Announcing...
The Lucky One by A.A. Milne
directed by Jesse Marchese April 14 - June 24
Tues - Sat 7:30pm ; Sat & Sun 2:00pm
*Wed. matinees 5/17 & 5/31. No performance 5/30
“A play of quite extraordinary delicacy and soundness of feeling.” John Corbin, New York Times, 1922 A serious comedy about sibling rivalry, A.A. Milne’s The Lucky One tells the story of Gerald and Bob Farringdon. Gerald, the youngest brother, has had all the luck—he’s charming, clever, excels at sports, and is a rising star in the foreign office. He’s also at the center of everyone’s attention and affection, including that of the woman Bob loves. When the illegal actions of a dishonest business partner land Bob in serious trouble, the brothers must confront their disproportionate circumstances—and the uncomfortable truth at the core of their relationship. The Lucky One was written by Milne as “the recreation of a (temporary) professional soldier,” sometime during the First World War. It was published in 1919 in First Plays—a compendium of the playwright’s five earliest works for the theater. In an introduction to the collection, Milne remarked that “The Lucky One was doomed from the start with a name like that… I see no hope of its being produced. But if any critic wishes to endear himself to me (though I don’t see why he should) he will agree with me that it is the best play of the five.”
ENRICHMint Event
Despite Milne’s prediction, The Lucky One was produced on Broadway by the Theatre Guild in 1922. “Few plays have ever been more directly and deeply searching of the springs JEANNE SAFER, AUTHOR OF CAIN’S LEGACY: of conduct, more subtle in depicting essential character,” hailed John Corbin of The New York Times. “If the revelation LIBERATING SIBLINGS FROM A LIFETIME OF RAGE, of motives strikes painfully near to human weaknesses SHAME, SECRECY AND REGRET it is unerringly true—as amazingly subtle as it is simple and unforced.” In 1928, the play was produced by the Arts Theatre Club in London as Let’s All Talk About Gerald—most Sunday, April 23rd after the matinee likely due to Milne’s concerns about the original title. Despite a successful career as novelist, essayist, and playwright, A.A. Milne was remembered primarily as the creator of Winnie the Pooh until the Mint’s acclaimed repertory productions of Mr. Pim Passes By and The Truth About Blayds in 2004. “Seeing Mr. Pim and Blayds in repertory reveals Milne as an able craftsman with a droll sense of humor whose work maintains a valid theatrical vitality,” wrote Wilborn Hampton in the New York Times. This spring, we are delighted to remind New York theatergoers of Milne’s remarkable skill as a dramatist with our production of The Lucky One.
Tickets on sale now exclusively to First Priority Club Members! FPC Hotline: (212) 315-0231
Jeanne Safer, PhD is a psychotherapist who has been in private practice for over forty years, and the author of six acclaimed and thought-provoking books on neglected psychological issues. She has appeared on television (“The Today Show,” “Good Morning America,” and “CBS World News Tonight”) and contributed articles to The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and other publications. Dr. Safer’s discussion will focus on the play’s depiction of a sibling rivalry.
Additional ENRICHMint Events TBA.
Further Readings
FURTHER READINGS A READING SERIES THAT FURTHER EXPLORES THE WORK OF OUR FAVORITE PLAYWRIGHTS.
CONFLICT
by Miles Malleson (Yours Unfaithfully playwright)
Monday, February 13th at 7pm The Beckett Theatre, Theatre Row - FREE For reservations call 212.315.0231 “Neat and spare, always natural and often witty...It is both entertaining and exciting.” The Guardian, 1926
Miles Malleson’s Conflict is a timely, comic, and surprising look at what happens when the personal and political collide. The play tells the story of an aristocrat’s daughter who experiences a political awakening when two men, a fiery young socialist and a dashing conservative, vie for her allegiance. Conflict was first performed in 1925 at the Q Theatre in west London. By 1926, the play had reached the much-larger Queen’s Theatre, where the Times described the play as “thoroughly enjoyable.” Remarkably, the West End run of Conflict—which pits capitalist against socialist ideals—was interrupted by Great Britain’s famous 9-day general strike in May 1926. “The strike harshly affected the theatre, and some plays and productions of quality which were on their way to prosperity have had to endure a heavy strain,” wrote St. John Ervine in an appeal for The Observer. “Mr. Miles Malleson’s clever play, Conflict, deserves to receive as much support now as it got before the strike.” Mint Theater is pleased to host Malleson’s dramatic debate with a Further Reading of Conflict on February 13th.
