The Importance of Being Earnest
Oscar Wilde spent the summer of 1894 with his family at Worthing on the Sussex coast. He began work on a new play during this period. The first draft was so long that it filled four exercise books. Over the summer he continually revised and refined the text. Among many changes he altered the subtitle from "a Serious Comedy for Trivial People" to "a Trivial Comedy for Serious People". He also renamed characters Lady Brancaster and Algernon Montford as Lady Bracknell and Algernon Moncrieff. Wilde wrote the part of John Worthing with actor-manager Charles Wyndham in mind. Wyndham accepted the play but changed plans to help George Alexander of the St James's Theatre. Alexander needed a new play after his production of Henry James's Guy Domville closed after 31 performances. After working with Alexander on stage movements using a model theatre, Alexander asked Wilde to shorten the play from four acts to three. Wilde complied and combined elements of the second and third acts. The largest cut removed Mr Gribsby, a solicitor who served a writ on Ernest Worthing for unpaid dining bills at the Savoy Hotel. Wilde said the three-act version is widely considered more effective than his original four-act draft.
The play premiered at the St James's Theatre in London on the 14th of February 1895. It was preceded by a curtain-raiser called In the Season by Langdon E. Mitchell. During most of the rehearsal period Wilde was on holiday in Algeria with Lord Alfred Douglas. He returned in time for dress rehearsals on the 12th of February. Douglas remained in Algiers while his father the Marquess of Queensberry planned to disrupt the premiere. Queensberry intended to throw rotten vegetables at Wilde during his bow. Wilde learned of the plan and arranged for police to bar Queensberry's entrance. Queensberry left the bouquet at the theatre entrance instead. Wilde arrived dressed in "florid sobriety" wearing a green carnation. The theatrical newspaper The Era reported enthusiastic approval. Allan Aynesworth played Algernon Moncrieff while George Alexander played Jack Worthing. Irene Vanbrugh and Evelyn Millard were praised for their roles. The Morning Post noted they caught the required Gilbertian tone. The Observer remarked on rapturous amusement from the audience. Within weeks legal trials revealed Wilde's private life. Box-office receipts dwindled rapidly after his arrest. Alexander tried to save the production by removing Wilde's name from playbills. The play closed on the 8th of May 1895 after only 83 performances.
Contemporary reviews recognized the play's cleverness and humour despite some reservations about its lack of social messages. Bernard Shaw found it extremely funny but heartless. William Archer wrote that he enjoyed watching it but found it empty of meaning. He questioned how a critic could deal with a play raising no principle. H.G. Wells called it one of the freshest comedies of the year. W.H. Auden later described it as a pure verbal opera. Mary McCarthy called it a ferocious idyll where depravity is the hero. By the time of its centenary in 1995 journalist Mark Lawson described it as the second most known and quoted play in English after Hamlet. Max Beerbohm called it Wilde's finest work. He argued that while other plays followed Victorien Sardou's manner, this one achieved perfect fusion of form and content. Critics noted the play's light plot did not address serious political issues like much theatre of the time. Some compared it to comic opera rather than drama. The Manchester Guardian suggested in 1927 that period costumes were needed to back up Wilde's wit. The play has remained popular throughout the twentieth century and beyond.
The play was performed during Wilde's imprisonment by small touring groups. A.B. Tapping's company toured between October 1895 and March 1896. Elsie Lanham's company presented it starting November 1899. It returned to London after Wilde's death in 1900 when George Alexander revived it at the Coronet Theatre. The production ran for 52 performances. Alexander presented another revival at the St James's in 1902 which ran for 316 performances. John Gielgud produced and starred in a 1939 production at the Globe Theatre. Edith Evans played Lady Bracknell and Margaret Rutherford played Miss Prism. This production toured North America and was staged on Broadway in 1947. Jonathan Miller directed a 1975 version where Irene Handl gave Lady Bracknell a German accent. Peter Hall's 1982 production featured Judi Dench as Lady Bracknell and Martin Jarvis as Jack. Since 1987 some productions have cast male actors in the role of Lady Bracknell. Geoffrey Rush played her in Melbourne in 2011. Brian Bedford took the role in New York that same year. David Suchet appeared in London in 2015. A 2024 Royal Exchange Theatre production received updates described as convincing stabs at modernization. The National Theatre revived it again in late 2024 with diverse casting choices.
