A Moon for the Misbegotten
Encyclopedia
A Moon for the Misbegotten is a play by Eugene O'Neill
. The play can be thought of as a sequel to the autobiographical Long Day's Journey into Night
. Jim Tyrone is an older version of Jamie Tyrone from the first play, and they are both based on Eugene O'Neill's older brother, Jamie O'Neill.
house in early September 1923, the play focuses on three characters: Josie, a domineering Irish woman with a quick tongue and a ruined reputation, her conniving father, tenant farmer
Phil Hogan, and James Tyrone, Jr., Hogan's landlord and drinking companion, a cynical alcoholic haunted by the death of his mother.
The play begins with Mike, the last of Hogan's three sons, leaving the farm. As a joke during one of their drunken bouts, Tyrone threatens to sell his land and evict Hogan, which propels the latter to set into motion a scheme that will take advantage of the mutual affection between his daughter and Tyrone. The play ends with Jim Tyrone leaving the farm, apparently to die soon of complications from alcoholism.
in 1947.
The play has been produced five times on Broadway
. The original production opened on May 2, 1957 at the now-demolished Bijou Theatre, where it ran for 68 performances. The cast included Cyril Cusack
, Franchot Tone
, and Wendy Hiller
. There was a well-reviewed Off-Broadway revival in the late 60's with Salome Jens
as Josie.
After four previews, the first Broadway revival, directed by José Quintero
, opened on December 29, 1973 at the Morosco Theatre
, where it ran for 313 performances. The cast included Colleen Dewhurst
who won a Tony Award
, Jason Robards
, and Ed Flanders
. Two years later, the cast reprised their roles in a Quintero-directed production for television
, which garnered five Emmy Award
nominations; Flanders alone won.
After nineteen previews, the second revival, directed by David Leveaux
, opened on May 1, 1984 at the Cort Theatre
, where it ran for 40 performances. The cast included Ian Bannen
, Jerome Kilty
, and Kate Nelligan
.
After fifteen previews, the third revival, directed by Daniel Sullivan, opened on March 19, 2000 at the Walter Kerr Theatre
, where it ran for 120 performances. The cast included Gabriel Byrne
, Roy Dotrice
, and Cherry Jones
.
A fourth revival, starring Kevin Spacey
, began previews on March 29, 2007 and closed on June 10, 2007 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre
following a 112 performance run at the Old Vic Theatre in London 15 Sep 2006 - 23 Dec 2006, featuring Eve Best
, Billy Carter, Colm Meaney
, Eugene O'Hare, and Kevin Spacey.
Eugene O'Neill
Eugene Gladstone O'Neill was an American playwright and Nobel laureate in Literature. His poetically titled plays were among the first to introduce into American drama techniques of realism earlier associated with Russian playwright Anton Chekhov, Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen, and Swedish...
. The play can be thought of as a sequel to the autobiographical Long Day's Journey into Night
Long Day's Journey Into Night
Long Day's Journey Into Night is a 1956 drama in four acts written by American playwright Eugene O'Neill. The play is widely considered to be his masterwork...
. Jim Tyrone is an older version of Jamie Tyrone from the first play, and they are both based on Eugene O'Neill's older brother, Jamie O'Neill.
Plot
Set in a dilapidated ConnecticutConnecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
house in early September 1923, the play focuses on three characters: Josie, a domineering Irish woman with a quick tongue and a ruined reputation, her conniving father, tenant farmer
Tenant farmer
A tenant farmer is one who resides on and farms land owned by a landlord. Tenant farming is an agricultural production system in which landowners contribute their land and often a measure of operating capital and management; while tenant farmers contribute their labor along with at times varying...
Phil Hogan, and James Tyrone, Jr., Hogan's landlord and drinking companion, a cynical alcoholic haunted by the death of his mother.
The play begins with Mike, the last of Hogan's three sons, leaving the farm. As a joke during one of their drunken bouts, Tyrone threatens to sell his land and evict Hogan, which propels the latter to set into motion a scheme that will take advantage of the mutual affection between his daughter and Tyrone. The play ends with Jim Tyrone leaving the farm, apparently to die soon of complications from alcoholism.
Productions
A Moon for the Misbegotten had its world premiere at the Hartman Theatre in Columbus, OhioColumbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
in 1947.
The play has been produced five times on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
. The original production opened on May 2, 1957 at the now-demolished Bijou Theatre, where it ran for 68 performances. The cast included Cyril Cusack
Cyril Cusack
Cyril James Cusack was an Irish actor, who appeared in more than 90 films.-Early life:Cusack was born in Durban, Natal, South Africa, the son of Alice Violet , an actress, and James Walter Cusack, a sergeant in the Natal mounted police. His parents separated when he was young and his mother took...
, Franchot Tone
Franchot Tone
Franchot Tone was an American stage, film, and television actor, star of Mutiny on the Bounty and many other films through the 1960s...
, and Wendy Hiller
Wendy Hiller
Dame Wendy Margaret Hiller DBE was an Academy Award-winning English film and stage actress, who enjoyed a varied acting career that spanned nearly sixty years. The writer Joel Hirschorn, in his 1984 compilation Rating the Movie Stars, described her as "a no-nonsense actress who literally took...
