Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
3 Who We Are: Actors’ Summit, Akron’s Professional Theater
4 Cast
5 Biographies
8 The Importance of Being Ernest: The Story
12 A Life of Surface and Symbol: Oscar Wilde Timeline
13 “I Feel Witty, Oh So Witty”: Famous Quotes
14 The Wild Wilde West: Wilde’s Tour of the U.S.
16 Words to the Wise: Glossary
17 Victorian Parlor Games
18 History of Tea
19 Discussion Questions & Suggested Research
Actors’ Summit Support for Teachers
Student Matinees
School Visits
Post Performance Discussions
Take-Your-Parent-To-A-Show Program
If you would like more onformation on these services, please contact Actors’ Summit at 330-3747568 and ask to speak with our Education Coordinator, Aubrey Caldwell
Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
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Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
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THE CAST
(in order of appearance)
Lane......................................................................................Alex J. Nine
Algernon Moncrieff ..............................................................Trey Gilpin
John (Jack) Worthing, J.P. ...........................................Keith E. Stevens
Lady Bracknell ..........................................................MaryJo Alexander
Hon. Gwendolen Fairfax ......................................................Leah Frires
Miss Prism ................................................................Mary Jane Nottage
Cecily Cardew ...................................................................Tess Burgler
Rev. Canon Chasuble, D.D. ..................................................Mark Seven
Merriman................................................................................John Bruce
SETTING
ACT I. Algernon Moncrieff's Flat on Half Moon Street, London.
ACT II. The Garden at the Manor House, Woolton.
ACT III. Drawing-Room at the Manor House, Woolton.
PRODUCTION STAFF
Founder/Co-Artistic Director/Director .........................A. Neil Thackaberry
Director’s Assistant..............................................................Amanda Bouffard
Stage Manager ........................................................................Shawn Galligan
Lighting Designer .........................................................................Kevin Rutan
Co-Artistic Director/Costume/Prop Designer..................MaryJo Alexander
Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
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Biographies
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MaryJo
Alexander*
(Lady
Bracknell,
Costume and
Prop
Designer, The
Importance of Being
Earnest; Co-Artistic
Director) is the other half of
Actors’ Summit. For the
past 13 seasons she has
experienced the thrill of
working with the most
talented actors in Ohio. For
Actors’ Summit, MaryJo has
directed Winter
Wonderettes, Some
Enchanted Evening, Born
Yesterday, Sleuth, Private
Lives, Crimes of the Heart,
Don’t Hug Me, Quilters and
The All Night Strut among
others. She holds an MA
from the University of New
Orleans where she was a
member of the Resident
Acting Company. MaryJo
was the staff designer at
Rockford College, Rock
Valley College, and Starlight
Theater (all in Rockford, IL)
and also designed for the
Fireside Theater (Janesville,
WI). Ms. Alexander
designed and constructed
costumes for all the shows
at Actors’ Summit, in
addition to designing sets
and props for many
productions. Regionally,
MaryJo has designed
costumes for Ensemble
Theatre, Dobama Theatre
and Case Western Reserve
University. An Equity
actress, she has performed
with Porthouse Theater,
Ensemble Theatre,
Weathervane Playhouse and
Cain Park. MaryJo is the
make-up artist for the NFL
and TNT and ESPN
networks on location in
Cleveland and Canton. Her
greatest “production” to
date has been “Mom” to her
amazing and gifted
daughters Connie and Sasha,
and her “art and life
partner” with her very
favorite artist –– Neil.
Amanda
Bouffard
(Director’s
Assistant)
recently
graduated cum
laude from The Ohio State
University with a BA in
Strategic Communications
and a minor in Theatre.
During college, Amanda
performed with InterACT, an
outreach group with the
Department of Theatre.
Next up she can be seen in
Mercury Summer Stock’s
production of Jesus Christ
Superstar. Amanda has
thoroughly enjoyed working
with Actors’ Summit and the
talented cast and crew.
John Bruce
(Merriman) is
glad to be
making his
second
appearance
with Actors’ Summit. Last
season he played one of the
clowns in A Christmas
Carol. A retired teacher
from University School in
Shaker Heights, John has
been active in theater for
more than forty years. In
the Northeast Ohio area, he
has appeared with Great
Lakes Theater Festival,
Dobama, Cleveland Public
Theatre, Beck Center and
Weathervane Playhouse,
among others.
Tess Burgler
(Cecily
Cardew) is so
happy to be in
her first
Actors’
Summit show! Most
recently, Tess was in Coach
House Theatre productions
Shipwrecked! (Player 2),
And Then There Were None
(Vera) and The Philadelphia
Story (Tracy Lord). She is a
founding company member
of Ohio Shakespeare
Festival and the Artistic
Director of their
greenshows. Favorite roles
include: Juliet (R+J),
Rosaline (Love’s Labours
Lost), Diedre (I Hate
Hamelt) and Helena
(Midsummer Night’s Dream).
