Children of the Ghetto (1899 play)
1899 play by Israel Zangwill / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Children of the Ghetto is an 1899 play written by British author Israel Zangwill. It is loosely based on Zangwill's 1892 novel of the same name.[fn 1] It is a drama in four acts, each with a subtitle and its own setting. The play is set around 1874, within the Jewish Quarter of London. The main plot centers on the love-affair of a young couple, thwarted from marrying by an obscure religious law and an unfortunate joke. The action of the play spans a hundred days time starting at Hanukkah.
Children of the Ghetto | |
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Written by | Israel Zangwill |
Based on | Children of the Ghetto: History of a Peculiar People by Israel Zangwill (1892) |
Directed by | James A. Herne |
Music by | William Furst |
Date premiered | October 16, 1899 (1899-10-16) |
Place premiered | Herald Square Theatre |
Original language | English |
Subject | Love and religious law |
Genre | Drama |
Setting | Jewish quarter of London, c. 1874 |
It was first produced by Liebler & Company[fn 2] on Broadway,[1] staged by James Herne, and starred Wilton Lackaye, Blanche Bates, and Frank Worthing.[2]
Though successful in tryouts, the play and its author drew negative reactions from New York reviewers and the local Jewish community during its Broadway run.[3] It closed after two months, and the production then moved to London during December 1899 but lasted only a week.[4] The following US national tour had mixed success, garnering some praise but eventually losing money.[5] The play was never revived on Broadway, though a Yiddish adaptation was produced in the Bowery during December 1904.[6] It was also adapted for the screenplay of a 1915 motion picture of the same name.[7]
While it did not return its backers investment,[8] scholar Edna Nahshon wrote that Children of the Ghetto "should not be judged by the conventional standards of theatrical success or failure".[9] Its legacy was as the "first Jewish play presented on the Anglo-American English language stage".[9]