|
James Bernard Fagan (18 May 1873 – 17 February 1933) was an Irish-born actor, theatre manager, producer and playwright in England. After turning from the law to the stage, Fagan began an acting career, including four years from 1895 to 1899 with Herbert Beerbohm Tree's company at Her Majesty's Theatre. He then began writing plays, returning eventually to acting during World War I. In 1920 he took over London's Court Theatre as a Shakespearean playhouse and soon began to produce plays at other West End theatres. His adaptation of ''Treasure Island'' in 1922 was a hit and became an annual Christmas event. He was the first manager of the Oxford Playhouse for several years in the 1920s. As a producer, he popularised Anton Chekhov and Sean O'Casey in Britain. In 1929, he was a director of the Festival Theatre, Cambridge. Several of his plays were adapted for film, and he moved to Hollywood in his last years. ==Early life and career== Fagan was born in Belfast, the eldest of the five children (three boys and two girls). His father, Sir James Fagan, was a surgeon at the Belfast Royal Hospital and an inspector of Irish reformatories,〔("James Bernard Fagan" ). Ricorso〕 and his mother was Mary Catherine Fagan, née Hughes. He attended Clongowes Wood College near Clane, County Kildare and then moved to England.〔Sharp, Robert. ("Fagan, James Bernard" ). ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004, accessed 26 October 2010 〕 Initially interested in a career in the church, Fagan began studying Law at Trinity College, Oxford in 1892 but left in 1893 without a degree.〔 He worked for a time in the Indian Civil Service but abandoned this career for the stage.〔("Mr J. B. Fagan dead", ''The West Australian'', 20 February 1933, p.9 )〕 Fagan began his career as an actor with the company of Sir Frank Benson for two years, then joining, from 1895 to 1899, the company of Herbert Beerbohm Tree at Her Majesty's Theatre.〔 There he appeared in ''Katherine and Petruchio'', ''A Man's Shadow'', ''Julius Caesar'', ''The Musketeers'' and ''Carnac Sahib''.〔 He started writing plays in 1899, with ''The Rebels'', for the time forsaking acting. Other early plays were ''The Prayer of the Sword'' (1904); ''Under Which King'', a revue, ''Shakespeare v. Shaw'', and ''Hawthorne, USA'' (all 1905); ''Gloria'' (1907); ''A Merry Devil'' and ''False Gods'' (a translation of Eugène Brieux's ''La foi'' (1909); ''The Dressing Room'' (1910); ''Bella donna'' (1911; adapted from Robert Hitchens's novel); and ''The Happy Island'' (1913). In 1913 he returned to the stage touring as the Rt Hon. Denzil Trevena in his own play, ''The Earth'' (originally produced in 1909). He next wrote ''The Fourth of August'' (1914) and ''Doctor O'Toole'' (1917).〔 In 1917 he produced his first play, his own adaptation of the Brieux play ''Damaged Goods'' at St Martin's Theatre.〔 He next produced ''The Wonder Tales'' and ''The Little Brother'' at the Ambassadors' Theatre in London.〔 He took over the Court Theatre in London's Sloane Square as a Shakespearean playhouse in 1920.〔Watson, George. ''The New Cambridge bibliography of English literature'' Volume 5, p. 842〕 ''The Times'' called his revivals of ''Twelfth Night'', ''The Merchant of Venice'', ''Henry the Fourth (Part Two)'' and ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' "memorable for their freshness, sanity and distinction, and (of ) a place in theatrical history".〔Adams, W. B. ''The Times'', 25 February 1933, p. 14b〕 ''The Merchant of Venice'' transferred to the Duke of York's Theatre, where Fagan also produced ''The Government Inspector'' and ''Madame Sand'' (both 1920).〔 At the Court, he revived ''Damaged Goods'' and, in 1921, with the assistance of the author, produced G. B. Shaw's ''Heartbreak House'', with Edith Evans as "Lady Utterwood". This was not a success and folded after 63 performances.〔Innes, C. D. ''A sourcebook on naturalist theatre'' p. 236〕 In 1922 he produced his play ''The Wheel'' at the Apollo Theatre. Its success allowed him to repay his creditors. Even more successful was his adaptation of ''Treasure Island'' at the Savoy Theatre with Arthur Bourchier as "Long John Silver", which opened 26 December 1922.〔( "London Life – a commentary" ''The West Australian'' 31 January 1923 p.10 )〕 It was to be revived every Christmas until the outbreak of World War II.〔Chapman, p. 32〕 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「J. B. Fagan」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|