Excerpt from CONFLICT (1925) by Miles Malleson Lord Bellingdon The Lady Dare Bellindon, his daughter Major Sir Ronald Clive, D.S.O., engaged to Dare BELLINGDON: I understand you went to one of this man’s meetings. DARE: Yes. BELLINGDON: Why? DARE: I wanted to hear what they had to say. BELLINGDON: I’d have told you. DARE: Curiously, your ideas about what they think, and their own don’t entirely tally. BELLINGDON: I should think not. A lot of damned lies. However, I understand you went back to this man’s bedroom— DARE: Sitting-room. BELLINGDON: There was a bed in it. DARE: He’d only one room. BELLINGDON: Well, it was a bedroom then. DARE: It was just as much a sitting-room. BELLINGDON: Don’t argue.... In God’s name, what did you do it for? You couldn’t have done more if you were in love with him. DARE: In love with him? CLIVE: I say, Dare— DARE: Now look here, both of you, what I think about politics is my affair; it’s got nothing to do with you. BELLINGDON: But! DARE: Please! ...Who I’m with, or when I’m with them, is my own affair; it’s got nothing to do with you, either of you—or anyone else.
Celbrate Join us for our annual Spring Benefit, which will take place on Monday April 24, 2017 at the Colony Club on the Upper East Side!
Colony Club - April 24 Mint Theater Company Spring Benefit Tickets now on sale at MintTheater.org or by calling (212) 315-9434
TABLES $20,000: Table of 10 plus artists seated at your table; four tickets to a Mint Opening Night performance $10,000: Table of 8 plus artists seated at your table; two tickets to a Mint Opening Night performance $7,500: Table of 8; two tickets to a Mint performance TICKETS $2,500: One benefit ticket; two tickets to a Mint Opening Night performance $1,500: One benefit ticket; two tickets to a Mint performance $600: One benefit ticket SPONSOR AN ARTIST $250: One benefit ticket for a Mint artist
Below is a note we recently received from Barbara J. Hill, a long-time audience member. Barbara saw 31 of our productions, beginning with The Daughter-in-Law in 2003.
“I have been a fan of the productions of the Mint Theater Company for many years and have supported the Mint’s work by renewing my membership each year in the First Priority Club. Now, for reasons of health associated with a stroke, I have moved from my home of the last 32 years in Brooklyn to a new home in Pennsylvania where I can receive daily help with my living needs. Unfortunately, this makes it highly unlikely that I will return to New York City and attend future plays at the Mint. I have made this $1,000 gift to the Mint as my way of saying “thank you” for all the wonderful evenings I spent sitting in the dark in your theater watching your actors and production staff bring to life stories that were written a century ago but which still hold meaning for today’s audiences. I will miss attending plays at the Mint, but I am pleased to know that the work of the Mint will continue with the help of your new Fund for the Next Fifty. I wish you continued success in the years to come. Thank you for the gift you gave to me of great theater.” Proceeds from Celebrate 2017 will go towards the Fund for the Next Fifty, designated to support artist salaries for our next fifty productions.
Jonathan
CONFLICT - Further Reading by Miles Malleson February 13 7pm THE LUCKY ONE by A.A. Milne April 14 - June 24 SPRING BENEFIT 2017 Monday, April 24 Reserve your FPC Tickets now! FPC Hotline: (212) 315-0231
330 West 42nd Street, Suite # 1210 New York, NY 10036
Happy 2017!
YOURS UNFAITHFULLY by Miles Malleson Through February 18
www.minttheater.org (212) 315-0231
I first read The Lucky One about twenty years ago, and I’ve always known that one day we would produce it. I’m happy for the opportunity now to introduce new Mint audience members to this very talented playwright!
FIRST PRIORITY CLUB NEWS
Happy 2017!
I’m very happy to be sending you news of our next production, a return to the work of one of our favorite authors, A.A. Milne. Longtime Mint fans are likely to have fond memories of Mr. Pim Passes By which we produced way back in 1997, and then again in 2004 in rotating repertory with The Truth About Blayds. Those of you who attended last year’s Benefit at the Colony Club may remember that we read a one-act of Milne’s called The Stepmother. All of Milne’s work is warm, witty and wise—and The Lucky One is no exception.
from your friends at Mint Theater
Dear Friends,