A SAMUEL FRENCH, LTD. TITLE

The Corn Is Green

Full-Length Play, Dramatic Comedy  /  5w, 10m

Emlyn Williams

Miss Moffat settles in a Welsh mining village where she starts a school for the boys of the neighborhood. Morgan Evans shows promise, and Miss Moffat determines to do everything possible for him. Against the prejudice of local folk and the wealthy squire, she manages to make good, and in Morgan she finds a young man who will go far in this piece of realism from the 1930s.

The Corn Is Green

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  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    5w, 10m
  • Duration
    Duration
    More than 120 minutes (2 hours)
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult
Accolades
Accolades

  • Winner! 1941 New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award for Best Foreign Play

Details

Summary

Take a glimpse at Welsh life in the 1930s in this work of realism. Miss Moffat settles in a Welsh mining village where she starts a school for the boys of the neighborhood. Morgan Evans shows promise, and Miss Moffat determines to do everything possible for him. Against the prejudice of local folk and the wealthy squire, she manages to make good, and in Morgan she finds a young man who will go far. Miss Moffat finally persuades the squire to lend his support, and she prepares the boy to apply for a scholarship to Oxford. Morgan, however, rebels against help from a woman and temporarily succumbs to the charm of a flashy girl. His mistaken sense of obligation nearly ruins his chances of success and Miss Moffat realizes that her interest in him has become too absorbing. However, her affection for him, her courage and wisdom in the end bring her victory. Morgan wins the scholarship, and Miss Moffat’s work comes to a happy conclusion.

History
The Corn Is Green premiered in London at the Duchess Theatre on September 20, 1938, with the author himself portraying Morgan Evans. The outbreak of war forced the closure of the Duchess run; the same production then toured for 11 weeks prior to returning to the West End at the Piccadilly Theatre on December 19, 1939. The original Broadway production premiered at the National Theatre in November of 1940 and starred Ethel Barrymore as Miss Moffat. A Broadway revival produced by Elizabeth Taylor opened on August 22, 1983 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre with Cicely Tyson and Peter Gallagher in the lead roles. A 1945 film adaptation was also made with Bette Davis.
Keywords
Performing Groups

JOHN GORONWY JONES
MISS RONBERRY
IDWAL MORRIS
SARAH PUGH
A GROOM
THE SQUIRE
MRS. WATTY
BESSIE WATTY
MISS MOFFAT
ROBBART ROBBATCH
MORGAN EVANS
GLYN THOMAS
JOHN OWEN
WILL HUGHES
OLD TOM
BOYS, GIRLS AND PARENTS

  • Time Period 19th Century
  • Setting

    A house in a remote Welsh countryside village. Three years in the late 19th century.

  • Features Period Costumes
  • Duration More than 120 minutes (2 hours)

Media

“Worth remembering as a social history of how generations of working-class school children broke through class barriers.” – The Guardian

“Tales of inspiring schoolteachers are a reliable staple of theater, movies and television, but few have displayed the durability of this comedy about a do-gooder British spinster who discovers a budding poet under the soot-covered mug of a young Welsh coal miner.” – Charles Isherwood, The New York Times

“Williams’ story may be sentimentalized but is worth remembering as a social history of the more unbendable days of British class privilege, and also of how generations of working-class school children broke through class barriers thanks to a grammar school education.” – The Guardian

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: £70 per performance plus VAT when applicable.

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