. There was a well-reviewed Off-Broadway revival in the late 60's with Salome Jens
Salome Jens
Salome Jens is an American stage, film and television actress. She is perhaps best-known for portraying the Female Changeling on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.-Life and career:...
as Josie.
After four previews, the first Broadway revival, directed by José Quintero
José Quintero
José Benjamin Quintero was a Panamanian theatre director, producer and pedagogue best known for his interpretations of the works of Eugene O'Neill.-Early years:...
, opened on December 29, 1973 at the Morosco Theatre
Morosco Theatre
The Morosco Theatre was a legitimate theatre located at 217 West 45th Street in the heart of the theater district in midtown-Manhattan, New York, United States....
, where it ran for 313 performances. The cast included Colleen Dewhurst
Colleen Dewhurst
Colleen Rose Dewhurst was a Canadian-American actress known for a while as "the Queen of Off-Broadway." In her autobiography, Dewhurst wrote: "I had moved so quickly from one Off-Broadway production to the next that I was known, at one point, as the 'Queen of Off-Broadway'...
who won a Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
, Jason Robards
Jason Robards
Jason Nelson Robards, Jr. was an American actor on stage, and in film and television, and a winner of the Tony Award , two Academy Awards and the Emmy Award...
, and Ed Flanders
Ed Flanders
Edward Paul Flanders was an American actor best known for his role as Dr. Donald Westphall in the television series St. Elsewhere.- Biography :...
. Two years later, the cast reprised their roles in a Quintero-directed production for television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
, which garnered five Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
nominations; Flanders alone won.
After nineteen previews, the second revival, directed by David Leveaux
David Leveaux
David Leveaux is a British theatre director who has been nominated for five Tony Awards as director of both plays and musicals...
, opened on May 1, 1984 at the Cort Theatre
Cort Theatre
The Cort Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre located at 138 West 48th Street in the Theatre District of midtown Manhattan in New York City...
, where it ran for 40 performances. The cast included Ian Bannen
Ian Bannen
Ian Bannen was a Scottish character actor and occasional leading man.-Early life and career:Bannen was born in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, the son of Clare and John James Bannen, a lawyer. Bannen served in the British Army after attending St Aloysius' College, Glasgow and Ratcliffe College,...
, Jerome Kilty
Jerome Kilty
Jerome Kilty is an American actor and playwright. He wrote Dear Liar: A Comedy of Letters, a play that had a successful run in New York, which was based on the correspondence of famed playwright George Bernard Shaw and actress Mrs. Patrick Campbell...
, and Kate Nelligan
Kate Nelligan
Patricia Colleen "Kate" Nelligan is a Canadian BAFTA award winning stage, film and television actress.-Early life:Nelligan, the fourth of six children, was born in London, Ontario, the daughter of Josephine Alice , a schoolteacher, and Patrick Joseph Nelligan, a factory repairman and municipal...
.
After fifteen previews, the third revival, directed by Daniel Sullivan, opened on March 19, 2000 at the Walter Kerr Theatre
Walter Kerr Theatre
The Walter Kerr Theatre is a legitimate Broadway theatre. Located at 219 West 48th Street, it is owned and operated by Jujamcyn Theaters. One of the smaller auditoriums in the theatre district, it seats 975....
, where it ran for 120 performances. The cast included Gabriel Byrne
Gabriel Byrne
Gabriel James Byrne is an Irish actor, film director, film producer, writer, cultural ambassador and audiobook narrator. His acting career began in the Focus Theatre before he joined Londo's Royal Court Theatre in 1979. Byrne's screen debut came in the Irish soap opera The Riordans and the...
, Roy Dotrice
Roy Dotrice
Roy Dotrice, OBE is a British actor known for his Tony Award-winning Broadway performance in the revival of A Moon for the Misbegotten.-Life and career:...
, and Cherry Jones
Cherry Jones
Cherry Jones is an American actress and recipient of the 2009 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Drama Series and the 2005 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play.-Career:...
.
A fourth revival, starring Kevin Spacey
Kevin Spacey
Kevin Spacey, CBE is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and crooner. He grew up in California, and began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, before being cast in supporting roles in film and television...
, began previews on March 29, 2007 and closed on June 10, 2007 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre
Brooks Atkinson Theatre
The Brooks Atkinson Theatre is a Broadway theater located at 256 West 47th Street in Manhattan.Designed by architect Herbert J. Krapp, it was constructed as the Mansfield Theatre by the Chanin brothers in 1926. After 1933, the theatre fell into relative disuse until 1945, when Michael Myerberg...
following a 112 performance run at the Old Vic Theatre in London 15 Sep 2006 - 23 Dec 2006, featuring Eve Best
Eve Best
Eve Best is an English actress, best known for her roles as Dr. O'Hara in the Showtime television series Nurse Jackie, as Wallis Simpson in the 2010 film The King's Speech, and Dolley Madison in the 2011 American Experience television special about that First Lady.-Early life and education:Best...
, Billy Carter, Colm Meaney
Colm Meaney
Colm J. Meaney is an Irish actor widely known for playing Miles O'Brien in Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. He is second only to Michael Dorn in most appearances in Star Trek episodes. He has guest-starred on many TV shows from Law & Order to The Simpsons...
, Eugene O'Hare, and Kevin Spacey.