Tess graduated Phi Beta
Kappa and Magna Cum
Laude from the College of
Wooster, where she studied
theatre. She lives in Stow
with her fiance, Joe.
Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
Leah Frires
(Gwendolen)
is overjoyed
to be making
her second
appearance at
5
Actors’ Summit. She was
last seen on this stage as
Suzanne Aubin in The
Ladies Man. Favorite roles
include: Magenta in The
Rocky Horror Show (Chagrin
Valley Little Theater),
Béline in The Imaginary
Invalid (University Theatre),
Elizabeth Jelkes in Dr. Jekyll
& Mr. Hyde (UT),
Cinderella’s Stepmother in
Into the Woods (UT), Evelyn
in The Shape of Things
(JTP), The Flood in The
Vagina Monologues (Campus
Women’s Center). Leah
plans to move to Chicago in
June to pursue improv
comedy. She gives all her
love and gratitude to her
family and friends. It is a
pleasure to be in and with
such fine company.
Shawn Galligan
(Stage
Manager) has
acted, directed,
and stage
managed in
Ohio, Pennsylvania and
Illinois. Production credits:
Romantic Fools (director of
several scenes) and Woody
Guthrie’s American Song
(stage manager) for Actors’
Summit; Children of Eden
(stage manager) and All
Shook Up (director) for
Sandstone Summer Theatre;
Miracle on 34th Street, the
Musical (stage manager) for
TrueNorth Theater; The
Fantasticks for Stow Players
(director); Cuyahoga Falls
M&Ms show choir (codirector); various plays and
three film projects for
Tremont Ave. Productions
(director, production
manager); company stage
manager for Chicago Tap
Theatre; and The Mikado
for Akron Lyric Opera
Theatre (stage manager).
Shawn is a proud company
member of Actors’ Summit
and convergiencecontinuum. When not
involved in the theater,
Shawn is a bicycle mechanic
at the Wheel and Wrench
Bike Shop in Cuyahoga
Falls.
Trey Gilpin
(Algernon
Moncrieff) is
honored to
make his
debut at
Actors’ Summit in one of his
favorite works. A Kentucky
native, Trey earned his
Bachelor of Arts at Grove
City College in Pennsylvania
and went on to work behind
the scenes on and offBroadway at the Roundabout
Theatre Company in New
York City. Since he started
working in Cleveland in
2007, he’s appeared all over
northeast Ohio at theaters
including the Beck Center
for the Arts, Cain Park,
Lakeland Civic Theatre, and
the Cleveland Play House.
Favorite roles include
Freddy Benson in Dirty
Rotten Scoundrels and
Aldolpho in The Drowsy
Chaperone. His parents are
the greatest. Continuous
thanks to Neil and the rest
of this fantastic cast and
crew.
Alex J. Nine
(Lane) just
appeared on
stage at
Actors’
Summit in A Girl’s Guide to
Coffee. Last season he
made his debut with the
company as Gustav Aubin in
The Ladies Man. Aubin
ranks among his favorite
roles which also include
both Hamlet & Laertes in
Hamlet, Tim & Freddie in
Noises Off, Brick in Cat On a
Hot Tin Roof, Willum in The
Nerd and Charley in The
Foreigner. Alex serves on
the Board of Trustees for
Hudson Players where he
recently appeared as Willie
in Early One Evening at the
Rainbow Bar & Grille. Alex
is also a proud company
member of The Ohio
Shakespeare Festival and
The Largely Literary
Theatre, and also enjoys
working with Mysteries by
Moushey. A lifelong
resident of Akron, Alex is a
graduate of The University
of Akron and is employed at
GOJO Industries.
Mary Jane
Nottage (Miss
Prism) is
sooooo very
happy to be
back at Actors’ Summit for
her fifth production with the
company. At Actors’
Summit, Mary Jane played
Amanda in The Glass
Menagerie, and also
appeared in productions of
Tartuffe, A Child’s
Christmas in Wales and Uh
Oh Here Comes Christmas.
Other recent credits include
Long Day’s Journey into
Night at Weathervane
Playhouse and Dividing The
Estate at Ensemble Theatre.
Additionally, Mary Jane has
performed at at Great
Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
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Lakes Theater Festival,
Beck Center, Cleveland
Public Theater and
Dobama.
may have recently seen
him in Woody Guthrie’s
Mark Seven
(Rev.
Chausable) is
delighted to
return to the
stage at Actors’ Summit,
having appeared in last
season’s A Christmas
Carol. During 2011, he
had featured roles in two
independent films, played
Klinglehoff in The
Underpants (Beck Center),
Nagg in Endgame
(Cleveland Museum of
Art), and Cap’n Andy in
Showboat (Mercury
Summer Stock). Mark is
currently conducting
workshops and touring
elementary schools with
The Illusion Factory’s
productions of Huck Finn’s
Story and The Mirrorman.
He just finished writing a
pirate theme for his
traveling mystery comedy
troupe ‘Get Away With
Murder’. His next writing
project is a 1960’s James
Bond spoof, The Jack of
with Actors’ Summit:
Diamonds Caper.
