oscar Wilde | Faustus (Time Runs…) Algernon (Earnest) | Munich | Hilton Edwards | [eq] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
October 1–7 | Othello | William Shakespeare | Othello | Theatre Royal, Newcastle | Orson Welles | [er] [es] | ||
October 18 – December 15 | Othello | William Shakespeare | Othello | St James's Theatre, London | Orson Welles | [et] | ||
November | Midnight Matinee | Orson Welles | Himself | Coliseum Theatre, London | Orson Welles | [eu] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
September 7 – October | The Lady in the Ice | Orson Welles, libretto Jean-Michel Damase, score | Ballet de Paris | Stoll Theatre, London | Orson Welles | [ev] | ||
October | Une femme dans la glace | Orson Welles, libretto Jean-Michel Damase, score | Ballet de Paris | Paris | Orson Welles | [ew] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
June 16 – July 9 | Moby Dick—Rehearsed | Herman Melville, novel Orson Welles, play | An Actor-Manager Father Mapple Captain Ahab | Duke of York's Theatre, London | Orson Welles | [ex] [ey] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
January 12–29 | King Lear | William Shakespeare | King Lear | New York City Center Theater Company | Lincoln Center Theater, New York City | Orson Welles | [ez] [fa] | |
February 22 – March 13 | Variety act | Orson Welles | Himself | Riviera Hotel, Las Vegas | Orson Welles | [fb] [fc] | [85] |
Date | Title | Author | Role | Company | Theatre | Director | Notes | References |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
February 13–18 | Chimes at Midnight | William Shakespeare, dialogue Orson Welles, adaptation | Sir John Falstaff | Gate Theatre Company | Grand Opera House, Belfast | Hilton Edwards | [fd] [fe] | [3] : 427 |
March 1 – March | Chimes at Midnight | William Shakespeare, dialogue Orson Welles, adaptation | Sir John Falstaff | Gate Theatre Company | Gaiety Theatre, Dublin | Hilton Edwards | [ff] [fg] | |
April 28 – June 7 | Rhinoceros | Eugène Ionesco | English Stage Company | Royal Court Theatre, London | Orson Welles | [fh] [fi] | ||
June 8 – July 30 | Rhinoceros | Eugène Ionesco | English Stage Company | Strand Theatre, London | Orson Welles | [fj] |
Joseph Cheshire Cotten Jr. was an American film, stage, radio and television actor. Cotten achieved prominence on Broadway, starring in the original stage productions of The Philadelphia Story (1939) and Sabrina Fair (1953). He then gained worldwide fame for his collaborations with Orson Welles on Citizen Kane (1941), The Magnificent Ambersons (1942), and Journey into Fear (1943), in which Cotten starred and for which he was also credited with the screenplay.
George Orson Welles was an American director, actor, writer, and producer who is remembered for his innovative work in film, radio, and theatre. He is considered to be among the greatest and most influential filmmakers of all time.
John Houseman was a Romanian-born British-American actor and producer of theatre, film, and television. He became known for his highly publicized collaboration with director Orson Welles from their days in the Federal Theatre Project through to the production of Citizen Kane and his collaboration, as producer of The Blue Dahlia, with writer Raymond Chandler on the screenplay. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Professor Charles W. Kingsfield in the 1973 film The Paper Chase. He reprised the role of Kingsfield in the 1978 television series adaptation.
The Mercury Theatre was an independent repertory theatre company founded in New York City in 1937 by Orson Welles and producer John Houseman. The company produced theatrical presentations, radio programs and motion pictures. The Mercury also released promptbooks and phonographic recordings of four Shakespeare works for use in schools.
The Cradle Will Rock is a 1937 play in music by Marc Blitzstein. Originally a part of the Federal Theatre Project, it was directed by Orson Welles and produced by John Houseman. Set in Steeltown, U.S.A., the Brechtian allegory of corruption and corporate greed includes a panoply of social figures. It follows the efforts of Larry Foreman to unionize the town's workers and combat the powerful industrialist Mr. Mister, who controls the town's factory, press, church, and social organization. The piece is almost entirely sung-through, giving it many operatic qualities, although Blitzstein included popular song styles of the time.
Too Much Johnson is a 1938 American silent comedy film written and directed by Orson Welles. An unfinished film component of a stage production, it was made three years before Welles directed Citizen Kane, but it was never publicly screened. It was shot to be integrated into Welles's Mercury Theatre stage presentation of William Gillette's 1894 comedy, but the film sequences could not be shown due to the absence of projection facilities at the venue, the Stony Creek Theatre in Connecticut. The resulting plot confusion reportedly contributed to the stage production's failure.
Macbeth is a 1948 American historical drama directed by Orson Welles. A film adaptation of William Shakespeare's tragedy of the same name, it tells the story of the Scottish general who becomes the King of Scotland through treachery and murder. The film stars Welles in the lead role and Jeanette Nolan as Lady Macbeth.
Raymond Fearon is a British actor. He played garage mechanic Nathan Cooper on ITV's long-running soap opera Coronation Street and voiced the centaur Firenze in the Wizarding World film series Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts.
