Boston Marriage (play)
Encyclopedia
Boston Marriage is a 1999 play
by American playwright
David Mamet
. The play concerns two women at the turn of the 20th century who are in a "Boston marriage
," a relationship between two females that may involve both physical and emotional intimacy. After widespread belief that Mamet could only write for men, the playwright released this play, which centers exclusively on women.
The plot line focuses on whether Anna and Claire will be able to find a way to hold on to both the girl and her wealthy but unfaithful father. The play is delivered through quick, witty Victorian-era dialogue, mixed with double entendres and vernacular expressions, to explore the relationship between the two women and their maid. Through humor and nuance, the play explores the negotiation, conflict, compromise and reconciliation that arise in their relationship.
, Massachusetts
on June 4, 1999. It was directed by David Mamet; the set design was by Sharon Kaitz and J. Michael Griggs; the lighting design was by John Ambrosone; and the costume design was by Harriet Voyt. The cast included Rebecca Pidgeon
(Claire), Felicity Huffman
(Anna), and Mary McCann (Catherine).
It was performed in London
at the Donmar Warehouse
from March 2001 until April 2001. Directed by Phyllida Lloyd
, it featured Zoë Wanamaker
(Anna), Anna Chancellor
(Claire), and Lyndsey Marshal
. It moved to the West End
at the New Ambassadors Theatre
, where it ran from November 28, 2001 until February 16, 2002.
Boston Marriage was first performed in Melbourne in 2007 produced by leading independent theatre company Hoy Polloy. It was directed by Hoy Polloy Artistic Director Wayne Pearn and featured Helen Hopkins, Corinne Davies and Eleanor Wilson.
Boston Marriage ran off-Broadway
in New York
at The Public Theater from November 5, 2002 through December 22, 2002. It was directed by Karen Kohlhaas and starred Kate Burton
as Anna, Martha Plimpton
as Claire, and Aredn Myrin.
The play was performed in Lima
, Peru in early 2007 under the direction of theater director and actor Alberto Isola.
The play was performed in Melbourne, Australia by the Melbourne Theatre Company (MTC) through June 2010. Pamela Rabe, Margaret Mills and Sara Gleeson star, directed by Aidan Fennessy. It returned to the Boston area in September 2010, as presented at the New Repertory Theater.
As part of the Dublin Theatre Festival 2010, the Gate Theatre, Dublin, Ireland is staging a production of Boston Marriage as part of its "BMP" programme; celebrating the links between Beckett, Pinter and Mamet.
Play (theatre)
A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...
by American playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
David Mamet
David Mamet
David Alan Mamet is an American playwright, essayist, screenwriter and film director.Best known as a playwright, Mamet won a Pulitzer Prize and received a Tony nomination for Glengarry Glen Ross . He also received a Tony nomination for Speed-the-Plow . As a screenwriter, he received Oscar...
. The play concerns two women at the turn of the 20th century who are in a "Boston marriage
Boston marriage
Boston marriage as a term is said to have been in use in New England in the decades spanning the late 19th and early 20th centuries to describe two women living together, independent of financial support from a man. The term was little known until the debut in 2000 of the David Mamet play of the...
," a relationship between two females that may involve both physical and emotional intimacy. After widespread belief that Mamet could only write for men, the playwright released this play, which centers exclusively on women.
Synopsis
The two leads, Anna and Claire, argue over Claire's new found "Love" while Anna's Scottish maid, Catherine, is brought to tears by her employer's harsh verbal rebukes. Things get tense as Anna, a mistress to a wealthy gentleman, tries to talk Claire out of her profession of love for another: a young woman. Claire, on the other hand, has already made plans with her young love to meet at Anna's house in the hopes that she will be able to persuade her new love to engage in a "vile assignation." Things go awry, however, when the girl arrives and recognizes that an emerald necklace that Anna is wearing belongs to her mother.The plot line focuses on whether Anna and Claire will be able to find a way to hold on to both the girl and her wealthy but unfaithful father. The play is delivered through quick, witty Victorian-era dialogue, mixed with double entendres and vernacular expressions, to explore the relationship between the two women and their maid. Through humor and nuance, the play explores the negotiation, conflict, compromise and reconciliation that arise in their relationship.