Keith E.
Stevens*
(Jack
Worthing) is
thrilled that
this show
marks his 24th production
with Actors’ Summit. You
American Song, Five
Course Love, or Romantic
Fools. Favorite shows
Proof, Romantic Fools,
Last Train to Nibroc, Big
Boys and Macbeth. NYC:
The Snob (Actors Studio),
Audience (Brooklyn
Playwright’s Collective),
Fool for Love and The
Honey Makers and the
world premiere of 2:51 (all
at Circle in the Square
Downtown), Deserters
(Bernie West Theater),
Loader #26 (Theater for a
New City) and Big Al
(ASDS). Keith holds a
MFA in Acting from The
Actors Studio Drama
School at New School
University and a BA in
Theater from Cleveland
State University. Keith is
also a lifetime member of
the Actors Studio. Keith is
looking forward to his
upcoming role as a dad.
A. Neil
Thackaberry*
(Director, The
Importance of
Being Earnest;
Founder/Co-artistic
Director of Actors’
Summit) Neil and MaryJo
founded Actors’ Summit in
1998 as a way of assuring
that professional actors in
Northeast Ohio had an
artistic home. In addition
to his work as an actor and
director for Actors’
Summit, he writes grants,
supervises the
administrative aspects of
the theater, and
occasionally sweeps the
stage. Neil has served as
General Manager of
Cleveland Signstage
Theatre and Executive
Director of Weathervane
Community Playhouse.
Academic credentials
include an MBA from Kent
State University, and an
MA from the University of
New Orleans. He
completed his doctoral
work at Wayne State
University as a member of
the Hilberry Theatre
Company, and did post
graduate work at the Yale
School of Drama. Neil is a
member of Actors’ Equity,
SAG, and AFTRA. In
addition to his work
onstage at Actors’ Summit,
he has appeared locally at
Ensemble Theatre in
Kentucky Cycle, the
Cleveland Play House in
Room Service and The
Importance of Being
Earnest, at Great Lakes
Theatre Festival in Richard
III and in several roles at
Oberlin College’s
professional summer
theater. For Actors’
Summit, Neil has
previously performed in
three one-man shows
including Fully Committed,
and biopics on John Brown
and Clarence Darrow.


Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
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What’s the Story?
Reprinted with permission from The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis Study Guide
For The Importance of Being Earnest.
As Oscar Wilde stated, The Importance of Being Earnest is “A Trivial
Comedy for Serious People.” The brilliance and wit of the play lie in the
dialogue, however, and not the plot. This should be taken into account
when reading any summary of the play.
The
visited by his
Importance
friend Jack
of Being
Worthing—
Earnest
though
takes place
Algernon
in London
knows Jack as
and the
“Ernest.”
countryside
Jack reveals
in 1895, the
that he has
last few
come to town
years of the
to propose to
period that
Gwendolyn
would be
Fairfax, the
termed
daughter of
Victorian
Lady
England. The
Bracknell.
English
Algernon
aristocracy flourished during this
jokingly tells him that, as
time. It is this group on which
Gwendolen’s first cousin, he
Wilde’s satire focuses, along with
refuses to give consent for the
their view that marriage has
marriage until Jack can explain why
nothing to do with love, but is
the name Cecily is inscribed in his
rather a means for achieving social
cigarette case. After making up a
status.
story about Cecily being an old (but
Act I
tiny) aunt, Jack finally admits that
Algernon Moncrieff, an upper-class
Cecily is his young, beautiful ward
English Bachelor, and his
who lives in the country. This is
Manservant,
precisely the information Algernon
Lane, are preparing for the arrival
is seeking. Jack also admits that his
of Algernon’s aunt, the Lady
name is not Ernest, but rather Jack;
Bracknell. He is
he goes by Jack in the country and
Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
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Ernest in the city. Algernon
confirms a suspicion he has long
had by accusing Jack of
“Bunburying,” or making up a
situation in order to be able to
escape unwanted social
responsibilities. Algernon explains
that he himself has an imaginary
friend called Bunbury who
frequently gets sick, giving
Algernon an excuse to get out of
social obligations such as family
dinner parties.
The Honorable Gwendolen Fairfax
and the Lady Bracknell arrive at
Algernon’s flatfor tea. Algernon
tells Lady Bracknell that, due to the
illness of his friend Bunbury, he
must leave London, and as a result
will not be able to attend her dinner
that night. Algy distracts her in
another room so that Jack can
make his marriage proposal to
Gwendolen. Jack tells Gwendolen
that he loves her, and she replies
that she loves him too, particularly
because he is named Ernest, a
name that “seems to inspire
absolute confidence.” Jack,
knowing that his name is actually
Jack, gets worried, and privately
resolves to get baptized to change
his name. Gwendolen meanwhile,
accepts his proposal just as Lady
Bracknell returns; Lady Bracknell
announces that Gwendolen may not
marry Jack until she gives her
approval. Algernon and Gwendolen
exit while Lady Bracknell
interrogates Jack to determine how
suitable a husband he is. She is
pleased with his answers until she
asks him about his parents. When
Jack admits that he was abandoned
by his parents and found in a
handbag by a Mr. Thomas Cardew
in Victoria Station, Lady Gwendolen
returns, having heard of Lady
Bracknell’s disapproval, and she
asks Jack for his addressin the
country. Algernon overhears it and
copies it down.