Leonard Lionel Cornelius Canegata, known professionally as Canada Lee, was an American professional boxer and actor who pioneered roles for African Americans. After careers as a jockey, boxer and musician, he became an actor in the Federal Theatre Project, including the 1936 production of Macbeth adapted and directed by Orson Welles. Lee later starred in Welles's original Broadway production of Native Son (1941). A champion of civil rights in the 1930s and 1940s, Lee was blacklisted and died shortly before he was scheduled to appear before the House Un-American Activities Committee. He advanced the African-American tradition in theatre pioneered by such actors as Paul Robeson. Lee was the father of actor Carl Lee.
Thousands of performances of William Shakespeare's plays have been staged since the end of the 16th century. While Shakespeare was alive, many of his greatest plays were performed by the Lord Chamberlain's Men and King's Men acting companies at the Globe and Blackfriars Theatres. Among the actors of these original performances were Richard Burbage, Richard Cowley, and William Kempe.
The Voodoo Macbeth is a common nickname for the Federal Theatre Project's 1936 New York production of William Shakespeare's Macbeth. Orson Welles adapted and directed the production, moved the play's setting from Scotland to a fictional Caribbean island, recruited an entirely Black cast, and earned the nickname for his production from the Haitian vodou that fulfilled the role of Scottish witchcraft. A box office sensation, the production is regarded as a landmark theatrical event for several reasons: its innovative interpretation of the play, its success in promoting African-American theatre, and its role in securing the reputation of its 20-year-old director.
Classical Theatre Project is a professional theatre company based in Toronto, Ontario that creates innovative productions of classic plays for a new generation of theatre fans. The company was founded in 2001 and focuses on producing the works of William Shakespeare. Since its creation, the CTP has played to more than 500,000 audience members across Canada and the U.S.
Jack Carter was an American actor. He is known for creating the role of Crown in the original Broadway production of Porgy (1927), and for starring in Orson Welles' stage productions, including Macbeth (1936) and Doctor Faustus (1937). He appeared in a few motion pictures in the 1930s and 1940s.
Horse Eats Hat is a 1936 farce play co-written and directed by Orson Welles and presented under the auspices of the Federal Theatre Project. It was Welles's second WPA production, after his highly successful Voodoo Macbeth. The script, by Edwin Denby and Welles, was an adaptation of the classic French farce The Italian Straw Hat by Eugène Marin Labiche and Marc-Michel.
Native Son is a 1941 Broadway drama written by Paul Green and Richard Wright based on Wright's novel Native Son. It was produced by Orson Welles and John Houseman with Bern Bernard as associate producer and directed by Welles with scenic design by John Morcom. It ran for 114 performances from March 24, 1941 to June 28, 1941 at the St. James Theatre.
Panic is a 1935 verse play by Archibald MacLeish. A tragedy that is one of the author's least-known works, it was written during the sixth year of the Great Depression. The drama is set during the bank panic of 1933 and concerns the fall of the world's richest man, a banker named McGafferty. First presented March 14–16, 1935, at the Imperial Theatre in Manhattan, the production featured Orson Welles's first leading performance on the American stage. Panic was produced by John Houseman and Nathan Zatkin as the first project of their new Phoenix Theatre. Sets and lighting were designed by Jo Mielziner; Martha Graham directed the movements of the chorus.
The Comedy Theatre was a Broadway theatre located at 110 West 41st Street in Manhattan that opened in 1909. It presented the first Broadway appearances of Katharine Cornell and Ruth Draper, as well as Eugene O'Neill's first Broadway play. Shuttered in the wake of the Depression, it reopened in 1937 as the Mercury Theatre — the venue for Orson Welles's groundbreaking adaptation of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar and other productions for the Mercury Theatre repertory company. In 1939 it began presenting classic Yiddish theatre. The building was demolished in 1942.
Caesar is the title of Orson Welles's innovative 1937 adaptation of William Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, a modern-dress bare-stage production that evoked comparison to contemporary Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. Considered Welles's highest achievement in the theatre, it premiered November 11, 1937, as the first production of the Mercury Theatre, an independent repertory theatre company that presented an acclaimed series of productions on Broadway through 1941.
Joseph Holland was an American actor of stage and screen who was principally known for his work in the theatre. Active on Broadway from 1935 through 1957, he was particularly admired for his performances in the plays of William Shakespeare. He was notably a founding member of John Houseman and Orson Welles' Mercury Theatre in 1937; performing the title role in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar for the first play mounted by that company. During that production he was seriously wounded by Welles, in the role of Brutus, who stabbed him in the chest and arm with a steel knife in the famous Act 3 Scene 1 betrayal. After a month of recovery, he returned to the production. Holland went on to create roles in original works by playwrights Maxwell Anderson, Lindsay and Crouse, Elsie Schauffler, and Robert E. Sherwood. He worked periodically on television as a guest actor from 1949 through 1961 on a variety of programs, and appeared in a minor supporting role in the 1958 film Rally Round the Flag, Boys!.
Grantham Coleman is an American actor. He studied drama at The Juilliard School, graduating in 2011.
This article needs additional citations for verification .(August 2014) |
Somewhat off Broadway Saturday night will be ... Dr. Faustus suspending for a while at Maxine Elliott's.
The Mercury Theatre's production of 'Julius Caesar' will depart from the National tonight, the only Broadway closing of the evening. At the National, and earlier at its home grounds, it will have amassed a total of 157 performances.