''London Calling'' is a comedy play in three acts, written by
Geoffrey Kerr
Geoffrey Kerr (born Geoffrey Kemble Grinham Keen; 26 January 1895 – 1 July 1971) was a British stage and film actor and writer during the middle of the 20th century.
Early life
Geoffrey Kemble Grinham Keen was born on 26 January 1895, in Lon ...
, produced by
John Golden
John Lionel Golden (June 27, 1874 – June 17, 1955) was an American actor, songwriter, author, and theatrical producer. As a songwriter, he is best-known as lyricist for " Poor Butterfly" (1916). He produced many Broadway shows and four film ...
, and directed by Dan Jarratt. The play was first performed at
Little Theatre
As the new medium of cinema was beginning to replace theater as a source of large-scale spectacle, the Little Theatre Movement developed in the United States around 1912. The Little Theatre Movement served to provide experimental centers for the d ...
,
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...
, on October 18, 1930. The star of the original production was British-born
thespian
Thespian may refer to:
* A citizen of the Ancient Greek city of Thespiae
* An actor or actress
** Thespis, the first credited actor
* A member of the International Thespian Society
The International Thespian Society (ITS) is an honor society ...
St. Clair Bayfield. Geoffrey Kerr had previously performed in ''The Stork'' (1925) and also wrote short stories on the side for ''
Vanity Fair'' magazine.
Plot
The comedy centres on two brothers Willie and George Craft, whose American mother and British father long have been divorced. Willie Craft has been raised in America by his mother, George by his father in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, England. When George appears for a surprise visit to
Manhattan
Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
, he and Willie soon fall for a designing woman, Anne Hunter. Their mother decides she is not suitable and prevents her from seeing them, and in the process tries reconciling with their father.
['']Time
Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...
'' Review 27th October 193
/ref>
Scene synopsis
Mrs. Craft's apartment on Park Avenue (Manhattan), Park Avenue and George Craft's furnished apartment on East 49th Street.
Original production
Cast and characters
* St. Clair Bayfield - Straight
* Emma Bunting - Mary Dayton
*Helen Flint - Anne Hunter
*Penelope Hubbard - Jenny Fall
*Geoffrey Kerr
Geoffrey Kerr (born Geoffrey Kemble Grinham Keen; 26 January 1895 – 1 July 1971) was a British stage and film actor and writer during the middle of the 20th century.
Early life
Geoffrey Kemble Grinham Keen was born on 26 January 1895, in Lon ...
- George Craft
*Charles Lawrence - Willie Craft
*Edward Leiter - Carl Merodini
*Anne Sutherland - Mrs. Craft
*Graham Velsey - Chauncey Knayling
*Dallas Welford - Blewes
* Walter Wilson - Henry Dayton
Notes
External links
* {{IBDB show, 5518, London Calling
Broadway plays
Comedy plays
1930 plays
Plays set in New York City