The Cocktail Party
Encyclopedia
The Cocktail Party is a play by T. S. Eliot
. Elements of the play are based on Alcestis
, by the Ancient Greek
playwright Euripides
. The play was the most popular of Eliot's seven plays in his lifetime, although his 1935 play, Murder in the Cathedral
, is better remembered today.
The Cocktail Party was first performed at the Edinburgh Festival
in 1949. In 1950 the play had successful runs in London and New York theaters (the Broadway
production received the 1950 Tony Award
for Best Play.) It focuses on a troubled married couple who, through the intervention of a mysterious stranger, settle their problems and move on with their lives. The play starts out seeming to be a light satire of the traditional British drawing room
comedy. As it progresses, however, the work becomes a darker philosophical treatment of human relations. As in many of Eliot's works, the play uses absurdist elements to expose the isolation of the human condition. In another recurring theme of Eliot's plays, the Christian martyrdom of the mistress character is seen as a sacrifice that permits the predominantly secular life of the community to continue.
In 1951, in the first Theodore Spencer Memorial Lecture at Harvard University
Eliot criticized his own plays in the second half of the lecture, explicitly the plays Murder in the Cathedral
, The Family Reunion
, and The Cocktail Party. The lecture was published as "Poetry and Drama" and later included in Eliot's 1957 collection On Poetry and Poets.
in the role of the unidentified guest, The Cocktail Party premiered on Broadway
on January 21, 1950, at the Henry Miller's Theatre
and ran for 409 performances. Produced by Gilbert Miller
and directed by E. Martin Browne
, the production starred Guinness as the mysterious stranger. It received the 1950 Tony Award
for Best Play. The play also ran in London with Rex Harrison
as the uninvited guest.
A revival opened on October 7, 1968, at the Lyceum Theatre and ran for 44 performances. The Chamberlaynes were played by Brian Bedford
and Frances Sternhagen
, with Sydney Walker
as the mysterious stranger.
Guinness
returned to the role of the uninvited guest at the Chichester Festival Theatre
under his own direction in 1968, taking the production to London
later in the year.
In the spring of 2010, the New York based Off-Broadway company The Actors Company Theatre (TACT) will present the play.
T. S. Eliot
Thomas Stearns "T. S." Eliot OM was a playwright, literary critic, and arguably the most important English-language poet of the 20th century. Although he was born an American he moved to the United Kingdom in 1914 and was naturalised as a British subject in 1927 at age 39.The poem that made his...
. Elements of the play are based on Alcestis
Alcestis
Alcestis is a princess in Greek mythology, known for her love of her husband. Her story was popularised in Euripides's tragedy Alcestis. She was the daughter of Pelias, king of Iolcus, and either Anaxibia or Phylomache....
, by the Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
playwright Euripides
Euripides
Euripides was one of the three great tragedians of classical Athens, the other two being Aeschylus and Sophocles. Some ancient scholars attributed ninety-five plays to him but according to the Suda it was ninety-two at most...
. The play was the most popular of Eliot's seven plays in his lifetime, although his 1935 play, Murder in the Cathedral
Murder in the Cathedral
Murder in the Cathedral is a verse drama by T. S. Eliot that portrays the assassination of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral in 1170, first performed in 1935...
, is better remembered today.
The Cocktail Party was first performed at the Edinburgh Festival
Edinburgh Festival
The Edinburgh Festival is a collective term for many arts and cultural festivals that take place in Edinburgh, Scotland each summer, mostly in August...
in 1949. In 1950 the play had successful runs in London and New York theaters (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 received the 1950 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 Play.) It focuses on a troubled married couple who, through the intervention of a mysterious stranger, settle their problems and move on with their lives. The play starts out seeming to be a light satire of the traditional British drawing room
Drawing room
A drawing room is a room in a house where visitors may be entertained. The name is derived from the sixteenth-century terms "withdrawing room" and "withdrawing chamber", which remained in use through the seventeenth century, and made its first written appearance in 1642...
comedy. As it progresses, however, the work becomes a darker philosophical treatment of human relations. As in many of Eliot's works, the play uses absurdist elements to expose the isolation of the human condition. In another recurring theme of Eliot's plays, the Christian martyrdom of the mistress character is seen as a sacrifice that permits the predominantly secular life of the community to continue.
In 1951, in the first Theodore Spencer Memorial Lecture at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
Eliot criticized his own plays in the second half of the lecture, explicitly the plays Murder in the Cathedral
Murder in the Cathedral
Murder in the Cathedral is a verse drama by T. S. Eliot that portrays the assassination of Archbishop Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral in 1170, first performed in 1935...
, The Family Reunion
The Family Reunion
The Family Reunion is a play by T. S. Eliot. Written mostly in blank verse, it incorporates elements from Greek drama and mid-twentieth-century detective plays to portray the hero's journey from guilt to redemption. The play was unsuccessful when first presented in 1939, and was later regarded as...
