''The Voysey Inheritance'' is a play in five acts by the English dramatist Harley Granville-Barker. Written in 1903–1905, it was originally staged at the

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial West End theatre in Sloane Square, in the Royal ...

in 1905 featuring Mabel Hackney, and revived at the same venue in 1965, the

Royal Exchange, Manchester The Royal Exchange is a grade II listed building in Manchester, England. It is located in the city centre on the land bounded by St Ann's Square, Exchange Street, Market Street, Cross Street and Old Bank Street. The complex includes the Royal ...

in 1989 and at the National Theatre in 1989, and in 2006. In 2006, American playwright

David Mamet David Alan Mamet (; born November 30, 1947) is an American playwright, filmmaker, and author. He won a Pulitzer Prize and received Tony nominations for his plays ''Glengarry Glen Ross'' (1984) and '' Speed-the-Plow'' (1988). He first gained cri ...

wrote what a critic for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' called a "canny new adaptation" of the play for New York's Atlantic Theatre Company. Described by Samuel French as "a witty, impeccably crafted portrait of a family in the midst of a surprisingly modern moral dilemma", its subject is financial fraud, on which Ian Clarke wrote, "in ''The Voysey Inheritance'', the dishonesty implicates not only the individual Voyseys but the institutions, ideology, and economic base of Edwardian England".

Plot

Edward's highly principled world upturns when he discovers the family business he is inheriting has been defrauding its clients for years because his father has been illegally speculating with their money. To compound matters, he quickly discovers his large, scandal-fearing family knew of the crime but allowed it to continue rather than face the shame of public disclosure.

Quote

"Of course it's pleasant and comfortable to keep within the law . . . then the law will look after you. Otherwise you have to look pretty sharp after yourself. You have to cultivate your own sense of right and wrong . . . deal with your own justice. But that makes a bigger man of you, let me tell you."

References

English plays 1905 plays {{1900s-play-stub

Plot

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See also

References