The Blue Flame (play)
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The Blue Flame
Theda Bara as Ruth Gordon
George V. Hobart
Written by
John Willard
Leta Vance Nicholson
Date premiered March 15, 1920
Place premiered Shubert Theatre
Original language English
Genre Science fiction, thriller
Setting New York City
The Blue Flame is a four-act play written by George V. Hobart and John Willard, who revised an
earlier version by Leta Vance Nicholson. In 1920, producer Albert H. Woodsstaged the play
on Broadway and on tour across the United States. Ruth Gordon, the main character, is a
religious young woman who dies and is revived by her scientist fianc as a soulless femme
fatale. She seduces several men and involves them in crimes, including drug use and murder. In
the final act, her death and resurrection are revealed to be a dream. The production
starred Theda Bara, a popular silent film actress who was known for playing similar roles in
movies.
Critics panned the play, ridiculing the plot, dialog, and Bara's acting. Theater historian Ward
Morehouse called it "one of the worst plays ever written".[1] Bara's movie fame drew large crowds
to theaters, and the play was a commercial success, breaking attendance records at some
venues. Ruth Gordon was Bara's only Broadway role, andThe Blue Flame was one of her last
professional acting projects.
Contents
[hide]
1Plot
2Cast and characters
3History
o 3.1Background and development
o 3.2Productions and legacy
4Reception
o 4.1Critical reception
o 4.2Box office
5Notes
6References
o 6.1Works cited
7External links
Plot[edit]
In the first act, irreligious scientist John Varnum has developed a device to bring the recently
dead back to life. His sweet, religious fiance, Ruth Gordon, does not approve of his experiments
and hopes to reform him. When she is struck by lightning and killed, she becomes the first person
to be revived by his machine.[2] Before she is reanimated, the audience sees her soul visibly leave
her body as the "blue flame" of the title.[3] With no soul, the revived Ruth has an entirely different
personality. Upon waking, she asks John for a kiss, then suggests they marry immediately so
they can begin having sex.[4]
In the second and third acts, Ruth seduces a young man named Larry Winston and steals him
away from his own fiance. She takes Larry to New York's Chinatown, where she gets him
hooked on cocaine and steals an emerald from an idol. She meets another young man, Ned
Maddox, whom she seduces and kills for insurance money, framing another man for the murder.
In the final act, Ruth's death and revival is revealed to be a dream John was having. Upon waking
he understands the importance of the soul; he embraces religion and destroys his life-restoration
device.
Cast and characters[edit]
Alan Dinehart played scientist John Varnum.
DeWitt Jennings played police inspector Ryan.
The characters and cast from the Broadway production are listed below:
Cast of the Broadway production
Character Broadway cast[4]
John Varnum Alan Dinehart
Ah Foo Jack Gibson
Ruth Gordon Theda Bara
Barnes Joseph Buckley
Cicely Varnum Helen Curry
Larry Winston Donald Gallaher
Quong Toy Henry Herbert
Ned Maddox Kenneth Hill
The Stranger Earl House
Cast of the Broadway production
Character Broadway cast[4]
Patterson Frank Hughes
Inspector Ryan DeWitt C. Jennings
Nora Macree Tessie Lawrence
Clarissa Archibald Thais Lawton
Wung Ming Robert Lee
Grogan Martin Malloy
Tom Dorgan Harry Minturn
Miller Tom O'Hara
Ling Foo Royal Stout
History[edit]
Background and development[edit]
Albert H. Woodsproduced the play.
Leta Vance Nicholson, a movie scenario writer, wrote the first version ofThe Blue Flame. She sold
it to theatrical agent Walter C. Jordan, who had it rewritten by George V. Hobart and John Willard.
Jordan paid the three writers $10,000 for their work (about $685,000 in 2016 dollars), [notes 1] then
resold the play to producer Albert H. Woods for $35,000. [5]
Actress Theda Bara was one of the most popular stars of silent films.[6]From her first leading role
as "the Vampire" in the 1915 movie A Fool There Was, Bara had been typecast as a "vamp"
or femme fatale who seduced and ruined innocent men.[notes 2] Although she sometimes performed
in films playing other types of roles, these were not as successful commercially as her "vamp"
films. She played dozens of similar roles while contracted with Fox Film from 1915 to 1919.[8]
After Bara's contract with Fox ended, Woods approached her about appearing in a play. She had
performed on stage early in her career, working with touring companies and in summer stock, but
had not performed on Broadway.[9] Bara told a reporter she was offered a few scripts to consider,
and choseThe Blue Flame (at that time titled The Lost Soul) because it allowed her to play two
versions of the character, one good and the other bad. She also hoped moving to the stage would
bring her new career opportunities.[10] Woods gave Bara a lucrative contract. Each week she
received a salary of $1500. This was considerably less than the $4000 per week she had earned
in her last year with Fox,[11] but Bara was also promised half the production's net profits. For
example, the play's two-week run in Boston netted Bara $10,700. Woods also provided a finely
appointed private railroad car to take her from city to city when the show toured. [12][13]
Productions and legacy[edit]
A theme song for the play was published in April 1920.
