The Turn of the Screw (play)

The Turn of the Screw is a theatrical adaptation by Jeffrey Hatcher of the 1898 novella of the same name by Henry James.[1] Hatcher developed the adaptation with the Portland Stage Company as part of its Little Festival of the Unexpected program in 1995, and it debuted at the company's home theater in Portland, Maine on January 11, 1996. In 1999, the play was staged Off-Broadway by the Primary Stages company. Director Melia Bensussen won an Obie Award for the Primary Stages production.[2]

For William Archibald's adaptation of the novella, see The Innocents (play).
The Turn of the Screw
Written byJeffrey Hatcher
Based onThe Turn of the Screw
by Henry James
Date premieredJanuary 11, 1996 (1996-01-11)
Place premieredPortland Stage Company
Original languageEnglish
GenreGhost story

Cast and characters

The play is performed with two actors. One portrays "The Woman" (the equivalent of the governess in the novella), while the other actor plays all the other characters. The cast from the Portland Stage premier production and the Primary Stages Off-Broadway production are given below:

Opening night cast
Character Premier cast[3] Off-Broadway cast[4]
The Man Joey L. Golden Rocco Sisto
The Woman Susan Appel Enid Graham

Reception

In Variety, theatre critic Charles Isherwood said the Primary Stages production was "disappointingly unsubtle, unsuspenseful and altogether ineffectual", although he credited Bensussen's direction and other production elements for trying to make up for shortcomings in the script.[5] The production also received negative reviews in The New York Times[6] and the New York Post.[7]

References
  1. Kabatchnik, Amnon (2012). Blood on the Stage, 1975-2000: Milestone Plays of Crime, Mystery, and Detection. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. pp. 466–473. ISBN 978-0-8108-8354-3.
  2. "99 Obie Awards". Obie Awards. American Theatre Wing. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
  3. Hatcher, Jeffrey (1997). The Turn of the Screw. New York: Dramatists Play Service. p. 4. ISBN 0-8222-1554-3.
  4. "The Turn of the Screw". Internet Off-Broadway Database. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
  5. Isherwood, Charles (March 29, 1999). "The Turn of the Screw". Variety. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
  6. Marks, Peter (March 26, 1999). "Henry James's Eerie Crew, In Search of the Willies". The New York Times. p. E3. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
  7. Lyons, Donald (March 25, 1999). "Adaptation Doesn't Stand a Ghost of a Chance". New York Post. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
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