A Tale of Two Cities (7-25-38)
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Wilson
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A Tale of Two Cities (7-25-38)
Opening the thread for Week 3 then, with Welles and company's adaptation of the Dickens classic.
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Wilson
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Having just listened to this, I found this show to be the weakest so far. A general lack of vigor killed this one, and some of the performances are lacking. Frank Readick and Betty Garde, as the DeFarges, are terrible. They both act as if they're sleepwalking through their roles, never changing their voices out of a monotone. Martin Gabel seems to stumble over some lines, with several "uh's" thrown in, which I can't imagine was on purpose. Welles is fine in the dual roles of Dr Manette and Sidney Carton; the music is quite good.
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Glenn Anders
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Le Chiffre
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I think TALE OF TWO CITIES is one of the Mercury's more impressive broadcasts. It doesn't hold a candle to Dicken's novel, but it's got some nice flourishes, such as when Welles as Dr. Manette writes in his diary in prison and suddenly we hear someone say "Dr. Manette?". It could be the jailor, but it turns out to be someone from Manette's memory, and then the memory is brought to life thru the magic of radio. Nice tricky use of the First Person Singular technique. I think the weakest acting link in the broadcast is not the Defarges, but Lucy Manette, whose dull voice I suspect belonged to Welles' first wife Virginia (she's identified at the end of the show as "Mary Taylor"). She was definitely out of her league among the Mercury regulars. Interesting though, that Welles plays both her father and Sydney Carton, the man who is in love with her. A bit of Freudian doubling? Anyway, Welles is very good as both.
The notion of doubling also applies to the strong resemblance between Sydney Carton and Lucy's husband, and might also fit right in with a few other stories of the revolutionary era, such as BLACK MAGIC, where the main plot centers around the use of a double for Marie Antoinette to stir up the wrath of the people (I don't know if this was in Dumas' book or not). Also, Fritz Lang's METROPOLIS, another story about revolution, concerns a "false Maria" used to discredit the real one. The Munich museum's recent restoration of Metropolis features the original music score for the film which, interestingly enough, makes use of the French national anthem.
Like TREASURE ISLAND and sea stories, TALE OF TWO CITIES seems part of a list of Napoleon-era stories associated with Welles, including LES MISERABLES, DANTON'S DEATH, ROYAL AFFARS OF VERSAILLES, WAR AND PEACE, LAFAYETTE and a few others I'm sure.
The notion of doubling also applies to the strong resemblance between Sydney Carton and Lucy's husband, and might also fit right in with a few other stories of the revolutionary era, such as BLACK MAGIC, where the main plot centers around the use of a double for Marie Antoinette to stir up the wrath of the people (I don't know if this was in Dumas' book or not). Also, Fritz Lang's METROPOLIS, another story about revolution, concerns a "false Maria" used to discredit the real one. The Munich museum's recent restoration of Metropolis features the original music score for the film which, interestingly enough, makes use of the French national anthem.
Like TREASURE ISLAND and sea stories, TALE OF TWO CITIES seems part of a list of Napoleon-era stories associated with Welles, including LES MISERABLES, DANTON'S DEATH, ROYAL AFFARS OF VERSAILLES, WAR AND PEACE, LAFAYETTE and a few others I'm sure.
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Glenn Anders
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I don't remember hearing "A Tale of Two Cities" at the time, perhaps because there were other radio versions of it in those years, possibly due to the popularity of the excellent Ronald Coleman movie adaptation (aided by Blanche Yurka's startling Madam Dufarge).
But . . .
Yes, indeed, mteal. Welles was attracted to projects involving doppelgangers. From his earliest efforts in film and drama, such as "Hearts of the Age" and Bright Lucifer, he was contrasting characters who represented innocent and flawed personalities, good and evil figures, often playing both. As time passed, in his best work, these characters sometimes exchanged valences.
I agree, too, that he was interested, from nearly the beginning, in the subject of revolution. His Black Macbeth, the Modern Dress Julius Caesar, his Les Miserables for Radio, and many of his later radio projects featured dual personalities or ambivalent characters. The events of the French Revolution seem to have been a particular draw. As you suggest, in 1938, he was only a year or two from one of his most ambitious stage projects, Danton's Death (his first truly great stage failure). The Spanish Civil War, which dominated the late 1930's, the rise of Fascist dictators, and the turbulence caused by the Soviet Union must have been other factors.
