What could induce a thirty-seven year old woman to take out "flying insurance" in order to play a little boy in a new Christmas pantomime at the Duke of York’s Theatre in London? Already famous as the daughter of actor-director Dion Boucicault and actress Agnes Kelly Robertson, Nina Boucicault was a respected actress in her own right when she was approached to play the juvenile lead in the new play. The production was to benefit by the services of director Dion “Dot” Boucicault, Nina’s older brother. Even better, it was to be produced by the legendary Charles Frohman, who was providing more than a generous budget. Best of all, James M. Barrie, the little Scottsman who wrote The Little Minister, was providing the script. Just a year before Nina had scored great success as Moira Loiney in Barrie’s Little Mary but on December 27, 1904 she attained a new status when she metamorphosed herself into the boy who could fly. When Nina Boucicault passed away on August 6, 1950, the retired eighty- three year old actress was still best remembered as the creator of the title role in Peter Pan.
Why would Mary Pickford, the most popular actress of the silent film era, have photographs taken of herself as “the boy who would not grow up”? At the age of thirty Pickford was still photographing very young and who could have asked for a better choice than the original Pollyanna and Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm? No one, perhaps, except a host of other contenders for the role including Lillian Gish, May MacAvoy and the eventual winner- a seventeen year old unknown actress named Betty Bronson.
Did Marilyn Miller really think that she could erase memories of America's Maude Adams a decade after that actress finally gave up the role?
Why would best friends Jean Arthur and Mary Martin trade turns dressing as Peter Pan at Hollywood costume parties?
Why did Stewart Stern, the future screenplay writer of Rebel Without a Cause, Rachel, Rachel, and Sybil, dress up as Kensington Garden’s most famous resident when he was a small child? His parents had taken him to see Eva Le Gallienne play the part at the Civic Repertory Theatre on 14th Street in New York City. Stuart was so impressed with her performance that he went home and drew a picture of Le Gallienne as Peter. Years later he enjoyed a correspondence with that great lady of the theatre. Finally, he flew for the first time in 1997 at the age of seventy five!
How did Margo Feiden of the prestigious Margo Feiden Gallery in New York City become the youngest Broadway producer on record? Bent on doing something other than a sweet sixteen party to celebrate her coming of age, the high school student started from scratch, gaining permissions from writers, lyricists, and composers to produce the musical version of Peter Pan. First she raised the money all by herself, pleading her cause on a national radio show. Then she acquired a theater and hired the actors, several from the student body of the High School of Performing Arts (a special dispensation was passed by the school administrators to allow the students to perform outside the school environment.). To this day she still has the costumes.
Why does this writer have the hat, sword and pipes that Eva Le Gallienne used over seventy years ago hanging over his fireplace?
What is it about Peter Pan that has made him the subject of the most popular children’s play of the twentieth century? What has sustained this character through the changing tastes of the last century. From the dawn of the twentieth century to the beginning of a new millennium, many of the illustrators of the novel Peter and Wendy have been directly influenced by the traditions of the stage play. In many cases it is difficult to remove the actor from the role. Then there are the costumes which quickly identify who is who on stage. In this blog I shall examine the illustrations of Peter Pan; photos of actors, sets, costume designs, posters and book illustrations with a touch of nostalgia; for this is (drum roles please) Peter Pan- His First Hundred Years.
Why would Mary Pickford, the most popular actress of the silent film era, have photographs taken of herself as “the boy who would not grow up”? At the age of thirty Pickford was still photographing very young and who could have asked for a better choice than the original Pollyanna and Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm? No one, perhaps, except a host of other contenders for the role including Lillian Gish, May MacAvoy and the eventual winner- a seventeen year old unknown actress named Betty Bronson.Did Marilyn Miller really think that she could erase memories of America's Maude Adams a decade after that actress finally gave up the role?
Why would best friends Jean Arthur and Mary Martin trade turns dressing as Peter Pan at Hollywood costume parties?
Why did Stewart Stern, the future screenplay writer of Rebel Without a Cause, Rachel, Rachel, and Sybil, dress up as Kensington Garden’s most famous resident when he was a small child? His parents had taken him to see Eva Le Gallienne play the part at the Civic Repertory Theatre on 14th Street in New York City. Stuart was so impressed with her performance that he went home and drew a picture of Le Gallienne as Peter. Years later he enjoyed a correspondence with that great lady of the theatre. Finally, he flew for the first time in 1997 at the age of seventy five!How did Margo Feiden of the prestigious Margo Feiden Gallery in New York City become the youngest Broadway producer on record? Bent on doing something other than a sweet sixteen party to celebrate her coming of age, the high school student started from scratch, gaining permissions from writers, lyricists, and composers to produce the musical version of Peter Pan. First she raised the money all by herself, pleading her cause on a national radio show. Then she acquired a theater and hired the actors, several from the student body of the High School of Performing Arts (a special dispensation was passed by the school administrators to allow the students to perform outside the school environment.). To this day she still has the costumes.
Why does this writer have the hat, sword and pipes that Eva Le Gallienne used over seventy years ago hanging over his fireplace?What is it about Peter Pan that has made him the subject of the most popular children’s play of the twentieth century? What has sustained this character through the changing tastes of the last century. From the dawn of the twentieth century to the beginning of a new millennium, many of the illustrators of the novel Peter and Wendy have been directly influenced by the traditions of the stage play. In many cases it is difficult to remove the actor from the role. Then there are the costumes which quickly identify who is who on stage. In this blog I shall examine the illustrations of Peter Pan; photos of actors, sets, costume designs, posters and book illustrations with a touch of nostalgia; for this is (drum roles please) Peter Pan- His First Hundred Years.
2 comments:
congratulations on the new blog .... looking forward to future posts.
Hi,
My name is Maria Tatar and I am working on The Annotated Peter Pan. I am a huge fan of the Chronicles of Peter Pan, and I was hoping that I could get in touch with you to talk about your book and the images in it. The best way to reach me is at my Harvard e-mail account: tatar@fas.harvard.edu.
Look forward to hearing from you,
Maria
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