Recent years have seen
a sustained revival of the work of Terence Rattigan. New
productions have been greeted with surprised delight that
the acknowledged master of the 'well made play' can continue
to provoke such powerful emotions. As Rattigan himself wrote
'I believe that the best plays are about people, and not
about things'. This volume is one of a series of new editions
of his most enduring work. Each has an authoritative and
up-to-date introduction, biographical sketch and chronology.
The play that first made
Rattigan's name and ran for over a thousand performances
in the 1930s, FRENCH WITHOUT TEARS
is a masterpiece of light comedy about a group of 'bright
young things' attempting to learn French on the Riviera
amid myriad distractions. The original cast included Trevor
Howard, Rex Harrison, Kay Hammond and Jessica Tandy. Reviewing
a recent revival, The Daily Telegraph wrote: 'So
we were not wrong, those of us who remember FRENCH
WITHOUTT TEARS as delicious and somehow something
more than a mere frolic.
Cast: 7 Men, 3 Women
First Produced: 1936-The Criterion
Theatre, London
