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Addendum: The Stage History of Shelley's The Cenci

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 December 2020

Bert O. States Jr.
Bert O. States Jr.*
Affiliation:
Yale University, New Haven 11, Conn.
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Extract

Astage history of The Cenci by Kenneth N. Cameron and Horst Frenz—“a first attempt at a task obviously long overdue” (p. 1081)—appeared in 1945 and, in uncovering some eleven productions in six countries over a fifty-year period, applied the first practical evidence to the long-debated contention that The Cenci is not an effective dramatic work. Although the history to this point was not an extensive one, the Cameron-Frenz study established that The Cenci could no longer be called a closet drama: it had, in fact, performed well as an acting play on more than one occasion. Hence, with skillful handling, it might be expected to do so in future presentations. It is unlikely that a more positive conclusion can be stated regarding The Cenci as a theatre piece. Nevertheless I feel, in the light of an impressive number of recent Cenci productions, that a continuing search of its stage history would be worthwhile, not only to substantiate the previous findings, but also (1) to indicate the interesting directions its record has taken since 1945, (2) to identify some of its limitations on the present-day stage, and (3) to bring it once again to the attention of scholars, directors, and producers who may still hold Edward Dowden's belief that Shelley, “unversed in the secrets of theatrical effect, [did not know] how to fit an acting play for the boards.”

Type
Research Article
Information
PMLA , Volume 72 , Issue 4-Part-1 , September 1957 , pp. 633 - 644
Copyright
Copyright © Modern Language Association of America, 1957

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References

1 “The Stage History of Shelley's The Cenci,” PMLA, lx (Dec. 1945), 1080–1105.

2 The Life of Percy Bysshe Shelley (London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner and Co., 1909), p. 434.

3 In addition, scenes from the tragedy were done privately at Bennington College, Vt., in Nov. 1953. There were no reviews of the staging since it was primarily a class project. It was performed before 100 drama students and other interested persons in “semi-arena” style, directed by Mrs. Ned Donahoe and Robert Alvin.

On 10 Dec. 1933, the Armenian Cultural Society of Los Angeles gave one performance of The Cenci in Armenian. For an account of this interesting staging see William White's, “An Armenian Performance of Shelley's The Cenci,” MLN, lxiv (March 1949), 178–179.

4 New York Times, 21 March 1954, Drama Sec. (x), p. 3. This article contains an interesting account of the early days of ELT.

5 Actors' Cues, 22 April 1947, p. 9.

6 Cameron and Frenz, p. 1097.

7 Daily Princelonian, 3 Dec. 1948, p. 1.

8 Letter of 18 Nov. 1954.

9 Dec. 1949, “Critique,” p. 5.

10 Heights Daily News, New York Univ., 17 Feb. 1950, p. 2.

11 8 Feb. 1950, “Theatres,” p. 80. A review by Julius Bab also appeared in the New Yorker Staats-Zeilung, but contains only an historical account of The Cenci.

12 Letter of 3 May 1955. At this writing, I have been unable to locate further information on this production.

13 Letter of 27 Oct. 1955.