Shadowlands (play)
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (August 2015) |
| Shadowlands | |
|---|---|
| Written by | William Nicholson |
| Characters |
|
| Date premiered | 1989 |
| Place premiered | Theatre Royal, Plymouth |
| Original language | English |
| Subject | Biographical |
| Genre | Drama |
| Setting | Oxford, 1950s |
Shadowlands is a play by
Synopsis
The story follows Lewis as he meets an American fan, Joy Gresham, whom he befriends and eventually marries. The story also focuses on his relationship with his brother, Warren Lewis and deals with his personal struggle: Lewis preaches that one should endure suffering with patience, but finds that the simple answers he had preached no longer apply when Joy becomes afflicted with cancer and eventually dies.
Historical casting
| Character | 1989 Plymouth cast | 1989 West End cast | 1990 Broadway cast | 2007 West End revival cast | 2019 Chichester cast |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joy Davidman | Jane Lapotaire | Jane Alexander | Janie Dee | Liz White | |
C.S. Lewis
|
Nigel Hawthorne | Charles Dance | Hugh Bonneville | ||
| Warren Lewis | Geoffrey Toone | Michael Allinson | Richard Durden | Andrew Havill | |
Production history
The play opened at the Theatre Royal in Plymouth on 5 October 1989 before transferring to the
Hawthorne successfully took the role of Lewis to
The first major revival of the play, starring Charles Dance as Lewis and Janie Dee as Joy, premiered at Cambridge Arts Theatre on 5 September 2007 before touring the UK. The production, directed by Michael Barker-Carven, transferred to the Wyndham's Theatre on 3 October 2007 for an eleven-week season before transferring to the Novello Theatre where it ran from 21 December 2007 to 23 February 2008.
A new production of Shadowlands at Chichester Festival Theatre opened on 26 April 2019. The production, which was directed by Rachel Kavanaugh, starred Hugh Bonneville as Lewis, Liz White as Joy Gresham and Andrew Havill as Warren Lewis.
Quotes
Joy in the stage version:
"See yourself in the mirror, you're separate from yourself. See the world in the mirror, you're separate from the world. I don't want that separation anymore."
See also
- A Grief Observed — Lewis's own chronicle of his reactions following Joy Gresham's death
- Shadowlands — Lewis's biography by Brian Sibley
- Shadowlands: The True Story of C. S. Lewis and Joy Davidman by ISBN 978-0-340-90865-5
- Lenten Lands: My Childhood with Joy Davidman and C. S. Lewis by ISBN 0-02-545570-2.
- Shadowlands by William Nicholson Study Guide by Randal L. Kottwitz @ Hastings Community Theatre
References
- New York Times.