![]() ![]() George Wessells as Professor Moriarty.Novel for its time, the production made scene changes with lighting alone. The four-act drama was produced by Charles Frohman, with incidental music by William Furst and scenic design by Ernest Gros. ![]() After three previews it opened November 6, 1899, at the Garrick Theatre in New York City. Sherlock Holmes was first seen at the Star Theatre in Buffalo, New York, October 23, 1899. Stage directions-lights-position-business-with which all existing manuscripts are bursting, have been held to a minimum. In short, the play as now published is believed to be an intelligent blend or fusion of all previous texts, containing the best of each. Now that the play is intended to be read, it has seemed well to replace some of the lines earlier removed, and to eliminate certain later substitutions. Long speeches were made into short ones, and some were dropped entirely references that had little or no bearing on the swift and chronological development of the narrative were eliminated. Gillette, between seasons or between revivals, the changes were intended to lend speed or effectiveness to the drama as seen and heard by a theatre audience. These have been carefully collated and separate scenes and situations of still other corrected versions also have been examined. When the play was published in book form (as opposed to a play script) by Doubleday, Doran & Company in 1935, further corrections were made, as described by Vincent Starrett in his introduction: There was a further "corrected and expurgated text" of approximately 1923, and a final revision for the "farewell revival" of 1929–1930. The original text of 1899 was revised with corrections in 1901. The text of the play was revised numerous times during its long series of runs. ![]() Conan Doyle himself would later reintroduce the character into some Holmes stories and continue using the name Billy. Watson ( Bruce McRae, left), in the 1899 Broadway production of Sherlock HolmesĬonan Doyle had mentioned an unnamed pageboy in " A Case of Identity", and Gillette utilized the character and christened him "Billy". Holmes (William Gillette) and his hypodermic, with Dr. Gillette, a successful playwright, donned a deerstalker and cape to visit Conan Doyle and request permission not only to perform the part but to rewrite it himself. Upon reading the play, Frohman felt that it was unfit for production and instead persuaded Conan Doyle that actor William Gillette would be an ideal Holmes and would also be the perfect person to rewrite the play. While nothing came of their association at that time, it did inspire Conan Doyle to pen a five-act play featuring Holmes and Professor Moriarty. Īmerican theatrical producer Charles Frohman approached Conan Doyle and requested the rights to Holmes. Recognizing the success of his character Sherlock Holmes, Conan Doyle decided to pen a play based on him. After three previews it premiered on Broadway November 6, 1899, at the Garrick Theatre in New York City. Sherlock Holmes is a four-act play by William Gillette and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, based on Conan Doyle's character Sherlock Holmes. ![]()
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