Act II
At Jack’s country estate, his ward,
Cecily, is learning German and
geography at the hands of Miss
Prism, a tutor who once wrote a
long novel that mysteriously
disappeared. The house Rector, Dr.
Chasuble, arrives and begins to flirt
with Miss Prism. While she is
taking a walk with him, Algernon,
pretending to be Jack’s brother
Ernest, arrives to meet Cecily. The
two show an immediate romantic
interest in one another. As they
leave, Prism and Chasuble return
Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
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and meet Jack as he arrives back
home from the city. He is dressed
in mourning clothes in order to
keep up the ruse that his brother,
who does not actually exist, has
died. While Jack is speaking with
Chasuble and Prism, Cecily comes
out of the house and informs him
that his brother has arrived. Jack is
shocked and angered when his
“brother” Algernon comes out of
the house. As the others exit to
allow the two reunited brothers
time to resolve their differences,
Jack tells Algernon that he must
leave the house at once. Algernon
replies insincerely that he will, but
only if Jack changes out of his
morbid mourning clothes. As Jack
exits to do so, Cecily returns.
Algernon proposes to her and she
agrees, although she tells him that
she particularly loves him because
his name is Ernest, and that she
pities any poor married woman
whose husband is not called
“Ernest.” Cecily, in fact has already
been pretending in her journal to be
engaged to “Ernest” ever since she
first discovered that her guardian
had an unsavory, dangerous
brother by that name. Algernon
begins to worry that he is not
named Ernest, and he also resolves
to get christened.
After Algernon exists, Gwendolen
arrives to see Jack, but in the
meantime she chats with Cecily,
whom she has never before met.
Gwendolen is surprised to hear that
“Ernest” has a ward but has never
told her about it. Cecily is confused
when Gwendolen says that she is
engaged to Ernest, and their
relationship becomes very cold as
they realize that they may be
engaged to the same man. Both try
to refute the engagement claims of
the other until Algernon and Jack
return. When the two young ladies
begin to question the men in order
to resolve their own engagement,
the men confess they have lied and
that neither of them is named
Ernest. The two women are
shocked and retreat together into
the house. Meanwhile, Jack begins
to panic while Algernon sits back
and eats all the muffins.
Act III
Inside the Manor House, Algernon
and Jack join Cecily and
Gwendolen. Algernon tells Cecily
that he lied to her only so that he
could have a chance to see her, and
Jack confesses to Gwendolen that
he lied to her about having a
brother so that he could spend
more time in the city with her. The
women are satisfied, although they
still cannot accept the men because
Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
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they are not named Ernest. When
the men reply that they scheduled
to be christened that afternoon, all
seems well until Lady Bracknell
arrives. She again refuses to give
her consent regarding Gwendolen’s
engagement. Bracknell is horrified.
She refuses to let her daughter
marry a man with no knowledge of
his own parentage, and suggests to
Jack that he “produce at least one
parent before the season is over.”
Algernon tells her that he is
engaged to Cecily, and when Lady
Bracknell learns that Cecily is
extremely wealthy thanks to her
father’s estate, she gives her
consent. However, as Cecily’s legal
guardian, Jack will not give his
consent to his marriage unless
Lady Bracknell approves of his
engagement to Gwendolen. Lady
Bracknell refuses yet again and
prepares to leave with Gwendolen.
Dr. Chasuble enters and learns that
the christenings will no longer be
necessary, so he states that he will
return to Miss Prism. Lady
Bracknell, hearing the name Prism,
asks to see this woman because
she suspects she may be the same
person that once took care of her
sister’s baby. When Miss Prism
arrives, Lady Bracknell demands to
know what happened to the baby
that had disappeared twenty-eight
years previously when Miss Prism
was supposed to be taking it for a
stroll in the perambulator. Miss
Prism confesses that she
accidentally put her three-volume
novel in the perambulator and the
baby in her handbag, which she
mistakenly left in the cloakroom of
Victoria Station. Jack suddenly
realizing that he was that baby,
fetches the briefcase in which he
was found, which Miss Prism
confirms as being hers. Lady
Bracknell tells Jack that he is the
son of her sister and the elder
brother of Algernon. A search
through the military periodicals of
the time reveals that their father’s
first name was Ernest, and because
first sons are always named after
the father, they realize Jack’s name
has, indeed, all along been Ernest.
Overjoyed, Jack realizes he has
been telling the truth his whole life
even though he thought he was
lying.
