More Stately Mansions
Encyclopedia
More Stately Mansions is a play by Eugene O'Neill
.
Originally intended to be part of a nine-play cycle entitled A Tale of Possessors Self-Dispossessed, Mansions was an incomplete rough draft written between 1936 and 1939 that O'Neill did not want posthumously finished or produced. A sequel to A Touch of the Poet
, it picks up four years later in 1832 Massachusetts
, with Simon Harford, now married to Sara Melody, finding himself the pawn in a battle between his wife and his mother to control him through love. Played out against the background of an industrial revolution, the struggle ultimately leads to tragedy and despair.
The title of the play was derived from the line "Build thee more stately mansions, O my soul" in the poem The Chambered Nautilus by Oliver Wendell Holmes
.
Against his wishes, O'Neill's widow, Carlotta Monterey, authorized Karl Ragnar Gierow of the Swedish
Royal Dramatic Theatre
to turn the unfinished work into an acting version. The play was the inaugural production at the Ahmanson Theatre
in Los Angeles
, where it opened on April 12, 1967 with Ingrid Bergman
, Colleen Dewhurst
, and Arthur Hill
in the leading roles. Six months later, after eight previews, the Broadway
production, with the same cast directed by José Quintero
, opened on October 31 at the Broadhurst Theatre
, where it closed after only 142 performances. Dewhurst was nominated for a Tony Award
for Best Actress in a Play.
Eugene O'Neill
Eugene Gladstone O'Neill was an American playwright and Nobel laureate in Literature. His poetically titled plays were among the first to introduce into American drama techniques of realism earlier associated with Russian playwright Anton Chekhov, Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, and Swedish...
.
Originally intended to be part of a nine-play cycle entitled A Tale of Possessors Self-Dispossessed, Mansions was an incomplete rough draft written between 1936 and 1939 that O'Neill did not want posthumously finished or produced. A sequel to A Touch of the Poet
A Touch of the Poet
A Touch of the Poet is a play by Eugene O'Neill.It and its sequel, More Stately Mansions, were intended to be part of a nine-play cycle entitled A Tale of Possessors Self-Dispossessed...
, it picks up four years later in 1832 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...
, with Simon Harford, now married to Sara Melody, finding himself the pawn in a battle between his wife and his mother to control him through love. Played out against the background of an industrial revolution, the struggle ultimately leads to tragedy and despair.
The title of the play was derived from the line "Build thee more stately mansions, O my soul" in the poem The Chambered Nautilus by Oliver Wendell Holmes
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. was an American physician, professor, lecturer, and author. Regarded by his peers as one of the best writers of the 19th century, he is considered a member of the Fireside Poets. His most famous prose works are the "Breakfast-Table" series, which began with The Autocrat...
.
Against his wishes, O'Neill's widow, Carlotta Monterey, authorized Karl Ragnar Gierow of the Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Royal Dramatic Theatre
Royal Dramatic Theatre
The Royal Dramatic Theatre is Sweden's national stage for "spoken drama", founded in 1788. Around one thousand shows are put on annually on the theatre's eight running stages....
to turn the unfinished work into an acting version. The play was the inaugural production at the Ahmanson Theatre
Ahmanson Theatre
The Ahmanson Theatre is one of the four main venues that comprise the Los Angeles Music Center.Through the generosity of philanthropist Robert H. Ahmanson, construction began on March 9, 1962. The theatre opened on April 12, 1967 with a production of More Stately Mansions starring Ingrid Bergman,...
in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, where it opened on April 12, 1967 with Ingrid Bergman
Ingrid Bergman
Ingrid Bergman was a Swedish actress who starred in a variety of European and American films. She won three Academy Awards, two Emmy Awards, and the Tony Award for Best Actress. She is ranked as the fourth greatest female star of American cinema of all time by the American Film Institute...
, Colleen Dewhurst
Colleen Dewhurst
Colleen Rose Dewhurst was a Canadian-American actress known for a while as "the Queen of Off-Broadway." In her autobiography, Dewhurst wrote: "I had moved so quickly from one Off-Broadway production to the next that I was known, at one point, as the 'Queen of Off-Broadway'...
, and Arthur Hill
Arthur Hill (actor)
Arthur Edward Spence Hill was a Canadian actor best known for appearances in British and American theater, movies and television...
in the leading roles. Six months later, after eight previews, the Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
production, with the same cast directed by José Quintero
José Quintero
José Benjamin Quintero was a Panamanian theatre director, producer and pedagogue best known for his interpretations of the works of Eugene O'Neill.-Early years:...
, opened on October 31 at the Broadhurst Theatre
Broadhurst Theatre
The Broadhurst Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 235 West 44th Street in midtown Manhattan.It was designed by architect Herbert J. Krapp, a well-known theatre designer who had been working directly with the Shubert brothers; the Broadhurst opened 27 September 1917...
, where it closed after only 142 performances. Dewhurst was nominated for a Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
for Best Actress in a Play.