Man and Boy (play)
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The Queen's Theatre, London(4 December 1963)[3]
| Man and Boy | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Charles Boyer on Playbill cover for original 1963 Broadway production | |
| Written by | Terence Rattigan[1] |
| Date premiered | 1963[2] |
| Place premiered | Brooks Atkinson Theatre, New York(12 November 1963). The Queen's Theatre, London(4 December 1963)[3] |
| Original language | English |
Man and Boy is a play by Terence Rattigan. It was first performed at The Queen's Theatre, London, and Brooks Atkinson Theatre, New York, in 1963,[4] with Charles Boyer starring as Gregor Antonescu. It had a Broadway revival in 2011 with Frank Langella and Adam Driver.
The play is a study of a ruthless, sociopathic businessman: his inability to love and the impact of this on others (notably, his son and his wife). The central character Gregor Antonescu was based on the lives of Ivar Kreuger, the Swedish Match King,[5] and Samuel Insull the Anglo-American investor.[6]
Cast and characters
| Character | Broadway debut | West End debut | Broadway Revival | London Revival |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | 2005 | 2011 | 2026 | |
| Gregor Antonescu | Charles Boyer | David Suchet | Frank Langella | Ben Daniels |
| Basil Anthony | Barry Justice | Ben Silverstone | Adam Driver | Laurie Kynaston |
| David Beeston | William Smithers | Will Huggins | Michael Cristofer | Leo Wan |
| Carol Penn | Louise Sorel | Jennifer Lee Jellicorse | Virginia Kull | Phoebe Campbell |
| Sven Johnson | Geoffrey Keen | Colin Stinton | Zack Grenier | Nick Fletcher |
| Mark Herries | Austin Willis | David Yelland | Brian Hutchison | Malcolm Sinclair |
Production history
The play, directed by Michael Benthall, originally opened at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre on Broadway on November 12, 1963.[7] It was poorly received, with a limited London run and only 54 performances on Broadway; but was revived by Maria Aitken in 2005 at the Duchess Theatre, London, with David Suchet as Gregor Antonescu, to great acclaim.[8][9] Maria Aitken again directed the play for Roundabout Theatre Company on Broadway in the fall of 2011 at the American Airlines Theatre starring Tony Award winner Frank Langella as Antonescu.[10] The Australian premiere of Man and Boy was performed at the Garrick Theatre in Perth, Western Australia, in June 2007.[11]
In 2026, London's Royal National Theatre staged a revival of Man and Boy, directed by Anthony Lau and starring Ben Daniels and Laurie Kynaston.
