Shall We Join the Ladies?

Summary

1954 BBC production of J. M. Barrie’s mystery Shall We Join the Ladies?, presented from the Vanburgh Theatre, London as part of a broader programme titled We Live to Please, a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, which opened with a discussion of the early years of RADA in the studio. The performances thereafter presented were excerpts from Pygmalion, Othello and The Lady’s Not for Burning, followed by what was possibly a full production of Shall We Join the Ladies?

Theatre play

Shall We Join the Ladies? by J. M. Barrie (1860-1937) [more information]

Play synopsis

'An absorbing mystery, with just a pinch of incisive English wit to give it the proper savor. The action involves thirteen well-to-do people attending a dinner party. The frivolous and gay air is shattered rather suddenly when the host announces that all of them were at Monte Carlo several years ago on the night when his brother was murdered. Then the host proceeds to implicate one after another of his guests, making them stumble into pits he has carefully laid in his speech. He is cool, patient, and witty as the frightful tension increases and his guests drop their masks.' (Source: Samuel French synopsis, http://www.samuelfrench.com/p/9883/shall-we-join-the-ladies; accessed 18 April 2014.)

Production history

Written for the opening of the theatre of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art on 27 May, 1921. Published by Samuel French.

Date of transmission

Sunday 20 June 1954

Channel

BBC Television

Production company

BBC

Credits

Producer

Eric Fawcett

Playwright

J. M. Barrie (1860-1937)

Cast

Jill Bennett	Lady Jane
Fabia Drake	Mrs Preen
Sonia Dresdel	Mrs Castro
Everley Gregg	Maid
Stanley Holloway	Policeman
William Douglas Home (1912-1993)	Mr Vaile
George Howe	Sir Joseph
Mervyn Johns	Host
Griffith Jones	Captain Jennings
Beatrix Lehmann	Lady Wrathie
Margaretta Scott	Mrs Bland
Michael Shepley	Mr Preen
Ronald Simpson	Mr Gourlay
Eleanor Summerfield	Miss Isit
Valerie Taylor	Miss Vaile
Hugh Williams	Butler

Additional details

Extant status

No archival copy is known to exist.

Play tags

murder; mystery

Print sources

Title

Radio Times, 18 June 1954 (Magazine)

Linking notes

listing, p. 14; article, p. 15

Associated programmes

Othello [extract] (BBC, 1954)
Othello by William Shakespeare
BBC Television

Pygmalion [excerpt] (BBC, 1954)
Pygmalion by [George] Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)
BBC Television

The Lady’s not for Burning [extract] (BBC, 1954)
The Lady’s not for Burning by Christopher Fry (1907-2005)
BBC Television