This is a very short play from 1934 called Consolation by Charles George. It's a very old, nicely yellow Dramatist Services acting edition. It really isn't even a play, more of a skit, what we might term nowadays a sketch, It calls itself A Farce in One Act in a subtitle.it is barely 24 pages long and has 5 characters.
The protagonist is Mrs. Anderson who has checked into a hospital to help her from having a nervous breakdown. She is visited by the head nurse, Mrs. Castle, a maid Delia, a private nurse Miss Mable, and her friend Mrs. Frisby. None of these people are any consolation to her as she tries to relax. Instead of finding relief, she is driven out of the hospital wrapped in her bed clothes.
It's very boring, not very funny and entirely predictable. Only two things make it notable to me. Tthe first is the racism that was endemic to the period it was written. Delia is the maid and although it isn't extreme, she speaks in the vernacular of a black person from 1934. Also she is the only character who lacks a title, no 'Miss" or "Mrs." just Delia.
The other, which is more personal, is that the author's name reminds me of my intensive at Shakespeare & Co. when Tina Packer called me Charles by mistake and then insisted on calling me George Charles for the rest of the month.
Anyway this is more of a "Keep my hand in my blog" kind of play. I picked from my collection hoping to quickly get through it and post something right away but it was so dull the 24 pages felt like 200 and it actually took me a while to get through.
The protagonist is Mrs. Anderson who has checked into a hospital to help her from having a nervous breakdown. She is visited by the head nurse, Mrs. Castle, a maid Delia, a private nurse Miss Mable, and her friend Mrs. Frisby. None of these people are any consolation to her as she tries to relax. Instead of finding relief, she is driven out of the hospital wrapped in her bed clothes.
It's very boring, not very funny and entirely predictable. Only two things make it notable to me. Tthe first is the racism that was endemic to the period it was written. Delia is the maid and although it isn't extreme, she speaks in the vernacular of a black person from 1934. Also she is the only character who lacks a title, no 'Miss" or "Mrs." just Delia.
The other, which is more personal, is that the author's name reminds me of my intensive at Shakespeare & Co. when Tina Packer called me Charles by mistake and then insisted on calling me George Charles for the rest of the month.
Anyway this is more of a "Keep my hand in my blog" kind of play. I picked from my collection hoping to quickly get through it and post something right away but it was so dull the 24 pages felt like 200 and it actually took me a while to get through.
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