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The Arts Council Playography Na Gaeilge

Plays

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Captain of the Hosts

OVERVIEW

  • Playwright

    Rutherford Mayne 

  • Notes

    This play was rewritten by Rutherford Mayne as 'Neil Gallina' and produced again as such in 1916. The given character/cast list is taken from reviews of the premiere production and, as such, should be taken as approximate.

  • Synopsis

    Neil Gallina, a dabbler in literature, is diagnosed with consumption and given six months to live. Seeking relief initially through drinking with fair-weather friends, he meets Barbara, daughter of an evangelical mission worker. Through her efforts Neil is reformed to become an ardent mission supporter, but Barbara herself begins to find the life into which she has been born quite stifling. She announces she is leaving the mission and Neil for a year, to test both his resolve and her own. After her departure, he reverts to his old ways, and by the time Barbara returns to declare her love for him, she is too late: Neil is in the grip of the captain of the hosts of death.

  • Play Type

    Plays General

    Number Of Acts

    Full-Length

  • Cast Size Male

    7

  • Cast Size Female

    3

Original Production

Original Cast  
Flapper McKeown Gerald Macnamara
Neil Gallina Ross Canmer
Unspecified Character(s) G.A. Charters
Barbara Seveen Canmer
Mrs. McKee Margaret O'Gorman
Herbert Young Jackson Grahame
Billy Baird Charles Kerr
Unspecified Character(s) Alan Whitley
Annie Helena Cairns
Thomas J.M. Hardy

Rights Information

  • Territory

    All Territories

  • Rights Type

    All Rights

  • Contact

    Colin Smythe Ltd.

  • Address

    P. O. Box 6, Gerrards Cross
    Buckinghamshire
    SL9 8XA
    England

  • Phone

    +44 (0) 1753 886000

  • Email

    cs@colinsmythe.co.uk

Source Of Information

Information for this entry has come from reviews of the premiere production; from Margaret McHenry's 'Ulster Theatre in Ireland'; and from Wolfgang Zach's introduction to 'Selected Plays: Rutherford Mayne'.