The play has been adapted for cinema three times. Anthony Asquith directed the first film in 1952 starring Michael Redgrave and Edith Evans. Kurt Baker made another version in 1992 using an all-black cast set in the United States. Oliver Parker directed a third film in 2002 featuring Colin Firth and Rupert Everett. Erik Chisholm composed an opera from the play in 1963. Gerald Barry created a new opera commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic which premiered in 2011. Gerd Natschinski composed a musical adaptation in 1964. At least eight musical versions exist though none achieved conspicuous success. Radio adaptations began in 1925 when the BBC broadcast one with Hesketh Pearson. Television broadcasts started in November 1937 with an abridged version directed by Royston Morley. Commercial recordings include Gielgud's performance preserved on EMI audio from 1952. Other recordings feature Gladys Cooper, Joan Greenwood, and various casts over decades. A 2008 Telugu language film titled Ashta Chamma adapts the story. Tom Stoppard's 1974 comedy Travesties draws extensively on Wilde's work.
The pun in the title poses special problems for translators worldwide. Ernest is both a masculine proper name and means steadfast or serious. German offers a simple solution since the words are identical. Translators must choose between staying faithful to the original or creating similar puns in their own language. Some leave all character names unchanged while readers lose the liveliness of the pun. Others replace Ernest with names representing virtues like honesty or fidelity in Italian versions. French translations vary widely with titles including L'Importance d'être fidèle. Translators differ on handling English honorific titles. Most leave a mix partly as compensation for lost Englishness. The play has been translated into many languages despite these difficulties. Its popularity ensures continued global reach even when linguistic nuances shift. Critics note that wordplay unique to one language creates challenges for cross-cultural understanding. Yet the core themes remain accessible across different cultures and eras.
Scholars interpret the play's themes of duplicity through queer theory lenses. William Eaton argues dissimulation was extremely important for homosexuals of Wilde's time. Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick sees linguistic aspects as allusions to gay culture. She notes references to German language and Richard Wagner associated with male homosexuality then. Noel Annan suggested Ernest may have been a private code-word among gay men. Sir Donald Sinden rebutted such suggestions in 2001 stating Earnest held no sexual connotations. Bunbury represents a secretive double life possibly derived from Henry Shirley Bunbury. Aleister Crowley proposed it was a portmanteau word after Wilde took a train to Banbury. Carolyn Williams writes Wilde braided Belvawneying evil eye from Gilbert's Engaged with Bunthorne from Patience. The play exhibits what critics call a flickering presence-absence of homosexual desire. This interpretation binds together themes of ambivalence and duplicity found throughout the text. Scholars continue debating whether these elements were intentional codes or coincidental parallels.
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Common questions
When did Oscar Wilde write The Importance of Being Earnest?
Oscar Wilde wrote the play during the summer of 1894 while staying with his family at Worthing on the Sussex coast. He revised the text throughout that period and shortened it from four acts to three after working with George Alexander.
What date did The Importance of Being Earnest premiere in London?
The play premiered at the St James's Theatre in London on the 14th of February 1895. It closed on the 8th of May 1905 after only 83 performances following Wilde's arrest.
How many times has The Importance of Being Earnest been adapted for cinema?
The play has been adapted for cinema three times by Anthony Asquith in 1952, Kurt Baker in 1992, and Oliver Parker in 2002. A 2008 Telugu language film titled Ashta Chamma also adapts the story.
Why is translating The Importance of Being Earnest difficult for other languages?
Translating the title poses special problems because Ernest functions as both a masculine proper name and means steadfast or serious. Translators must choose between staying faithful to the original pun or creating similar wordplay in their own language.
Who produced the 1939 production of The Importance of Being Earnest at the Globe Theatre?
John Gielgud produced and starred in the 1939 production at the Globe Theatre where Edith Evans played Lady Bracknell and Margaret Rutherford played Miss Prism. This production toured North America and was staged on Broadway in 1947.