Woods hired two directors, J. C. Huffman and W. H. Gilmore, to assist with the production.[14] The
production began with a series of previewperformances in February 1920, appearing
in Pittsburgh; Washington, D.C.; Stamford, Connecticut; and Chicago. The final performances
before the Broadway premier were in Boston in early March.[15]
While the show was still in previews, writer Owen Davis claimed the story had been lifted from his
earlier play Lola, which had appeared briefly on Broadway in March 1911, then was adapted as a
movie in 1914.[5] He filed a lawsuit, but by the end of May it was settled with a cash payment to
Davis.[16]
The show opened on Broadway at the Shubert Theatre on March 15, 1920. It had a run of 48
performances and closed in late April. [17][18] The show then continued to other cities on tour. The
play was further promoted by the release of sheet music for a theme song, with Bara's image
featured prominently on the cover.[19] William Frederic Peters wrote the music and Ballard
MacDonald wrote the lyrics for the song, which was published in April by Shapiro, Bernstein &
Co.[20]
The tour closed on January 1, 1921. [13] The Blue Flame was Bara's last Broadway performance
and her last acting tour. She did a season of vaudeville touring, but did not act in it; instead she
talked with audiences and told stories about her career. [21] Her only subsequent stage acting was
in a Little Theatreproduction of Bella Donna in 1934.[22] Bara's film career was also waning. She
acted in only one feature film after The Blue Flame ended, the 1925 drama The Unchastened
Woman.[23]
Reception[edit]
Critical reception[edit]
The play received overwhelmingly negative reviews, although some critics had minor
compliments for Bara. Biographer Eve Golden described the reviews of Bara's acting as "nothing
less than vicious",[24]but the commentary about the play as a whole was even more negative.
[25]
Variety expected Bara to draw audiences to the theater for at least a few weeks, but said
opinions in the daily press were united about how bad the play was. [26] In The New York
Times, Alexander Woollcott mocked the dialog, which included lines such as, "Have you brought
the cocaine?" and "You make my heart laugh and I feel like a woman of the streets." Delivered
seriously, this dialog drew laughter from the audience. Woollcott highlighted one particular line:
"I'm going to be so bad, I'll be remembered always." He said Bara was bad, but not bad enough
to be memorable. He credited her for speaking clearly and for not losing her composure when the
audience laughed at her.[4] Other reviewers gave Bara similarly faint praise: she had "average
competence" or "was not so bad". Some complimented her looks or her glamorous wardrobe. [25]
Other reviewers were even more negative, condemning Bara along with the play generally. The
theater critic for Munsey's Magazine quoted several negative reviews and compared Bara's
acting unfavorably to that of drama school students.[27] The Brooklyn Daily Eagle said she fulfilled
the promise to be unforgettably bad, calling her acting "freakish". [28] The Sun and New York
Herald said Bara's acting was disappointing and the play was "abysmal in intelligence and all that
touches the art of the theatre". [3] InAinslee's Magazine, Dorothy Parker said the play's authors had
taken the line about being remembered for badness "as their working motto", and suggested the
crowds at the performances were there to attack the playwrights. [29] In the New-York
Tribune, Heywood Broun suggested that the entire production company should fear the wrath of
God for such a terrible play.[30]
Historians and critics looking back on the play have affirmed the negative assessment.
Biographer Ronald Genini called the play "painfully bad" [31] and described the reviews as "a
panning orgy".[30]Theater historian Ward Morehouse described it as "one of the worst plays ever
written".[1] Literary criticEdward Wagenknecht said Bara's participation helped end her acting
career.[32] Golden wondered why Bara took the role, speculating that only "desperation and
incredibly poor judgement" could justify her participation. [2]
Box office[edit]
Overall the play was a tremendous financial success; the previews broke attendance records.
[14]
In Boston, the show sold out even after the addition of extra matinees. The first week on
Broadway took in nearly $20,000, close to the maximum the Shubert Theatre could generate at
normal prices.[33] However, ticket sales fell off rapidly following the strongly negative reviews.
[30]
Woods pre-sold four weeks of tickets to local ticket brokers, which helped the box office totals,
but the brokers were left with unsold seats even after offering deep discounts. [26][34] After leaving
New York, the show returned to strong sales on the road. [35]
