Twelve Angry Men (1955 play)

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Twelve Angry Men
Written bySherman L. Sergel
Based on "Twelve Angry Men"
Date premiered1955
Place premiered San Francisco, California
SubjectA courthouse drama: a boy's life at stake in the hands of the jury
GenreDrama
SettingA jury room, "the present", summer

Twelve Angry Men is a play by Sherman L. Sergel adapted from the 1954 teleplay of the same title by Reginald Rose for the CBS Studio One anthology television series. Versions of the play are often performed as Twelve Angry Jurors and Twelve Angry Women.

Contents

History

Following the teleplay's broadcast, the stage rights to the teleplay were sought by the Dramatic Publishing Company, which was run by the Sergel family. [1] Dramatic Publishing specialized in adapting works from other media to the stage and had previously licensed and adapted three of Rose's earlier teleplays, with the adaptations done by Kristen Sergel. [2] Rose saw no market for a stage adaptation, and, needing money, sold the rights. [1]

The play premiered in 1955 at San Francisco's Marina Auditorium and was directed by Leon Forbes. [3] Following the release of the 1957 film adaptation of the teleplay, also penned by Rose, the rights were commercially licensed, with Rose retaining the American and British theatrical rights himself. While it was several years until Rose's version of the play debuted, Sergel's version continued to be performed by amateurs. [4]

Actors perform the mixed-gender version "Twelve Angry Jurors" at a community theater in North Carolina Actors perform "Twelve Angry Jurors," the mixed-gender version of "12 Angry Men," at a community theatre.jpg
Actors perform the mixed-gender version "Twelve Angry Jurors" at a community theater in North Carolina

It is still frequently performed, especially by amateurs, and for a long time was the only version licensed for performance in the United States. The existence of two distinct versions of the play, Rose's and Sergel's, has created frequent confusion between them. [1] Dramatic Publishing created versions that can be performed by casts of women or of mixed gender, Twelve Angry Women, first published in 1983, and Twelve Angry Jurors. [1] [5] [6] [7] [8] For Rose, however, the characters were inherently male and changing their gender would undermine his "twelve men in a box" premise and its dramatic tension. [1]

Plot

Sergel's play closely follows Rose's teleplay, using its three-act structure, including the continuity of action between each act, with each act picking up immediately where the prior act left off. It uses much of the teleplay's dialogue with only slight alterations. [1]

Sergel added new dialogue that increases the length of the 50-minute teleplay to an evening length play. He includes more discussion of the evidence in the case and shows that the defense was weak, but also introduces, according to Bangor University professor of literature and film Steven Price in an introduction to Rose's play, a "certain amount of authorial moralizing." Rose's later play, which he revised several times, uses material written for the film and uses a two act structure. [1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Price, Steven (2017). "Commentary". Twelve Angry Men. By Rose, Reginald. Methuen Drama Student Edition. ISBN   9781474232326.
  2. ↑ Rosenzweig, Phil (2021). "A Life on Stage". Reginald Rose and the Journey of 12 Angry Men. Fordham University Press.
  3. ↑ Cone, Theresa Loeb (10 December 1955). "'Twelve Angry Men' Drama Staged at S.F." Oakland Tribune. p. 4. Retrieved 6 September 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ Hy Hollinger (December 24, 1958). "Telecast and Theatre Film, Looks As If '12 Angry Men' May Reap Most Dough As Legit Play". Variety . p. 5. Retrieved May 21, 2019– via Archive.org.
  5. ↑ Bergman, J. Peter (2 May 2025). "THEATER REVIEW: 'Twelve Angry Jurors' plays at Bennington Theater through May 4". The Berkshire Edge. Retrieved 3 January 2026.
  6. ↑ Hicks, Chris (8 November 2022). "Review: Playcrafters' Twelve Angry Jurors". WVIK, Quad Cities NPR. Retrieved 6 January 2026.
  7. ↑ "Twelve Angry Women". www.dramaticpublishing.com. Retrieved 4 January 2026.
  8. ↑ Neill, Hugh (August 12, 2025). "Verdict on jury drama: great theatre". The Press. Retrieved 6 January 2026.
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