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''Engaged'' is a three-act farcical comic play by W. S. Gilbert. It premiered at the Haymarket Theatre on 3 October 1877, the same year as ''The Sorcerer'', one of Gilbert's comic operas written with Arthur Sullivan, which was soon followed by the collaborators' great success in ''H.M.S. Pinafore''. ''Engaged'' was well received on the London stage and then in New York City, where the first production of the play opened in February 1879. The work then enjoyed many revivals on both sides of the Atlantic and continues to be produced today. ''Engaged'' has been W. S. Gilbert's most popular stage work aside from the Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas. A ''New York Times'' review of an 1886 production of ''Engaged'' (dated 24 February of that year) noted that "the laughter was almost incessant."〔(Article from the EJ Phillips website with information about the background of ''Engaged'' )〕 Makers wrote: "''Engaged'' () unquestionably the finest and funniest English comedy between Bulwer-Lytton's ''Money'' and Wilde's ''The Importance of Being Earnest'', (1895) which it directly inspired".〔 ''Engaged'' may also have inspired George Bernard Shaw's ''Arms and the Man''〔(''SF Gate'' article )〕 and Alan Ayckbourn's ''The Norman Conquests''. ==Background== The play is a burlesque of romantic drama and is written in the "topsy-turvy" satiric style of many of Gilbert's Bab Ballads and the Savoy Operas: one character pledges his love, in the most poetic and romantic language possible, to every single woman in the play; the innocent Scottish rustics are revealed to be making a living through throwing trains off the lines and then charging the passengers for services, and, in general, romance is gladly thrown over in favour of monetary gain. Gilbert, who directed his own plays (which was unusual for the time), instructed his cast as follows in a note that he provided with their copies of the script: "It is absolutely essential to the success of this piece that it should be played with the most perfect earnestness and gravity throughout. There should be no exaggeration in costume, make-up, or demeanour; and the characters, one and all, should appear to believe, throughout, in the perfect sincerity of their words and actions. Directly the actors show that they are conscious of the absurdity of the utterances the piece begins to drag."〔(Florip, Daniel. "Misplaced Blame", ) ''The Gilbert and Sullivan Archive'' (2005), first published in ''GASBAG'', Issue 230, Autumn 2005〕 A passage from ''Engaged'', a speech by the character Cheviot Hill, reflects a Gilbertian notion of marriage: :"Marriage is a very risky thing; it's like Chancery, once in it you can't get out of it, and the costs are enormous. There you are – fixed. Fifty years hence, if we're both alive, there we shall both be – fixed. That's the devil of it. It's an unreasonably long time to be responsible for another person's expenses. I don't see the use of making it for as long as that. It seems greedy to take up half a century of another person's attention. Besides – one never knows – one might come across somebody else one liked better – that uncommonly nice girl I met in Scotland, for instance". (''Engaged'', Act II) ''Engaged'' was first produced at the Haymarket Theatre in London on 3 October 1877 with success, running for about 110 performances.〔Moss, Simon. ("Engaged" ) at ''Gilbert & Sullivan: a selling exhibition of memorabilia'', c20th.com, accessed 16 November 2009〕 It starred Marion Terry, George Honey and Lucy Buckstone.〔Ainger, p. 134〕 American productions beginning in 1879 were also very successful, earning thousands of pounds for Gilbert.〔Ainger, p. 168〕 Productions of the play continue. A musical version of ''Engaged'' by George Rowell and Kenneth Mobbs (adapting music by Sullivan and other Gilbert collaborators) was produced a number of times in the 1960s and 1970s by professional companies.〔〔A 1925 New York musical version had music by Sullivan and several other composers arranged, with additional lyrics, by Brian Hooker. Belinda was played by Antoinette Perry. See ("Engaged!; or Cheviot's Choice" ), The Guide to Musical Theatre, accessed July 10, 2015〕 The National Theatre of Great Britain produced ''Engaged'' in 1975 at the Old Vic. The cast included Cheryl Campbell, Pauline Collins, Peter Egan, Reginald Marsh and Jonathan Pryce.〔Paramor, David. (Engaged order information ), UKBookWorld.com〕 Among the more recent professional productions are the following:〔For reviews of other recent productions, see: (this about a 2003 American production ), (this about a 2002 English production ) and (this ''New York Times'' review of a 1981 production. )〕 Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond on Thames, produced the piece from November 2002 to January 2003.〔Gilchrist, Stephen. ("Engaged (Richmond)", ) ''What's on Stage'', 6 December 2002, accessed 10 June 2009〕〔Gardner, Lyn. ("Engaged: Orange Tree, London", ) ''The Guardian'', 2 December 2002, accessed 22 July 2009〕 Pitlochry Festival Theatre in Pitlochry, Scotland, mounted a production from April to October 2004.〔Cargill, Peter. ("Engaged", ) ''The Stage'', 17 June 2004〕 In New York, it was seen Off-Broadway at the Lucille Lortel Theatre in 2004,〔Jefferson, Margo. ("A Proper Victorian Battle With Greed", ) ''The New York Times'', 3 May 2004〕〔Bradley, Brad. (''Engaged'' ), CurtainUp, 2004, accessed 22 July 2009〕 and the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company produced the play in July and August 2009.〔Pender, Rick. ("Engaged (Review): Cincy Shakes production ticks like a comic watch", ) ''Cincinnati CityBeat'', 21 July 2009〕 A production by Irish Classical Theatre Company played from April to May 2010 in Buffalo, New York〔(2009–2010 Season ), Irishclassicaltheatre.com, accessed 3 July 2009〕〔Theatre program, Irish Classical Theatre, May 2010〕 It also continues to be produced by amateur companies and has recently been seen at the International Gilbert and Sullivan Festival among other venues.〔For a 2011 production, see (Lamplighters' 2010–11 Season ). Lamplighters.org, accessed 2 February 2011〕 In 2007 a recording was released of a second musical adaptation of the play, entitled ''Topsy Turvy Loves'', using music from the Gilbert and Sullivan operas but cutting much of the dialogue,〔(Recording of ''Topsy Turvy Loves'' at CDBaby.com )〕 and an Equity Showcase production of the adaptation was mounted in October 2009 by the Wings Theatre Company in New York City.〔(New Gilbert & Sullivan Musical ''Topysy Turvy Loves'' to Be Presented at Wings Theatre Co." ), Broadwayworld.com, 10 September 2009〕〔Shepherd, Marc. (''Topsy Turvy Loves'' ). ''A Gilbert and Sullivan Discography'', 10 July 2010〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Engaged (play)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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