[Welles strong interest in what would become known as the Civil Rights was implied in these revolutionary themes, but would be come more marked in the 1940's.]
In much of Dickens' work, the doppelganger has also been noted. Nowhere is that more true than in his "popular novel," his only historical work, A Tale of Two Cities.
Two notable additions to Welles' new Radio series struck me immediately upon listening again, after several years, to the First Person Singular, "A Tale of Two Cities." The first change followed upon the soon to be familiar (and popular) introductory theme. Announcer Dan Seymour announced that not only CBS but "the stations of the Canadian Broadcasting Company" were to carrry the program. Thus, Welles now encompassed not only the United States but all of English-speaking North America.
[In the next twenty years, Canadian Radio would outstrip the American Networks in providing intelligent drama and other programming. Dare we speculate that Welles' example (in addition to the work being done by CBC's model, the BBC) might have been an influence on this flowering?]
The second new factor which impressed me was the sheer size of the cast: Welles, Martin Gabel, Betty Garde, Frank Readick, Ray Collins, Edgar Barrier, Kenneth Delmar, Erskine Sanford, Eustace Wyatt, Mary Taylor, Richard Wilson, and William Alland, etc. Here was obviously an ambitious, maximum effort.
[Most of these actors appeared in subsequent Welles' work. Martin Gabel went on to marry Kay Francis (another Mercury player) and have a distinguished stage career. Kenny Delmar became famous as the character of "Senator Claghorn," a hornswogglin' politician the equal of any today. Only Mary Taylor seems to have not continued in any real capacity. I wondered if she might have been related to Producer Davidson Taylor, but I was not able to find any confirmation of that speculation. Does someone else know anything about her?]
The sheer scope of the production may well have worked against it. Remember that those present describe Welles directing his radio casts like a concert conductor, stressing some notes and suppressing others, adding and deleting parts as he went along. Here, in "A Tale of Two Cities," was a symphony for full orchestra, potentially more complex and by leagues more difficult than anything the Mercury Players had thus far done. And it was breaking new ground. There was only one chance to get it right.
I agree with the criticisms already expressed, and in partial explanation, I detect an almost habitual flaw in Welles' method. The adaptations seem to begin well, and they often end well, but the middle acts can sometimes be hurried, garbled or full of holes. This observation is markedly true of "A Tale of Two Cities."
The First Person Narrative concept is nicely handled in the show's beginning, with Welles' Dr. Manette augmented by Martin Gabel's Jarvis Lawry (an important but much less dominant character in the novel), setting up the story and creating suspense. Transitions are well accomplished by the use of criers, peasants and bailiffs; sound effects and musical bridges. The addition of Charles Darnay (Edgar Barrier) and Sidney Carton (Welles) begins to interfere with understanding, due to a need of keeping track of the voices, but the First Act ends well with Dr. Manette safe in England and Daughter Lucy (Mary Taylor) in the arms of Darnay.
In Act Two, however, to my ear, there is a confusion of Darnay with Jarvis Lawry. It is as if, two elements of Darnay's return to France and his subsequent imprisonment were interchanged. One event seems to illogically occur before the other. It would be interesting to know if this failing (if I am correct, at all) occurs in the adaptation or in the execution.
You certainly have a point, mteal, in skewering Mary Taylor's performance, as Jeff is right about Garde and Readick's Dufarges. The absence of Agnes Moorehead is crucial; she contributed so much to the first two productions, especially in "Dracula." It is easy to imagine how she might have handled both Lucy Manette . . . and been a trully memorable Madam Dufarge!
Finally, a note from a documentary tape included in a casette album I have, The Theater of the Imagination (Voyager, 1988):
In discussing "A Tale of Two Cities," which is part of the album, Cliff Thorsness, who was a CBS soundmen on the series, describes how Welles personally supervised experiments to give the listener an approximation of his Sidney Carton's sacrificial demise on the Guillotine. Welles' answer: A cabbage split sharply by a meat cleaver!