In the end, he is permitted to marry
Gwendolen, Algernon is permitted
to marry Cecily, and although Lady
Bracknell accuses Jack of triviality,
he retorts that he has only just
discovered “the vital Importance of
Being Earnest.”
Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
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A Life of Surface and Symbol
“All art is at once surface and symbol.
Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril.
Those who read the symbol do so at their peril.”
Reprinted with permission from South Coast Repertory Study Guide
For The Importance of Being Earnest.
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1854: Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde born
in Dublin
1871: began studying classics at Trinity College
Dublin
1874: began studies at Magdalen College, Oxford
(UK)
1878: won Newdigate Prize for his poem
“Ravenna”; took degree
1879: settled in London
1881: Poems published, lampooned in operetta
Patience
1882: lecture tour of North America,
unsuccessful first play Vera produced in New
York
1883: Duchess of Padua (play) written in Paris
1884: married Constance Lloyd
1885: elder son, Cyril, born; wrote reviews for
Pall Mall Gazette
1886: younger son, Vyvyan, born
1887: became editor of Woman’s World; The
Canterville Ghost written
1888: The Happy Prince and Other Tales
(children’s stories) published
1889: The Portrait of Mr. W. H. (short story)
1891: A House of Pomegranates, The Picture of Dorian Gray (his only novel), Lord Arthur
Savile’s Crime, Intentions (essays); meets Lord Alfred Douglas (“Bosie”)
1892: Lady Windermere’s Fan produced; Salomé (written in French) banned
1893: A Woman of No Importance produced; The Sphinx written
1894: Salomé published, produced in Paris with Sarah Bernhardt
1895: An Ideal Husband and The Importance of Being Earnest produced in London. Sued
Marquess of Queensbury (Douglas’ father) for libel; sued by Marquess of Queensbury; found
guilty of “unnatural practices”; sent to Reading Gaol (Berkshire)
1897: De Profundis written; released from prison; lived in France, Italy and Switzerland;
adopted name of Sebastian Melmoth
1898: Ballad of Reading Gaol published; death of wife, Constance
1900: died in France on November 30; buried at Père Lachaise cemetery, Paris
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Sources: Oscar Wilde by Richard Ellman (London: Hamish Hamilton, 1987) and
Oscar Wilde by Phillippe Julian (London: Constable, 1969).
Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
12
I Feel Witty,
Oh So Witty
Reprinted with permission from South Coast Repertory Study
Guide
For The Importance of Being Earnest.

“Would you like to know the great drama of
my life?” Oscar Wilde once inquired of
André Gide. “It is that I have put all my
genius into my life; I have
put only my talent
into my works.” Wilde is
certainly among the most
quoted writers in English,
perhaps second only to
William Shakespeare. His
genius — as well as his
talent— was to give
memorable and striking
expression, through wit and
brilliance, to his keen
observations on human
nature and society in
general. For that reason, his
public and private
conversations
often attained the same high
artistic level as
his plays, fiction, poetry and
criticism. Wilde’s verbal
virtuosity and mental agility,
coupled with an ardent
disregard for propriety, resulted in a steady
stream of epigrams
and aphorisms that were widely admired in
his time and have lost none of their
popularity in our own.
“I like men who have a future and women
who have a past.”
“People who want to say merely what is
sensible should say it to themselves before
they come down to breakfast in the morning,
never after.”
“Extraordinary thing about the lower classes
in England —they are always losing their
relations. They are extremely fortunate in
that respect.”
“The old believe everything; the middleaged suspect everything; the young know
everything.”
“The only thing that ever consoles man for
the stupid things he does is the praise he
always gives himself for doing them.”
“The first duty in life is to be
as artificial as possible.
What the second duty is no
one has yet discovered.”
“When we are happy, we are
always good but when we
are good, we are not always
happy.”
“I never put off until
tomorrow what I can
possibly do the day after.”
“I would sooner have fifty
unnatural vices than
one unnatural virtue.”
“If your sins find you out,
why worry! It is when they
find you in that trouble
begins.”
“It is not good for one’s morals to see bad
acting.”
“Popularity is the crown of laurel which the
world puts on bad art. Whatever is popular
is wrong.”
“There is only one thing in the world worse
than being talked about, and that is not being
talked about.”
Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
13
The Wild Wilde West
Reprinted with permission from South Coast Repertory Study Guide
For The Importance of Being Earnest.

Richard D’Oyly Carte was the London
producer of Gilbert and Sullivan’s operetta,
Patience (1881), which spoofed Oscar
Wilde in the character of foppish aesthete,
Bunthorne. Despite the fact that Wilde
himself had been in attendance on opening
night, most people did not believe that the
real-life poet could possibly be as ridiculous
as Gilbert had portrayed him onstage.
lined in lavender satin.” New York
audiences loved him, but critical reaction
was decidedly mixed and in fact, the press
would continue to ridicule him mercilessly
throughout his stay.