, and The Cocktail Party. The lecture was published as "Poetry and Drama" and later included in Eliot's 1957 collection On Poetry and Poets.
Synopsis
Edward and Lavinia Chamberlayne are separated after five years of marriage. She leaves Edward just as they are about to host a cocktail party at their London home, and he has to come up with an explanation for why Lavinia is not present, in order to keep up social appearances. Lavinia is brought back by a mysterious Unidentified Guest at the party, who turns out to be a psychiatrist whom Edward and Lavinia both consult. They each learn that they have been deceiving themselves and must face life's realities. They learn that their life together, though hollow and superficial, is preferable to life apart. This message is difficult for the play's third main character, Edward's mistress, to accept. She, with the psychiatrist's urging, also moves on towards a life of greater honesty and salvation and becomes a Christian martyr in Africa. Two years later, Edward and Lavinia, now better adjusted, host another cocktail party.Characters
- Edward Chamberlayne
- Lavinia Chamberlayne
- Celia Coplestone, Edward's mistress
- Sir Henry Harcourt-Reilly, the mysterious stranger/psychiatrist
- Miss Barraway, Sir Henry's secretary
- The couple's friends:
- Peter Quilpe, with whom Lavinia and also Celia has an affair
- Julia Shuttlethwaite
- Alexander MacColgie Gibbs
Productions
After its debut at the Edinburgh Festival in 1949 with Alec GuinnessAlec Guinness
Sir Alec Guinness, CH, CBE was an English actor. He was featured in several of the Ealing Comedies, including Kind Hearts and Coronets in which he played eight different characters. He later won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Colonel Nicholson in The Bridge on the River Kwai...
in the role of the unidentified guest, The Cocktail Party premiered on 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...
on January 21, 1950, at the Henry Miller's Theatre
Henry Miller's Theatre
The Stephen Sondheim Theatre, formerly Henry Miller's Theatre, is a Broadway theatre located at 124 West 43rd Street, between Broadway and 6th Avenue, in Manhattan's Theatre District.-History:...
and ran for 409 performances. Produced by Gilbert Miller
Gilbert Miller
Gilbert Heron Miller was an American theatrical producer.Born in New York City, he was the son of English-born theatrical producer Henry Miller and Bijou Heron, a former child actress. Raised and educated in Europe, he returned home to follow in his father's footsteps and became a highly...
and directed by E. Martin Browne
E. Martin Browne
E. Martin Browne was a British theatre director, known for his production of twentieth century verse plays. He collaborated for many years with T. S...
, the production starred Guinness as the mysterious stranger. It received the 1950 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 Play. The play also ran in London with Rex Harrison
Rex Harrison
Sir Reginald Carey “Rex” Harrison was an English actor of stage and screen. Harrison won an Academy Award and two Tony Awards.-Youth and stage career:...
as the uninvited guest.
A revival opened on October 7, 1968, at the Lyceum Theatre and ran for 44 performances. The Chamberlaynes were played by Brian Bedford
Brian Bedford
Brian Bedford is an English actor. He has appeared on the stage and in film, and is known for both acting in and directing Shakespeare.-Life and career:...
and Frances Sternhagen
Frances Sternhagen
Frances Hussey Sternhagen is an American actress. Sternhagen has appeared on and off Broadway, in movies, and on TV since the 1950s.-Personal life:...
, with Sydney Walker
Sydney Walker
-Early life:Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Sydney Walker was primarily a stage actor, performing in twenty-eight Broadway plays between 1961 and 1973...
as the mysterious stranger.
Guinness
Alec Guinness
Sir Alec Guinness, CH, CBE was an English actor. He was featured in several of the Ealing Comedies, including Kind Hearts and Coronets in which he played eight different characters. He later won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Colonel Nicholson in The Bridge on the River Kwai...
returned to the role of the uninvited guest at the Chichester Festival Theatre
Chichester Festival Theatre
Chichester Festival Theatre, located in Chichester, England, was designed by Philip Powell and Hidalgo Moya, and opened by its founder Leslie Evershed-Martin in 1962. Subsequently the smaller and more intimate Minerva Theatre was built nearby in 1989....
under his own direction in 1968, taking the production to 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...
later in the year.
In the spring of 2010, the New York based Off-Broadway company The Actors Company Theatre (TACT) will present the play.
Further reading
- T. S. Eliot, The Complete Poems and Plays
- Grover Smith, T.S. Eliot's Poetry and Plays: A Study in Sources and Meaning
- E. Martin BrowneE. Martin BrowneE. Martin Browne was a British theatre director, known for his production of twentieth century verse plays. He collaborated for many years with T. S...
, The Making of T.S. Eliot's Plays.