After our acclaimed production of A PICTURE OF AUTUMN, Mint revisited the work of playwright N.C. Hunter with A DAY BY THE SEA. A warm, human, and often humorous depiction of the ‘crisis’ of middle age, the play tells the story of Julian Anson, a once-promising Foreign Service employee, who confronts professional disappointment and personal failure while picnicking along the English seaside.
A DAY BY THE SEA opened on the West End in 1953 and ran for 386 performances in a production that starred Dame Sybil Thorndike, Irene Worth, Sir John Gielgud and Sir Ralph Richardson. In New York, the play opened in 1955 with Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn headlining the cast; Hunter’s only Broadway production. Our production marked the play’s first New York revival.
Our first production as a resident company at Theatre Row, A DAY BY THE SEA was a New York Times Critic’s Pick. “There’s so much to like about the Mint Theater Company’s revisiting of A DAY BY THE SEA that it’s hard to know what to single out,” wrote Neil Genzlinger, calling the play “a beautiful study in conversations never had, or had too late.”1 In the Wall Street Journal, Terry Teachout called the play, “that rarest of rarities, a forgotten masterpiece, acted by the best ensemble cast I’ve seen in recent seasons and staged with taut vitality by Austin Pendleton.”2 He later selected our production as the year’s “best revival of a modern play” for the Wall Street Journal’s “Best Theater of 2016” feature. Originally scheduled to close on September 24th, A DAY BY THE SEA was extended through October 30th and ranks among our best reviewed, best attended productions ever.
N.C. Hunter (1908-1971) was one of the leading English dramatists of the 1950s and early 1960s. As theatrical revolution—spearheaded by John Osborne and his school of “angry young men”—exploded around him, Hunter kept his head down and provided moving portraits of a people questioning their own purpose in chaotic post-war England.
Norman Charles Hunter was born on September 18, 1908 in Derbyshire. Originally intending to follow in the footsteps of his father, a decorated Lieutenant Colonel, Hunter was educated at the Royal Military College. In 1930 he was commissioned in the Dragoon Guards but relinquished his position three years later, deciding to devote his life to literary pursuits. He found a day job on the staff of the BBC and began writing. In the years prior to the outbreak of World War II, Hunter produced six plays and four novels. His early plays, all farcical comedies, showed the promise of a true writer with a strong sense of craftsmanship.
Hunter returned to playwriting in 1947 after having served with the Royal Artillery during the war. Over the next four years, Hunter continued to develop his craft, discovering a voice that would be considered distinctly his own. In 1951, Hunter introduced A Picture of Autumn as the first in a series of plays that would establish his reputation as an “English Chekhov.” Mint presented the play’s American Premiere in 2013 in a production that Terry Teachout of the Wall Street Journal described as “so strong, that in a perfect world it would trigger a general revival of interest in Mr. Hunter’s work.”
Hunter’s major success came later in 1951: Waters of the Moon. Another nuanced portrayal of faded gentility struggling for survival, the play opened at the Theatre Royal in London with a cast that included Dame Sybil Thorndike and Dame Edith Evans. The production ran for 835 performances and established Hunter as one of Britain’s most popular dramatists.
Hunter’s firmly crafted and bittersweet comedies continued to garner successful West End runs, attracting many of the leading actors of the day. A Day by the Sea opened in 1953 and ran for 386 performances starring Dame Sybil Thorndike, Irene Worth, Sir John Gielgud and Sir Ralph Richardson. In New York, A Day by the Sea opened in 1955 with Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn headlining the cast; Hunter’s only Broadway production.
Hunter wrote four more plays in the decade preceding his death on April 19, 1971. By this time, England’s cultural revolution was in full swing. Hunter’s restrained naturalism fell out of fashion as playwrights like Joe Orton introduced flamboyance and controversy into the British theatre. In reviewing Mint’s 2013 production of A Picture of Autumn David Barbour of Lighting and Sound America wrote:
It’s strange to think that N. C. Hunter was more or less put out of business by the likes of John Osborne and his angry young colleagues. A Picture of Autumn is a far more playable work than, say, Look Back in Anger, which has looked distinctly arthritic in recent revivals. And for all its gentle manners, A Picture of Autumn, in its presentation of a country suffering profound spiritual drift, is as pointed and devastating as anything Osborne ever wrote. Say hello to N. C. Hunter, and let’s hope we hear from him again soon.
“IN SEARCH OF N.C. HUNTER”
MAYA CANTU, THEATER HISTORIAN AND DRAMATURG
Sunday, July 31 after the matinee
Maya Cantu is a theater historian, scholar, and Dramaturgical Advisor for the Mint. She received a D.F.A. in Dramaturgy and Dramatic Criticism at Yale School of Drama, and joins the Drama faculty of Bennington College this fall. Maya is the author of the book, American Cinderellas on the Broadway Musical Stage: Imagining the Working Girl from “Irene” to “Gypsy.” Her discussion will focus on the life and work of N.C. Hunter, and on the contexts and influences informing A Day by the Sea.
“BRITISH THEATRE IN THE POSTWAR WORLD”
ROGER W. OLIVER, NEW YORK UNIVERSITY AND JUILLIARD
Saturday, August 6 after the matinee
Roger W. Oliver is Professor of Liberal Arts and Drama at Juilliard, and Professor of English and Dramatic Literature at N.Y.U., where he teaches courses in Modern British Drama. He is the author of Dreams of Passion: The Dramatic Art of Luigi Pirandello, and has contributed to many publications including Good Reading, Forum, Performing Arts Journal, and Modern Drama. Roger’s discussion will place A Day by the Sea into the larger context of post-war British theater.
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“N.C. HUNTER: PLAYS THAT ACTORS LIKED TO SPEAK”
CHARLES DUFF, AUTHOR OF THE LOST SUMMER: THE HEYDAY OF THE WEST END THEATRE
Saturday, August 13, after the matinee
Charles Duff is a British teacher, actor, theatre director, writer and critic. His first professional role was in N.C. Hunter’s The Adventures of Tom Random at Guildford’s Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in 1967. His book, The Lost Summer: The Heyday of the West End Theatre, focuses on the career of director Frith Banbury, and on the playwrights and actors of the commercial British theatre of the mid-twentieth century. Duff’s post-show discussion will discuss how N.C. Hunter’s plays fit into this rich period of theatrical history.
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"A DAY WITH CHARLES DUFF"
SUNDAY, AUGUST 14 before & after the matinee
12:30pm – Brunch and discussion at West Bank Cafe: Join Charles Duff for a delicious pre-matinee brunch at West Bank Cafe, where he will provide an introduction to A Day by the Sea and share his own personal memories of working with N.C. Hunter on the author’s The Adventures of Tom Random.
2:30pm – Matinee performance of A Day by the Sea at Theatre Row.
5:00pm – Continue the conversation at the Theatre Row Lounge: Join Charles Duff, Jonathan Bank, and select members of the company for a post-show wine and cheese reception at the Theatre Row Lounge.
Brunch, one matinee ticket, and post-show reception: $82.25 ($75 for members of the First-Priority Club.) Call 212.315.0231 to reserve your place.