D’Oyly Carte realized that the best way to
generate interest in the upcoming New York
premiere of Patience would be to announce
that the young Irish writer would soon
embark on an American lecture tour. Having
recently published his Poems (1881) yet
being short of cash, he readily accepted
D’Oyly Carte’s offer and almost instantly,
Oscar Wilde became a celebrity.
The 28-year-old arrived in New York City
on January 2, 1882, famously informing
Customs officials, “I have nothing to declare
except my genius.” The subject of his
lectures was Aestheticism, which calls for
beauty to be the guiding light in literature
and in life. “A good work aims at the purely
artistic effect. Love art for its own sake and
all things that you need will be added to it.”
He explained that aesthetes loved the
sunflower and lily because they were “the
two most perfect models of design. They
are the most naturally adopted for
decorative art. The gaudy leonine beauty of
the one, the precious loveliness of the
other…”
Wilde strode onstage for his first lecture
“with a circular black cloak thrown over one
shoulder, walking slowly to model the knee
breeches and black stockings worn with a
lace-trimmed shirt under a dark purple coat
The January 11, 1882 issue of the humor
magazine, Puck, which specialized in
caricatures satirizing political and social
issues of the day, published this cartoon
of a willowy Wilde surrounded by a swarm
of sunflower-bedecked disciples, including
waiter, tramp, policeman, bald head,
umbrella, and a salesman hawking
“Aesthetic Pants Cheap.”
Wilde’s 12-month tour took him to 70
destinations in the U.S. and Canada,
introducing him to Kansas farmers, Utah
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Mormons, Texas cowboys and Colorado
miners (whom he identified as “the only
well-dressed men… in America”). The
westernmost stop on his tour was San
Francisco, where he arrived by train on
March 26, 1882, and gave his first lecture
the following evening at Platt’s Hall.
During his brief stay, Wilde made the
obligatory tour of Chinatown, visited the
Bohemian Club, toured Oakland and San
Jose, then left town on April 8 to a blizzard
of editorial denunciations, as well as
condemnation from the pulpit of “Sunflower
Aestheticism.” The slang of the moment
included such supposedly Wildean
expressions as “too utterly utter” and “just
too too,” and a popular song called “Oscar
Dear” was received with condescending
humor in the city’s bohemian haunts:
Oscar, dear; Oscar, dear!
How flutterly, utterly “flutter” you are,
Oscar, dear; Oscar, dear!
I think you are awfully wild!
Critic Ambrose Bierce’s stinging
denunciation appeared in the March 31,
1882 edition of the Wasp:
That sovereign of insufferables, Oscar
Wilde has ensued with his opulence of
twaddle and his penury of sense. He has
mounted his hind legs and blown capital
edification of circumjacent fools and
foolesses, fooling with their foolers. He
has tossed off the top of his head and
uttered himself in copious overflows of
ghastly bosh, of bad delivery,
embroidering it with reasonless
vulgarities of attitude, gesture and attire.
Never was an impostor so hateful, a
blockhead so stupid, a crank so variously
and offensively daft.
he could perhaps tolerate the stove “if you
would not decorate it.” The festooned base
and the “funeral urn surmountings” he found
particularly objectionable.
Upon completion of his tour, Wilde returned
to New York City in November 1882,
remarking that “life is too joyless in the
United States… work has become your
passion… American health is being
undermined by stress of business and highpressure life.” Characterizing the entire
country as “an extensive lunatic asylum,”
Wilde posited that “a most serious problem
for American people to consider is the
cultivation of better manners. It is the most
noticeable, the most principal defect in
American civilization.”
Upon his departure for England on
December 27, newspapers printed
comments such as “Good-bye, Oscar, we
shan’t miss you” and “We know a charlatan
when we see one.” For his part, Wilde
responded, “They say that when good
Americans die, they go to Paris. I would add
that when bad Americans die, they stay in
America.”
This cartoon (right) appeared when Wilde
was in the middle of his lecture circuit.
Notwithstanding the serious tone of his
lectures, the image suggests that Wilde’s
audiences must have been at least mildly
amused at his diatribes against “that
monstrosity, the cast iron stove,” which had
been invented by the epitome of American
practicality, Benjamin Franklin. Wilde said
(Compiled from online articles by Robert C. Kennedy,
www.harpweek.com; Adam Kirsch, The New York
Observer, www.observer. com.); and The Virtual
Museum of the City of San Francisco www.sfmuseum.)
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Words to the Wise
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Reprinted with permission from The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis Study Guide
forThe Importance of Being Earnest .
cucumber sandwich—
This is one of many popular sandwiches intended to be
served with tea. Recipes vary
but this will get you close: 8 oz. cream cheese, ½ cup
mayo, 1 pkg. dry Italian salad
dressing, 3 - 4 medium size cucumbers, 1 loaf of bread,
any type. Mash mayo and
cheese together. Mix in salad
dressing. Peel and dice
cucumber and add to mixture.
Leaving the bread crust is
optional. Spread mixture on
bread and cut in fourths
diagonally.