In that act, Welles and Carton were, in a sense, "restored to life," but I might note that the production was so bulging at the seams that there was little room for Welles' customary introduction and afterword, which had added to the charm of the first two Mercury Radio stories. And would become an affection signature in his later productions.
I hope others will add their reactions or recollections.
Glenn
But . . .
Yes, indeed, mteal. Welles was attracted to projects involving doppelgangers. From his earliest efforts in film and drama, such as "Hearts of the Age" and Bright Lucifer, he was contrasting characters who represented innocent and flawed personalities, good and evil figures, often playing both. As time passed, in his best work, these characters sometimes exchanged valences.
I agree, too, that he was interested, from nearly the beginning, in the subject of revolution. His Black Macbeth, the Modern Dress Julius Caesar, his Les Miserables for Radio, and many of his later radio projects featured dual personalities or ambivalent characters. The events of the French Revolution seem to have been a particular draw. As you suggest, in 1938, he was only a year or two from one of his most ambitious stage projects, Danton's Death (his first truly great stage failure). The Spanish Civil War, which dominated the late 1930's, the rise of Fascist dictators, and the turbulence caused by the Soviet Union must have been other factors.
[Welles strong interest in what would become known as the Civil Rights was implied in these revolutionary themes, but would be come more marked in the 1940's.]
In much of Dickens' work, the doppelganger has also been noted. Nowhere is that more true than in his "popular novel," his only historical work, A Tale of Two Cities.
Two notable additions to Welles' new Radio series struck me immediately upon listening again, after several years, to the First Person Singular, "A Tale of Two Cities." The first change followed upon the soon to be familiar (and popular) introductory theme. Announcer Dan Seymour announced that not only CBS but "the stations of the Canadian Broadcasting Company" were to carrry the program. Thus, Welles now encompassed not only the United States but all of English-speaking North America.
[In the next twenty years, Canadian Radio would outstrip the American Networks in providing intelligent drama and other programming. Dare we speculate that Welles' example (in addition to the work being done by CBC's model, the BBC) might have been an influence on this flowering?]
The second new factor which impressed me was the sheer size of the cast: Welles, Martin Gabel, Betty Garde, Frank Readick, Ray Collins, Edgar Barrier, Kenneth Delmar, Erskine Sanford, Eustace Wyatt, Mary Taylor, Richard Wilson, and William Alland, etc. Here was obviously an ambitious, maximum effort.
[Most of these actors appeared in subsequent Welles' work. Martin Gabel went on to marry Kay Francis (another Mercury player) and have a distinguished stage career. Kenny Delmar became famous as the character of "Senator Claghorn," a hornswogglin' politician the equal of any today. Only Mary Taylor seems to have not continued in any real capacity. I wondered if she might have been related to Producer Davidson Taylor, but I was not able to find any confirmation of that speculation. Does someone else know anything about her?]
The sheer scope of the production may well have worked against it. Remember that those present describe Welles directing his radio casts like a concert conductor, stressing some notes and suppressing others, adding and deleting parts as he went along. Here, in "A Tale of Two Cities," was a symphony for full orchestra, potentially more complex and by leagues more difficult than anything the Mercury Players had thus far done. And it was breaking new ground. There was only one chance to get it right.
I agree with the criticisms already expressed, and in partial explanation, I detect an almost habitual flaw in Welles' method. The adaptations seem to begin well, and they often end well, but the middle acts can sometimes be hurried, garbled or full of holes. This observation is markedly true of "A Tale of Two Cities."
The First Person Narrative concept is nicely handled in the show's beginning, with Welles' Dr. Manette augmented by Martin Gabel's Jarvis Lawry (an important but much less dominant character in the novel), setting up the story and creating suspense. Transitions are well accomplished by the use of criers, peasants and bailiffs; sound effects and musical bridges. The addition of Charles Darnay (Edgar Barrier) and Sidney Carton (Welles) begins to interfere with understanding, due to a need of keeping track of the voices, but the First Act ends well with Dr. Manette safe in England and Daughter Lucy (Mary Taylor) in the arms of Darnay.