Production history
Boston Marriage was originally produced by the American Repertory Theater (Robert Brustein, Artistic Director; Robert J. Orchard, Managing Director) at the Hasty Pudding Theatre in CambridgeCambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
on June 4, 1999. It was directed by David Mamet; the set design was by Sharon Kaitz and J. Michael Griggs; the lighting design was by John Ambrosone; and the costume design was by Harriet Voyt. The cast included Rebecca Pidgeon
Rebecca Pidgeon
Rebecca Pidgeon is a British actress and singer-songwriter. She has maintained a recording career while also acting on stage and in feature films. She is married to the American writer and director David Mamet.-Early life:...
(Claire), Felicity Huffman
Felicity Huffman
Felicity Kendall Huffman is an American film, stage, and television actress. She is known for her role as executive producer Dana Whitaker on the ABC television show Sports Night , which earned her a Golden Globe Award nomination, and as hectic supermom Lynette Scavo on the ABC show Desperate...
(Anna), and Mary McCann (Catherine).
It was performed in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
at the Donmar Warehouse
Donmar Warehouse
Donmar Warehouse is a small not-for-profit theatre in the Covent Garden area of London, with a capacity of 251.-About:Under the artistic leadership of Michael Grandage, the theatre has presented some of London’s most memorable award-winning theatrical experiences, as well as garnered critical...
from March 2001 until April 2001. Directed by Phyllida Lloyd
Phyllida Lloyd
Phyllida Lloyd CBE is an English director, best known for her work in theatre and as the director of the most financially successful British film ever released, Mamma Mia!.-Career:...
, it featured Zoë Wanamaker
Zoe Wanamaker
Zoë Wanamaker, CBE is an American-British actress. She has performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company; in films, including the Harry Potter series; and in a number of television productions, including a long-time role as Susan Harper in the sitcom My Family.-Early life and family:Wanamaker was...
(Anna), Anna Chancellor
Anna Chancellor
-Family:Chancellor was born in Richmond, London, England, the daughter of the Hon. Mary Alice Jolliffe and John Paget Chancellor. Through her mother's mother, Lady Perdita Rose Mary Asquith, Chancellor is the great-granddaughter of The Hon. Raymond Aquith and the great-great-granddaughter of Prime...
(Claire), and Lyndsey Marshal
Lyndsey Marshal
Lyndsey Marshal is an English actress best known for her performance in The Hours as the recurring character Cleopatra on HBO's Rome, and as Lady Sarah Hill in BBC period drama Garrow's Law.-Biography:...
. It moved to the West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
at the New Ambassadors Theatre
New Ambassadors Theatre
The Ambassadors Theatre , is a West End theatre located in West Street, near Cambridge Circus on the Charing Cross Road in the City of Westminster...
, where it ran from November 28, 2001 until February 16, 2002.
Boston Marriage was first performed in Melbourne in 2007 produced by leading independent theatre company Hoy Polloy. It was directed by Hoy Polloy Artistic Director Wayne Pearn and featured Helen Hopkins, Corinne Davies and Eleanor Wilson.
Boston Marriage ran off-Broadway
Off-Broadway
Off-Broadway theater is a term for a professional venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, and for a specific production of a play, musical or revue that appears in such a venue, and which adheres to related trade union and other contracts...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
at The Public Theater from November 5, 2002 through December 22, 2002. It was directed by Karen Kohlhaas and starred Kate Burton
Kate Burton
Kate Burton may refer to:*Kate Burton , American actress of stage and television*Kate Burton , British aid worker who was kidnapped in the Gaza Strip in December 2005 and released later that month-See also:...
as Anna, Martha Plimpton
Martha Plimpton
Martha Campbell Plimpton is an American actress and singer and former model. Plimpton is a screen, stage and television actress. She first appeared as Jonsy in the feature film River Rats before rising to prominence in the Richard Donner film The Goonies portraying the character Stef...
as Claire, and Aredn Myrin.
The play was performed in Lima
Lima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
, Peru in early 2007 under the direction of theater director and actor Alberto Isola.
The play was performed in Melbourne, Australia by the Melbourne Theatre Company (MTC) through June 2010. Pamela Rabe, Margaret Mills and Sara Gleeson star, directed by Aidan Fennessy. It returned to the Boston area in September 2010, as presented at the New Repertory Theater.
As part of the Dublin Theatre Festival 2010, the Gate Theatre, Dublin, Ireland is staging a production of Boston Marriage as part of its "BMP" programme; celebrating the links between Beckett, Pinter and Mamet.