Arsenic and Old Lace

Arsenic and Old Lace
Name	Arsenic and Old Lace
Caption	Original Broadway playbill
Writer	Joseph Kesselring
Characters	Mortimer Brewster, Abby Brewster, Martha Brewster, Jonathan Brewster, Dr. Einstein, Elaine Harper, Teddy Brewster, Officer O'Hara
Setting	The Brewster home, Brooklyn, New York City
Premiere	10 January 1941
Place	Fulton Theatre, New York City
Orig lang	English
Genre	Black comedy
Subject	Family, murder, insanity

Arsenic and Old Lace is a classic American black comedy play written by Joseph Kesselring. It premiered on Broadway in 1941 and enjoyed a highly successful run, becoming one of the most popular plays of its era. The farcical plot revolves around the eccentric Brewster family, whose members include two seemingly sweet spinster aunts who are secretly serial killers. The play’s enduring popularity led to a famous Warner Bros. film adaptation directed by Frank Capra and starring Cary Grant.

Plot summary

The story unfolds in the Brooklyn home of the Brewster sisters, Abby Brewster and Martha Brewster. Their drama critic nephew, Mortimer Brewster, discovers his aunts have been poisoning lonely old men with elderberry wine laced with arsenic, strychnine, and "just a pinch" of cyanide. They view these acts as charitable, providing a peaceful end for their "gentlemen." Meanwhile, Mortimer’s brother Jonathan Brewster, a dangerous criminal with a face altered by his alcoholic accomplice Dr. Einstein, arrives with a corpse of his own. Their other brother, Teddy Brewster, believes he is Theodore Roosevelt and digs "locks" for the Panama Canal in the cellar, which doubles as a graveyard. Mortimer, who has just become engaged to the neighbor Elaine Harper, frantically tries to manage the chaos while protecting his family’s dark secret from authorities like Officer O'Hara.

Production history

The play premiered at the Fulton Theatre on January 10, 1941, under the direction of Bretaigne Windust. The original Broadway cast featured Josephine Hull and Jean Adair as the aunts, with John Alexander as Teddy. It was an immediate hit, running for 1,444 performances and closing in 1944. Its success was bolstered by glowing reviews from critics like Brooks Atkinson of The New York Times. Numerous national tours and international productions followed, including a notable run in the West End at the Strand Theatre. It has since become a staple of community theatre and regional theatre companies across North America.

Characters

* Mortimer Brewster: A cynical theatre critic and the central protagonist. * Abby Brewster and Martha Brewster: The charming, murderous spinster sisters. * Teddy Brewster: The brothers' delusional sibling who believes he is President Theodore Roosevelt. * Jonathan Brewster: The sinister, fugitive brother with a surgically altered face. * Dr. Einstein: Jonathan’s alcoholic plastic surgeon and accomplice. * Elaine Harper: The daughter of the local minister and Mortimer’s fiancée. * Officer O'Hara: An aspiring playwright among the New York police. * Other characters include the ministers Mr. Witherspoon and Rev. Dr. Harper, and police officers Officer Brophy and Lieutenant Rooney.

Themes and analysis

The play is a masterful farce that explores themes of apparent normalcy masking madness, a concept later echoed in works like Psycho. It satirizes Victorian ideals of charity and propriety through the aunts’ warped philanthropy. The contrast between the genteel Brooklyn setting and the macabre events critiques the facade of the American family. The character of Teddy provides a commentary on American imperialism and national myth-making, while Mortimer’s profession as a critic of Shaw and Ibsen allows for meta-theatrical jokes about the nature of drama itself.

Adaptations

The most famous adaptation is the 1944 Frank Capra film for Warner Bros., starring Cary Grant as Mortimer, with Josephine Hull and Jean Adair reprising their stage roles. Due to contractual obligations with Boris Karloff, who originated the role of Jonathan on stage, the film cast Raymond Massey in the part. A 1969 ABC television movie starred Bob Crane and Lillian Gish. The play has also been adapted for BBC Radio and inspired episodes of television series like The Simpsons and Family Guy. Its structure influenced later comedies such as The Addams Family.

Legacy and cultural impact

The play remains a cornerstone of American comedic theatre, frequently revived by companies like The National Theatre and in Summer stock theatre. The phrase "arsenic and old lace" has entered the lexicon as a shorthand for dark humor cloaked in gentility. It is often studied in contrast to the darker works of Alfred Hitchcock and the comedies of Noël Coward. The play’s success cemented the careers of Joseph Kesselring and director Bretaigne Windust, and its film version is preserved in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

Category:American plays Category:Black comedy plays Category:1941 plays