Date premiered 28 February 1942 Setting London Playwright Malcolm Afford Place premiered Independent Theatre | Genre comedy-mystery First performance 28 February 1942 Original language English language | |
Written by Max Afford
Alexander Kirkland (US version) | ||
Lady in Danger was a play by Australian writer Max Afford. It was one of the few Australian plays to enjoy a run on Broadway. It was also adapted for radio and TV.
Contents
Plot
Monica Sefton is the wife of a sacked reporter. She plans to write a thriller to restore the family fortune. She accidentally stumbles upon a Nazi spy ring.
1942 Amateur Production
The play was first produced by Doris Fitton at the Independent Theatre in Sydney in early 1942.
1944 Professional Production
The play was seen by representatives of J.C. Williamsons Ltd, the leading theatrical producers in the country, who bought the rights. Since Williamsons had not produced an Australian play in over 20 years this was seen as a positive step for Australian playwriting.
The play made its professional debut on 15 March 1944 at the Theatre Royal in Sydney and was positively received.
1945 Broadway Production
The play was also optioned for production on Broadway, although it was rewritten by Alexander Kirkland to be set in Australia and be about a Japanese spy ring.
Lady in Danger premiered on Broadway in March 1945.
Cast
Response
Reviews were not strong and it closed after 12 performances.
1955 Adaptation
The play was adapted for radio on the ABC in 1955.
1959 TV version
The play was adapted for TV on the ABC in the 1950s. Broadcast live in Sydney on 9 September 1959, a kinescope recording ("telerecording") was made of the broadcast and shown in Melbourne on 24 September 1959. Cast included Madi Hedd, James Condon and Queenie Ashton. It is not known if the kinescope recording still exists.
It was the first drama directed by Colin Dean at the ABC. He was assigned the job by ABC's Director of Drama, Neil Hutchinson. "It was a 'try-out' to see if I can do it," said Dean. "It wasn't a substantial play."
Cast
Reception
The Age said it "provided an interesting hour's entertainment... outstanding feature was the fine sustained acting from Madi Hedd... James Condon... was not quite as convincing."
The Sydney Morning Herald called it a "neatly tailored thriller" which set "out to do nothing more ambitious than pass an entertaining hour" and "did just that and nothing more in a very competent live television production... [the cast] all played as though they had been doing this kind of thing for most of their working lives. Colin Dean's production aptly matched their efficiency and craftsmanship."