A KISS FOR CINDERELLA--A THEATRICAL SUCCESS

A Kiss for Cinderella was praised in a Times London short article dated April 28, 1916. The author noted that this play had reached its fiftieth performance and it continued to appeal to many different aspects of human nature. The writer observed that the play contained the “nursery” side of life: the patriotic aspect; the love-interest; the whimsical as well as the fantastic; the moral thermometer and stately decorum. I find this unusual play to be filled with many magical moments, while it is peppered with the realities of daily life. 

The reviews for the initial performances of the play in London were extremely positive. The Times on March 17, 1916 claimed “The enchantment of a dream, when Barrie is the dreamer.” Hilda Trevelyan (1877-1959) played Cinderella. When the play was set to reopen in London for the Christmas season of 1916, the reviewer for The Times London wrote on 12/26/1916: “The success of the revival should be assured from the fact that Miss Hilda Trevelyan is again available for the part of the little waif, a performance that must rank as one of the features of the dramatic year.” 

The New York Times (January 7, 1917) carried a story shortly after “A Kiss” opened titled “Cinderella and Other Heroines.”  “The story of Cinderella has been told in more tongues than any other folklore tale of mankind.” The article traces the legend’s first written account to Aelian, a Roman author during the third century CE. The newspaper article makes the point that it is unknown how long the basic story had been told prior to the Roman version, however, the name Cinderella emerged in a German folktale during the sixteenth century.

While the reviews that appeared in newspapers and magazines across the United States routinely praised 1. the script, 2. Maude Adams (1872-1953) who starred as Cinderella and 3. the regal magnificence of the production, there were other articles related to the play that mention different noteworthy elements in the script. Philadelphia’s The Evening Public Ledger on October 13, 1917 included in its article: “The modest Barrie still dares greatly in coloring a fantasy with rays from the lurid prism of the present war.  Anything more unrelated from Armageddon and the classic fairy tale of childhood it is hard to conceive.” The author of the article believed Barrie merged fact with fancy delicately.

Another article that appeared in the February 4, 1917 edition of the New York Herald discussed Barrie’s new woman. Doctor Bodie is the character the article refers to as the new woman. “Dr. Bodie is an energetic, practical, efficient physician as well as a capable executive with an incisive manner.” The article also mentions that she is “feminine in personality” even though she “invaded the realm of man in professional achievements.”

Hilda Trevelyan and Maude Adams were established stars of the theatre when they were selected to play Miss Thing/Cinderella.  Both actresses had performed in other plays by James M. Barrie. In fact both women had starred as Peter Pan: Hilda Trevelyan played the title role in London when Peter Pan premiered on December 27, 1904.  Maude Adams played Peter Pan in New York City when it opened on November 6, 1905. This role brought stardom to both actresses.

 

Despite the problems created for theatre productions touring during wartime, the London production of A Kiss for Cinderella toured cities in England and Scotland during the fall of 1916 and the spring months of 1917.  This was not a continuous tour since the production would return to London for performances. For example, in October of 1916 the London production moved for six nights to the Theatre Royal in Birmingham. Many newspapers carried announcements of this delightful production with its stars from the London stage coming to perform. It appears that it was not unusual for the production to play for six nights and several matinees in the larger cities. 

The Charles Frohman Company, the Broadway producer, planned for the “Cinderella” company to tour the United States once the play closed in New York. The tour was planned for the 1917-18 season. By the time the tour was to start, the United States was committed to the war in Europe.  This created a number of new problems for the Frohman Company to overcome. Many actors had joined the armed services causing a shortage of players. Railroads that normally transported the actors from city to city stopped catering to touring companies. Many legitimate theatres changed to showing films since fewer plays were being toured. The cities changed their public transportation services to stop running at an earlier hour in the evening.  As a result, theatres had to change their curtain time to an earlier hour so patrons could get home after the performances. Obviously there were many alterations to a normal touring plan that had to be accommodated if A Kiss for Cinderella was going to be able to tour as planned.

The Frohman Company prevailed and A Kiss for Cinderella was booked into every major city in the United States. The tour commenced in Plainfield, New Jersey on October 3, 1917.  Adams celebrated her forty-fifth birthday in November while the company was playing in Boston. The tour ended June 29, 1918 after playing for forty weeks and performing 320 times. In addition to those performances, the touring company presented several additional performances at military bases located in the United States.

The first revival of A Kiss for Cinderella in London was in 1924 and it was staged for the Christmas season. It was produced by Frederick Harrison at the Haymarket Theatre. Hilda Trevelyan once again starred as Miss Thing/Cinderella. The play opened on December 20^th and was scheduled solely for matinee performances.

It received another revival in December of 1937.  This production was staged at the Phoenix Theatre in London and it starred Glynis Johns (1923-    ).  The performances were schedule for every afternoon and evening during the Christmas and New Year season. Johns played Peter Pan in 1943 at the Cambridge Theatre.

  

Another London production in December, 1948 was staged at “Q” Theatre. Penelope Bartley played the title role. There was a touring production of A Kiss for Cinderella produced by Alan Clements announced in The Stage on November 24, 1977. June Gray played Cinderella.

There was a New York City revival of A Kiss for Cinderella that opened on April 10, 1942 at the Music Box Theatre. Luise Rainer (1910-2014) played Miss Thing for a run of forty-eight performances.