Shropshire—Shropshire is a county west of London
known for its sheep.
Turnbridge Wells—This is a city in Kent in southeast
England.
Bunburyist—Although not a real word, Bunburyist
became often-used throughout English speaking
countries because of the popularity of The Importance
of Being Earnest. It refers to Algernon’s made-up
friend Bunbury, whom he uses as an excuse to get out
of social responsibilities.
Wagnerian manner—This phrase implies a loud,
demonstrative nature, like the music of German
composer Richard Wagner.
crumpet—Also called an English muffin, a crumpet is
flat, round, piece
of bread, baked on
a griddle and
usually served
toasted.
expurgation—This
term refers to the
act of removing
erroneous or
vulgar material from something (such as a book) before
it is exposed to the public.
purple of commerce—This is another phrase coined by
Wilde. It implies money that comes through work or
trade rather than from a privileged birth.
trivet—A trivet is a small, three legged table. Jack uses
the term to imply that Gwendolyn is stable
and agreeable.
Gorgon—In Greek mythology, the three sisters Stheno,
Euryale and Medusa were known as the Gorgons. Each
had snakes for hair, and anyone looking into their eyes
turned to stone.
profligate—Profligate describes something or someone
that is shamefully immoral.
vacillate—To vacillate is to swing from one side to the
other. When describing a person, it means he
or she cannot decide on a course of action and jumps
from one activity to another without completing
anything.
Evensong—Evensong is another word for a daily
evening service in
the Anglican Church.
rupee—The rupee is the basic monetary unit of India,
Pakistan, Nepal,
Sri Lanka, and Mauritius.
quixotic—To be quixotic means to be caught up in the
pursuit of unreachable, idealistic goals. It comes from
the novel Don Quixote by Miguel De Cervantes,
Thomas Shelton (translator).
buttonhole—Men in Victorian England often placed a
flower through the buttonhole of their coat.
Marechal Niel— A Marechal Niel is a variety of rose,
fragrant and soft yellow in color.
misanthrope—Someone who hates and mistrusts
mankind is called a misanthrope.
womanthrope—Although not a real word, Miss Prism’s
meaning is clear: a womanthrope is one who does not
trust women.
neologistic—This refers to a new word or a new
meaning for a word.
interment—Interment is the act or ritual of interring or
burying.
portmanteau—This is a large trunk that opens into two
hinged compartments.
dog cart—A dog cart is a light, two-wheeled, horsedrawn vehicle.
equanimity—Equanimity is the quality of being calm and
even-tempered.
philanthropic work—This refers to the practice of
donating money, property or time to persons or
groups in need.
terminus—A terminus is the end point of a
transportation line.
Oxonian—An Oxonian is a graduate of Oxford
University.
Anabaptists—The Anabaptists were a religious group
that sprang from the 16th
century Reformation. They did not ascribe to baptism.
perambulator—
Perambulator is a British
word for baby carriage.
Actors’ Summit Theatre The Importance of Being Ernest Teacher Study Guide
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Victorian Parlor Games
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Victorian families were among the first
ever to be blessed with abundant free
time, and among the last to pass that
time without television. They enjoyed
numerous interactive parlor activities,
ranging from cards (euchre, bridge,
seven-up) and board games (dominoes,
checkers, chess) to 20 Questions and
charades. Young ladies and their
mothers spent their leisure time
learning needlecrafts, creating
ornaments, and reading novels. Popular
titles of the age include Sir Arthur
Conan Doyle's ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES and L. Frank Baum's THE WIZARD OF
OZ. Male and female family members alike frequently gathered around a parlor organ, a piano, or
a player piano to have “a sing”. New entertainment technologies of the year included the
phonograph, a stand-alone console for playing back recorded audio programs, and the
stereograph, a handheld device for viewing 3-D-like images.
Blind Man's Bluff
One member of the company was blindfolded and counted to twenty whilst the rest scattered
about the room. The blindfolded person had to chase and catch somebody and identify him or her
correctly, by touch alone. Once identified, that person donned the blindfold and the game began
again. A popular children's game today.
Hunt the Slipper
The players sat in a circle with one person in the middle, their eyes closed. A slipper was then
passed round the players' backs. When the middle person opened his or her eyes, the players
continued to pass the slipper surreptitiously between them, and the person was required to
guess who had the slipper at any one moment. If he or she guessed correctly, the person named
then took center stage.
Charades
This was perhaps the most popular of all Victorian parlor games. The company divided into
teams of up to six. For a simple game of charades, the first team was given a two- or threesyllable word to act out in total silence, which the others had to guess. The more complicated
game could involve the acting out of a scene from a complicated staged production. Members of
the opposite team were required to guess the required word or scenario before it was their turn
to act.
