The Children's Hour - Acting Edition [Paperback]

Lillian Hellman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1953

This book is a facsimile reprint and may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 72 pages
• Publisher: Dramatists Play Service, Inc.; Acting Ed edition (October 1, 1953)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0822202050
• ISBN-13: 978-0822202059
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #71,061 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #73 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > Drama > United States

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Children's Hour, a Great Play, is not for Cowards, August 19, 1999

By 

Peter Fenzel ([e-mail]) (New Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Children's Hour - Acting Edition (Paperback)

Lillian Hellman's 1930's play of two boarding school teachers accused of being lesbians is not for the faint of heart or closed of mind. The play is very difficult to act, demanding of the two female leads absolute concentration, wide emotional range, and utter professionalism. It is also difficult to direct, as the script is very centered on dialogue with most of the central events occuring in the Greek style, outside of the scene. However, a skilled and dedicated cast and director can certainly create a beautiful and terrible prodution capable of seizing everyone in the house with the sheer force of its words. It is certainly just as fresh now, and perhaps even more so, than it was when it was written, sixty years ago. If you're looking to be challenged by a play, you could do little better than The Children's Hour.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness Against Thy Neighbor", June 12, 2004

By 

J. Remington "John Remington" (Adams, Oregon USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Children's Hour - Acting Edition (Paperback)

Lillian Hellman's magnificent, heart-wrenching, ground breaking and beautiful 1934 play takes the aforementioned commandment and creates a stunning cautionary tale that is not for the weak of heart. The perniciousness of lying and the often tragic consequences therein form the spine of this, Hellman's first major success on the Broadway stage.

Concerning a scandal at a private girl's school, Hellman bravely dramatizes the scars and cycles of abuse which result not only from lying but also from ignorance and cowardice. As I prepare this script for production in the fall of 2004, I find its themes timeless and as hard hitting as any contemporary work.

In Mary Tilford, Hellman has created one of the American Theatre's great villians. She serves as the literary model for "Rhoda" in THE BAD SEED as well as "Abigail" in THE CRUCIBLE. She is the embodiment of souless evil, intent on destroying all around her in order to advance her own status. She is the type of character that can truly, to quote RICHARD III, "Smile and murder whilst I smile". As my cast staged a rough read through, the hisses and rage she inspires is frightening.

Poetic without being obscure or pretentious, the dialouge is crisp and direct. Hellman's characters are three-dimensional and her pacing and story-telling is impeccable. I hope our production will do this great play justice.

As for any potential readers of this play: don't hestitate. Add this to you theatre library immediately.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delightfully infuriating., December 3, 2002

By 

Ben Muller (San Rafael, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Children's Hour - Acting Edition (Paperback)

I recently saw a production of this at a local high school. It is one of the most dramatic, engaging, and infuriating plays I have ever seen. If you cant stand to watch supreme injustice, this play is not for you. The accuser of Wright and Dobie has to be the one of the most despichable characters ever devised. all of the characters, from Wright and Dobie down to the Delivery Boy, are engaging and realistic. this is a play that shows perfectly the serious harm that can be caused by "little white lies", and how prejudice effects everyone, even if they arent a member of the victim group. An enlightening, depressing, beautiful play.