''The Cardinal'' is a 1901

historical play History is one of the three main genres in Western theatre alongside tragedy and comedy, although it originated, in its modern form, thousands of years later than the other primary genres. For this reason, it is often treated as a subset of trage ...

by the British writer

Louis N. Parker Louis Napoleon Parker (21 October 1852 – 21 September 1944) was an English dramatist, composer and translator. Parker wrote many plays, developing a reputation for historical works. His 1911 play ''Disraeli'' is one of his best known, written ...

. It is set in

Renaissance Italy The Italian Renaissance ( ) was a period in History of Italy, Italian history between the 14th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Western Europe and marked t ...

at the height of the power of the

Medici Dynasty The House of Medici ( , ; ) was an Italian banking family and political dynasty that first consolidated power in the Republic of Florence under Cosimo de' Medici and his grandson Lorenzo de' Medici, Lorenzo "the Magnificent" during the first h ...

. It originally premiered at the Theatre Royal, Montreal before transferring to the

Garden Theatre The Garden Theatre was a major theater on Madison Avenue and 27th Street in Manhattan, New York City. The theatre opened on September 27, 1890, and closed in 1925. Part of the Madison Square Garden (1890), second Madison Square Garden complex, t ...

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

. It then enjoyed a run of 106 performances at St James' Theatre in London's West End between 31 August and 5 December 1903. The original London cast included

E.S. Willard Edward Smith Willard (9 January 1853 – 9 November 1915) was an English actor. He was born at Brighton''Who's Who on the Stage: the dramatic reference book and ...'', Volume 1 edited by Walter Browne, Frederick Arnold Austin; 1906 pg. 227 and ...

Frederick Volpe Frederick Volpe (31 July 1865 – 7 March 1932), sometimes printed Volpé, was an English actor. He made his stage debut in his early twenties. From 1894 until his death he was a familiar figure on the West End theatre, West End stage, generally ...

Harry Lonsdale Harold K. Lonsdale (January 19, 1932 – November 11, 2014) was an American scientist, businessman, and politician. A Democrat, he ran for United States Senate in the U.S. state of Oregon three times, losing twice in the primaries and once as the ...

, Alice Lonnon,

Joseph Farjeon Joseph Jefferson Farjeon (4 June 1883 – 6 June 1955) was an English crime and mystery novelist, playwright and screenwriter. His father, brother and sister also developed successful careers in the literary world. His "Ben" novels were reissued ...

and

Helen Ferrers Helen Ferrers (1869–1943), born Helen Finney, was a British stage and film actress. Personal life Helen Finney was born in Cookham in Berkshire, the daughter of a London coal merchant and the younger sister of the actress May Fortescue ( ...

Film adaptations

In 1936 the play was adapted into a film of the same title directed by

Sinclair Hill Sinclair Hill (10 June 1896 – 6 March 1945) was a British film director, film producer, producer and screenwriter. He directed nearly fifty films between 1920 and 1939. He was born as George Sinclair-Hill in London in 1894. He was awarded an O ...

and starring

Matheson Lang Matheson Alexander Lang (May 15, 1879 – April 11, 1948) was a Canadian-born stage and film actor and playwright. He is best remembered for his theatrical performances in Great Britain in Shakespeare plays. Biography Lang was born in Montreal, Q ...

Eric Portman Eric Harold Portman (13 July 1901 – 7 December 1969) was an English stage and film actor. He is probably best remembered for his roles in three films for Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger during the 1940s. Early life Born in Halifax, ...

and

June Duprez June Ada Rose Duprez (14 May 1918 – 30 October 1984) was an English film actress. Early life Duprez was born in Teddington, Middlesex, England, during an air raid in the final months of World War I, the daughter of American comedian Fre ...

. It also inspired the 1945 Italian film ''

L'abito nero da sposa ''L'abito nero da sposa'' () is a 1945 Italian historical drama film directed by Luigi Zampa and starring Fosco Giachetti. It is based on the play ''The Cardinal'' by Louis N. Parker. Cast * Fosco Giachetti as Il cardinale Giovanni de Medici * ...

'' directed by

Luigi Zampa Luigi Zampa (2 January 1905 – 16 August 1991) was an Italian film director. Biography Son of a worker, Zampa studied filmmaking from 1932 to 1937 at the Italian film school in Rome. He directed several Italian neorealism films in the 1940 ...

and starring

Fosco Giachetti Fosco Giachetti (28 March 1900, in Sesto Fiorentino – 22 December 1974, in Rome) was an Italian actor. Fosco Giachetti was the protagonist of ''Lo squadrone bianco'' (1936), directed by Augusto Genina. He became the leading man in Fascist ...

and

Jacqueline Laurent Jacqueline Laurent (6 August 1918 – 18 December 2009) was a French film actress. She starred with Jean Gabin in Marcel Carné's ''Le jour se lève'' (1939). Early years Laurent was the daughter of Jacques Janin, a composer whose compositio ...

. Furthermore it inspired the egyptian film "The Confession Chair". Youssef Wahbi, who had played the role of Cardinal Giovanni and also directed the movie and wrote its script, received a golden medal from the Vatican.Curti p.39

References

Bibliography

* Curti, Roberto . ''Riccardo Freda: The Life and Works of a Born Filmmaker''. McFarland, 2017. * Goble, Alan. ''The Complete Index to Literary Sources in Film''. Walter de Gruyter, 1999. * Wearing, J.P. ''The London Stage 1900-1909: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel''. Scarecrow Press, 2013. 1901 plays West End plays Plays by Louis N. Parker Plays set in Rome Plays set in the 16th century British plays adapted into films {{1900s-play-stub