In Act Two, however, to my ear, there is a confusion of Darnay with Jarvis Lawry. It is as if, two elements of Darnay's return to France and his subsequent imprisonment were interchanged. One event seems to illogically occur before the other. It would be interesting to know if this failing (if I am correct, at all) occurs in the adaptation or in the execution.
You certainly have a point, mteal, in skewering Mary Taylor's performance, as Jeff is right about Garde and Readick's Dufarges. The absence of Agnes Moorehead is crucial; she contributed so much to the first two productions, especially in "Dracula." It is easy to imagine how she might have handled both Lucy Manette . . . and been a trully memorable Madam Dufarge!
Finally, a note from a documentary tape included in a casette album I have, The Theater of the Imagination (Voyager, 1988):
In discussing "A Tale of Two Cities," which is part of the album, Cliff Thorsness, who was a CBS soundmen on the series, describes how Welles personally supervised experiments to give the listener an approximation of his Sidney Carton's sacrificial demise on the Guillotine. Welles' answer: A cabbage split sharply by a meat cleaver!
In that act, Welles and Carton were, in a sense, "restored to life," but I might note that the production was so bulging at the seams that there was little room for Welles' customary introduction and afterword, which had added to the charm of the first two Mercury Radio stories. And would become an affection signature in his later productions.
I hope others will add their reactions or recollections.
Glenn
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Le Chiffre
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Glenn, my guess is that Mary Taylor was one of Virginia Welles' psuedonyms.
You're right that the TOTC broadcast seems bulging at the seems, which is a problem with many of the Mercury shows, particularly those based on large classic novels. Adapting one of these for a 1-hour radio program must have felt like trying to fit a whale into a sardine can. Welles and co. I think do good job in catching the essential outline of TALE OF TWO CITIES, but given the time constraints they can't begin to approach the depth of the book.
I'm not sure what you mean by the confusion surrounding Darnay's return to France. As I understood it, he's lured back to France with a phony letter supposedly from another aristocrat pleading for help. When he goes back to help he is seized.
You're right that the TOTC broadcast seems bulging at the seems, which is a problem with many of the Mercury shows, particularly those based on large classic novels. Adapting one of these for a 1-hour radio program must have felt like trying to fit a whale into a sardine can. Welles and co. I think do good job in catching the essential outline of TALE OF TWO CITIES, but given the time constraints they can't begin to approach the depth of the book.
I'm not sure what you mean by the confusion surrounding Darnay's return to France. As I understood it, he's lured back to France with a phony letter supposedly from another aristocrat pleading for help. When he goes back to help he is seized.
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Glenn Anders
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Ah, mteal, you may be right. Does anyone have evidence to prove that?
Yes, your description of the Dufarge plot to lure Darnay back to France is true to the book. I just did not find it as clearly expressed in the beginning of Act II of the Mercury "A Tale of Two Cities." Perhaps I should listen to it again, a luxury that I would not have had in 1938.
March On!
Glenn
Yes, your description of the Dufarge plot to lure Darnay back to France is true to the book. I just did not find it as clearly expressed in the beginning of Act II of the Mercury "A Tale of Two Cities." Perhaps I should listen to it again, a luxury that I would not have had in 1938.
March On!
Glenn
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Terry
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A Tale of Two Cities (7-25-38)
Virginia was usually billed as Anna Stafford. To be polite, she had no voice for radio.
This is one Mercury broadcast I can't even listen to. I can't follow the story, I don't like the acting, including Welles' performance - I have to drag my eardrums kicking and screaming to the CD player, rather like when the cat has somehow figured out that the only reason you're picking it up at the moment is because you are about to carry it to the car and take it to the vet (how do they always know?) Listening to this one is like being forced to read Nathaniel Hawthorne in high school and college - in a word, TORTURE.
This is one Mercury broadcast I can't even listen to. I can't follow the story, I don't like the acting, including Welles' performance - I have to drag my eardrums kicking and screaming to the CD player, rather like when the cat has somehow figured out that the only reason you're picking it up at the moment is because you are about to carry it to the car and take it to the vet (how do they always know?) Listening to this one is like being forced to read Nathaniel Hawthorne in high school and college - in a word, TORTURE.
Sto Pro Veritate