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''Sapho'' was a 1900 American play by Clyde Fitch, based on an 1884 French novel of the same name by Alphonse Daudet and an 1885 play by Daudet and Adolphe Belot.〔Mantle and Sherwood, ''The Best Plays of 1899-1909'', pp. 361-362.〕〔“Daudet’s ‘Sapho’ Dramatized,” ''The Nation '', Volume 42, Jan. 14,1886, p. 32.〕 It was at the center of a sensational New York City indecency trial involving the play’s star and producer/director, Olga Nethersole. The play was not an exceptional success but the incident is considered a notable step in the transformation of American society’s attitudes regarding gender roles and public depictions of sex in the 20th century. ==The play== British actress Olga Nethersole asked prominent American playwright Clyde Fitch to adapt ''Sapho'', telling the story from the point of view of the lead female character rather than the male character as was done with the original novel and play. Nethersole produced, directed and starred. The play’s official billing is ''Sapho, a play in four acts by Clyde Fitch. Founded on the novel by Alphonse Daudet, with scenes from the play by Alphonse Daudet and Adolphe Belot''.〔 ''Sapho'' is a so-called “problem play”, centering on a woman who has love affairs with men to whom she is not married. Nethersole had already added two such dramas, ''Camille'' and '' The Second Mrs. Tanqueray'', to her ongoing repertoire.〔At the time, terms such as “courtesan”, “fallen woman”, “harlot”, “prostitute”, or “tainted woman” described sexually attractive, unmarried women characters in plays, regardless of whether they were prostitutes in the vocational sense. Other examples: George Bernard Shaw's ''Mrs. Warren's Profession'' (1893) and David Belasco's ''Zaza'' (1899). Johnson, ''Sisters in Sin'', p. 21.〕 ''Sapho’s'' lead character, Fanny LeGrand, seduces a naïve man named Jean Gaussin. In the scene that caused the most furor, the two characters ascend a spiral staircase together, presumably toward a bedroom though that is never shown or stated. In the end, LeGrand leaves Gaussin to reform and marry the father of her child. The play has 23 characters, plus “Danseuses” (dancers).〔 *Jean Gaussin *Uncle Cesaire *Hettema *Caoudal *M. Anvers *Mephistopheles *Servant *Madame Hettema *Irene *Tina de Monte *Rosa *Francine *Dechelette *Flamant *De Potter *Joseph *Conceirge *Porter *Alice Dore *Divonne *Toto *Margot *Fanny LeGrand After out-of-town tryouts in Chicago and other cities,〔“’Sapho’ In Chicago,” ''New York Times'', Nov. 1, 1899.〕 ''Sapho'' opened in New York at the old (1882-1904) Wallack’s Theatre on Broadway and 30th Street〔Brown, ''A History of the New York Stage'', p. 310.〕 on February 5, 1900.〔 Reviews were negative and the press predicted it would flop.〔“A coarse and superfluous play, and not well acted, either...’Sapho’ will draw crowds for a week or so, but it is not long for this market.” From play review: “Dramatic And Musical: Miss Nethersole At Last Acts Fanny LeGrand At Wallack's,” ''New York Times'', Feb. 6, 1900, p. 6.〕 The show’s notoriety kept it going however, and it ran in New York for a total of 83 performances in 1900.〔 From 1901 through 1913 Nethersole took it on tour to cities throughout America, as well as London and Australia. She brought the play back to New York in 1905, 1908, 1910 and 1913, in the later years sometimes just playing the third act. The play remained controversial, with municipal authorities in some cities continuing to ban performances entirely or insisting on changes in dialogue or costume.〔For example, Springfield, Massachusetts: "Springfield Won't Stand ''Sapho''," ''New York Times'', Jan. 5, 1906, p. 5.〕 Actors playing Jean Gaussin in the Nethersole productions included Hamilton Revelle (February through May 1900), G. Harrison Hunter (November 1900, and 1910), Slaine Mills (1905),〔〔"Olga Nethersole in 'Sapho'", ''New York Times'', Apr. 19, 1910, p. 9.〕 and Winnington Barnes (1913).〔"Nethersole in 'Sapho'," ''New York Times'', Oct. 7, 1913, p. 13.〕 The original Broadway choreographer was Carl Marwig and settings were by Ernest Albert.〔 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「Sapho (play)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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