The Old GlObe/UniversiTy Of san dieGO
GradUaTe TheaTre deparTmenT
march 5-10, 2011 c The studio Theatre at Usd
The Old Globe / University of san diego
Graduate Theatre program presents
The importance
of being earnest
by Oscar Wilde
brian redfern Jeannie Galioto
scenic design
Costume design
Jason bieber
George yé
lighting design
sound design
Jan Gist
liz shipman
natashja Kelly
voice & speech
movement
stage manager
CasT
Gwendolen fairfax . . . . . . . . . .shirine babb
lady bracknell . . . . . . . . . . . . .ray Chambers
algernon moncrieff . . . . . . . . .Grayson deJesus
lane . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .ben diskant
rev. Canon Chasuble . . . . . . . .Christian durso
John Worthing . . . . . . . . . . . . . .andrew hutcheson
Cecily Cardew . . . . . . . . . . . . . .rachael Jenison
merriman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Jonathan spivey
miss prism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .emmelyn Thayer
directed by
Kirk Jackson
Private funding for the Master of Fine Arts in Dramatic Arts program
is contributed through an endowment established by
DonalD anD Darlene Shiley
Additional Support for the program is provided by
The DoroThy Brown enDowmenT FunD and the louiS yager CanTwell FounDaTion
CECILY CARDEW
Ward of Jack
MISS PRIM
Governess of Cecily
JOHN WORTHING
Has double identity:
John/Jack in the country,
Ernest in the city.
REV. CANON
CHASUBLE
The rector on Jack’s estate,
adnirer of Miss Prism.
LANE
Servant of Algernon
ALGERNON
BUNBURY
MONCRIEFF An imaginary friend of
Algernon invoked to escape
unwanted social obligations.
Lady Bracknell... a real drag.
MERRIMAN
Servant of Jack
in the country.
GWENDOLEN FAIRFAX
Daughter of Lady Bracknell.
LADY BRACKNELL
Mother of Gwendolen,
Aunt of Algernon.
There is a long tradition of men playing the role of lady
bracknell. legendary actor and director ellis rabb
played the part at The Old Globe in 1982, and brian
bedford is currently playing lady bracknell on broadway.
The casting of a man in the role mirrors Wilde’s use of
paradoxes in the play.
Photo: Ellis Rabb as Lady Bracknell at The Old Globe
a Wilde Wit
having a pun time wit “earnest”
Among the most quoted personalities in modern history, Oscar Wilde had a mastery
of wit that continues to be unique in its depth of insight, while being brilliantly clever
at the same time. Also unique is the wide array of source material that his quotes
come from, ranging from published plays, fiction, and written criticism, to his public
and private conversations.
Wilde's disregard for social conformity and rules was matched only by his ability to
express it with language. His commentary on human nature, social mores, and the
hypocrisy that can manifest when the two collide, was the fuel for the linguistic
pyrotechnics that Wilde loved to ignite through the use of his brilliant wit.
While wit is enjoyed as a welcome game of verbal gymnastics, the pun is quite often
looked down upon as the lowest expression of repartee. Many linguaphiles, however,
have come to the pun's defense, including author Oscar Levant who pointed out: "A
pun is the lowest form of humor-if you didn't think of it first."
In The importance of Being earnest, Wilde elevates the pun to a higher level than a
mere play on words. The play's title is just one example of his lifting the pun beyond
simple semantics. At first glance the "Earnest/Ernest" pun is a reference to
Gwendolen's desire to find a man named Ernest to love, while seeming to care little
whether he is earnest or not. The fact that Jack is neither named Ernest, nor acts
earnestly, yet duplicitously assumes the name Ernest, breaks the pun from the
boundaries of being a simple play on words and creates a character that personifies the
pun... a brilliant and sophisticated manifestation of the hypocrisy of Victorian society.
In addition to puns, many of Oscar Wilde's quotes are examples of a paradox. "It is
awfully hard work doing nothing” and "Divorces are made in Heaven" are two
examples of Wilde using a statement that contradicts conventional thinking. In The
importance of Being earnest, Wilde expands on this idea of breaking with conventional
thinking though his use of the women in the play. Lady Bracknell assuming the duties
of the father by interviewing Jack, and Gwendolen and Cecily taking control of their
romances are examples of the reversal of Victorian gender roles.
Wilde Wisdom
Quotes from oscar wilde
“I like men who have a future and women who have a past.”
“The old believe everything; the middle-aged 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.”
“When we are happy, we are always good but when we are good,
we are not always happy.”
“The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it.”
“There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about,
and that is not being talked about.”
“One should either be a work of art, or wear a work of art.”
“Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes.”
“Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.”
“Anyone who lives within their means suffers from a lack of imagination.”
“It is better to be beautiful than to be good.
But... it is better to be good than to be ugly.”
“Morality, like art, means drawing a line someplace.”
“Men marry because they are tired; women because they are curious.
Both are disappointed.”
“Bigamy is having one wife too many; monogamy is the same.”
“America is the only country that went from barbarism to decadence
without civilization in between.”
“Democracy means simply the bludgeoning of the people
by the people for the people.”
“Art never expresses anything but itself.”
“All great ideas are dangerous.”
“My wallpaper and I are fighting a duel to the death.
One or the other of us has to go.”
oscar Wilde
“life imitates art
far more than art imitates life”
- oscar wilde’s The Decay of Lying
Revolting against the Victorian ideals of piety,
purity, and concern over public image, Wilde
celebrated flamboyant excess in both fashion and
lifestyle. An eccentric wardrobe became a hallmark
of his, the most famous staple being a green
carnation. Wilde was the talk of England, acquiring
both critics and supporters. While many did not
like what he had to say, few could argue with the
manner in which he said it. Wilde became one of
the most quoted figures of the Victorian Era. His
supporters included prominent figures like George
Bernard Shaw and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
He was a true celebrity.
Although Wilde was married and a loving father of
two children, his affections began to sway towards
men... something that he made no attempt to cover
up. It was his relationship with Lord Alfred
Douglas that would begin Wilde's downfall. Lord
Alfred’s father, John Douglas the 9th Marquess of
Queensberry, was outraged at the relationship between the two men. The Marquess started a
campaign against Wilde, which Wilde fought with a charge of slander against the Marquess
in a widely publicized case. Wilde lost that case of slander, and found himself charged by
the crown with "Gross Indecency" for homosexual acts.
Found guilty and sentenced to two years' hard labor, prison proved devastating for Wilde.
Upon his release, he went into exile, spending his remaining three years destitute in Paris.
On November 29th, 1900, former lover and friend Robert Baldwin Ross came to the
bedside of Oscar Wilde. After calling for a priest, and with Ross at his side, Wilde was
baptized into the Roman Catholic Church and received the rite of Extreme Unction. On
November 30th, Oscar Wilde died from cerebral meningitis.
Society, as we have constituted it, will have no place for me, has none to offer;
but Nature, whose sweet rains fall on unjust and just alike, will have clefts in
the rocks where I may hide, and secret valleys in whose silence I may weep
undisturbed. She will hang the night with stars so that I may walk abroad in
the darkness without stumbling, and send the wind over my footprints so that
none may track me to my hurt: she will cleanse me in great waters, and with
bitter herbs make me whole. - Oscar Wilde’s de Prefunds
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