Resource and More Games at www.victoriaspast.com
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History of Tea
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According to Chinese legend, tea was
invented accidentally by the Chinese
Emperor Shen Nong in 2737 B.C. Emperor
Shen Nong was a scholar and herbalist, as
well as a creative scientist and patron of the
arts. Among other things, the emperor
believed that drinking boiled water
contributed to good health. By his decree,
his subjects and servants had to boil their
water before drinking it as a hygiene
precaution.
On one summer day while he was visiting a
distant region, he and his entourage stopped
to rest. The servants began to boil water for
the skilled ruler and his subjects to drink.
Dried leaves from a nearby camellia bush
fell into the boiling water. The emperor was
interested in the new liquid because it had a
pleasing aroma in this new brew interested
the emperor, so he drank the infusion and
discovered that it was very refreshing and
had a delightful flavor. He declared that tea
gives vigor to the body, thus. That was
when tea was invented, but it was
considered as a medicinal beverage. It was
around 300 A.D. when, tea became a daily
drink.
It was not until the Tang and Song Dynasties
when tea showed some significance in
Chinese tradition. During the mid-Tang
Dynasty (780 A.D.), a scholar named Lu Yu
published the first definitive book, Cha
Ching or The Tea Classic, on tea after he
spent over twenty years studying the
subject. This documentation included his
knowledge of planting, processing, tasting,
and brewing tea. His research helped to
elevate tea drinking to a high status
throughout China. This was when the art of
tea drinking was born.
Tea was introduced to Europe in the 1600s;
it was introduced to England in 1669. At that
time, the drink was enjoyed only by the
aristocracy because a pound of tea cost an
average British laborer the equivalent of
nine months in wages. The British began to
import tea in larger qualities to satisfy the
rapidly expanding market. Tea became
Britain’s most important item of trade from
China. All classes were able to drink tea as
the tea trade increased and became less of a
luxury. Now, tea is low in price and readily
available.
The word “tea” was derived from ancient
Chinese dialects. Such words as “Tchai,”
“Cha,” and “Tay” were used to describe the
tea leaf as well as the beverage. The tea
plant’s scientific name is Camellia sinensis
(which is from the The aceae family of the
Theales order), and it is indigenous to China
and parts of India. The tea plant is an
evergreen shrub that develops fragrant
white, five-petaled flowers, and it is related
to the magnolia. Tea is made from young
leaves and leaf buds from the tea tree. What
we call “herbal tea” is technically not tea
because it does not come from the tea plant
but consists of a mixture of flowers, fruit,
herbs or spices from other plants.
Today, there are more than 1,500 types of
teas to choose from because over 25
countries cultivate tea as a plantation crop.
China is one of the main producers of tea,
and tea remains China’s national drink.
Resource: www.chcp.org/tea.html
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Discussion Questions
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1. Wilde suggests that his Victorian contemporaries should treat trivial matters with greater
respect and pay less attention to what society then regarded as serious. Discuss how Wilde
expresses this philosophy and comment on the effectiveness with which he has communicated
his 'message' with reference to ONE of the following in the play: death, politics, money,
property, food, or marriage.
2. Using three examples drawn from the play, show how Algernon uses Wilde's aesthetic
principles to transform his life into a work of art.
3. How does Wilde portray food as both a weapon and a means of demonstrating one's power?
Discuss three examples from the play to demonstrate how Wilde uses food.
4. Describe how this play may or may not fit the criteria associated with the genre of the
lampoon. Define the term "lampoon" and apply this definition to the play: what is Wilde
lampooning? What is his intention in lampooning it? What are his techniques, and do these
produce appropriate attitudes in the audience?
5. Define the term "fantasy," then demonstrate how Wilde treats ONE of the following
fantastically (as opposed to realistically): Victorian society's class structure, food and the
Victorian conventions surrounding it, the resolution of the plot.
Resource: Philip V. Allingham, Contributing Editor, Victorian Web; Faculty of Education, Lakehead
University (Canada)
Suggested Research
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“The Official Website of Oscar Wilde.”
http://www.cmgww.com/historic/wilde/index.php
This site contains Oscar’s Wilde’s biography, interesting facts about his life, a handful of his famous quotes and
numerous photos of Wilde. Wilde paraphernalia is available for purchase, ranging from novels to action figures.
“The Oscar Wilde Collection.”
http://www.planetmonk.com/wilde/
Oscar Wilde’s plays, poems, and written works, including The Picture of Dorian Gray, are available for review or for
print. This site also contains information on Oscar Wilde’s grave site and an “Eclectic Oscar Wilde Shopping List.”
“Wilde: The Story of the First Modern Man.”
http://www.oscarwilde.com/
This site contains information on the 1997 biographical film about Oscar Wilde, entitled Wilde. Directed by Brian Gilbert,
written by Julian Mitchell, starring Jude Law, Vanessa Redgrave, and Stephen Fry. This site contains links to a collection
of Wilde’s written works.
“A Life in Dates.”
http://home.arcor.de/oscar.wilde/biography/biography1.htm
Visit this site to view a concise biographical timeline of Oscar Wilde. By clicking on the names of persons and places,
visitors are provided with images and further information.
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