A musical version of A Kiss for Cinderella opened in New York Off-Broadway at Stage 73 in 1966 under the title “The Penny Friend”.  It opened on December 26, 1966 starring Bernadette Peters (1948-   ) and it closed after thirty-two performances. The book, lyrics and music were created by William Roy (1928-2003).

A Kiss for Cinderella was also made into a silent film in 1925. It starred Betty Bronson (1906-1971). She had been selected for the role by James M. Barrie who also selected her to play Peter Pan in the 1924 film version. The Cinderella film was created by Famous Players-Lasky.  It was a very successful film.

In 1959 the British Broadcasting Company film/television created a version of A Kiss for Cinderella. This production starred Jeannie Carson (1928-    ) and it was aired throughout Great Britain.  A Kiss for Cinderella has had a hundred year history of successful professional and non- professional productions.

NOTE:

Photograph appeared in The Graphic, 15 April, 1916.

BARRIE’S A KISS FOR CINDERELLA

James M. Barrie (1860-1937) designated A Kiss for Cinderella a comedy.  It is a play that combines many elements to provide a splendid entertainment, but the script never allowed the 1916-18 audiences to forget that they were living during World War One.  This unusual play was a major success in London and New York.

Act One is set in Mr. Bodie’s London studio. He is a painter of limited talent who is spending a quiet evening at home. The action of the play is set in the year it was written—1916. A policeman arrives to warn Mr. Bodie that his skylight needs to be boarded-up due to Zeppelin-raids. However, the previously protected skylight had some of its boards removed. Mr. Bodie’s young domestic servant named Miss Thing, who goes by the name of Cinderella, has daily been snitching boards.

Act Two. Scene One. (The script I read is a volume from a set titled The Plays of J.M. Barrie published by Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1923. This script does not designate scenes by number, but the play is easier to follow if the different locations for the action are numbered as scenes.) It is later the same day and the Policeman followed Cinderella home.

Scene Two. The Policman enters her poor dwelling.  He sees four wooden boxes and several persons as well as Cinderella. She does odd jobs in her home and charges a penny per job. It is quickly apparent that a child sleeps in each box.  Cinderella is caring for children left by their fathers, who are fighting in the trenches. The odd penny jobs help Cinderella buy food to feed the children. She reveals to the Policeman her dream of going to a royal ball. The children are sure she will be invited.

Scene Three. Cinderella is outside in the street. She falls asleep and her Godmother appears wearing a Red Cross nurse’s uniform. She hears Cinderella’s three wishes and agrees to grant them. The first wish is to go to the Ball. The Godmother provides the means for Cinderella to attend her fantasized event.

 Scene Four is the Royal Ball. There is a long segment before Cinderella makes her grand entrance and the events of this splendid, glamorous Ball unfold. Scene Four returns to the street outside Cinderella’s door.  She is asleep, but very nearly dead from pneumonia.

Act Three. She has been saved from death by the Policeman. Cinderella was restored to health by Mr. Bodie’s sister, who is a doctor. Cinderella is staying in the doctor’s home. She also helps Doctor Bodie take care of wounded soldiers—wish number two. The Policeman becomes Cinderella’s Prince Charming and they shall live happily ever after—wish number three.

It is obvious, from my basic description of this play, that it combines an unusual mixture of elements. The well-known fairy tale of Cinderella allowed Barrie to present both the difficulties of everyday life during the war as well as to provide the audience an escape into a world of magical splendor. The plot includes war-time conditions that the British were facing such as food rationing, Zeppelin-raids, fear of spies, caring for wounded soldiers, displaced children, blackouts and other daily concerns. The issue of caring for the displaced children is pressed even further. The youngest of Cinderella’s four children is German. The Policeman says to Cinderella: “If her folk had been in your place and you in hers, they would have shown neither mercy nor pity for you.  CINDERELLA (stoutly). That makes no difference.” The play does not back away from every day war feelings and problems.

A Kiss for Cinderella also shares many elements with the popular British Christmas Pantomime that usually was staged during the Christmas and New Year season.  Basic characteristics of these scripts include no direct reference to Christmas.  The plot is often based on well-known children’s stories or fairy tales. There is frequently a Good Fairy or wise woman such as Cinderella’s imaginary Godmother. This character provides the obligatory transformation scene.  A Kiss for Cinderella shares the built-in requirement of a love interest. The typical Christmas Pantomime always included music and dancing. While my recount of the “Kiss Cinderella” plot does not mention music, it is obvious the Ball includes both of these elements. The happy ending and the special visual effects round-out how this script matched many of the basic requirements for holiday fare.

A Kiss for Cinderella opened in London on March 16, 1916 at the Wyndham’s Theatre. It was a success at this theatre and played for 156 performances at Wyndham’s before it was revived on December 23, 1916 at the Kingsway Theatre. The December 26, 1916 review in the Times London states: “In many ways this delightful fantasy makes an ideal Christmas entertainment.” The review also mentions how Barrie "sees things not through adult spectacles, but as a child might. . . " “The wonderful ball is not the ball of pantomime; it is a weirdly clever reproduction of the kind of thing that might be imagined by a child who has seen nothing more like a ball than a horse show.”

A Kiss for Cinderella opened in New York City on December 25, 1916 at the Empire Theatre. It ran for 152 performances until May, 1917. Following its Broadway run, the production went on an extensive tour of the United States.

My next post will discuss the production history of A Kiss for Cinderella in Great Britain and the United States.

NOTE:
Photograph appeared in The Graphic, 15 April, 1916.