OVERVIEW

• Playwright

  Lennox Robinson 

• Author Notes

  Produced under the name S L Robinson

• Setting

  Rural Cork.

• Synopsis

  Jack Hurley returns to his father's home with his new wife to ask for financial assistance. He discovers that the farm was heavily mortgaged to pay for the family's education and there would appear to be no prospect of saving it. Desperate, his father sets fire to the barn in the hope of winning compensation. When he tells his sons of this, Jack resolves to tell the truth in the event of a claim being made, and remains in the house with his wife to help his father. Meanwhile, his sister Mary returns from London. She presents her father with the money to save his farm under the pretence that it is from her brother in England, though she later confesses to Jack that she obtained the money by prostituting herself to her boss. Jack tries to persuade her to move to Dublin with himself and his family, but his wife wants nothing to do with her. An exacerbated Jack leaves for America, and Mary for London. Jack's father remains on the farm with his younger son, entirely oblivious to the sacrifices that have been made for him.

• Play Type

  Plays General
  

  Number Of Acts

  Full-Length

Cast size

• Male

  4

• Female

  4

• Total

  8

Original Production

• Date of First Production

  19 May 1910

• Producer

  Produced by Abbey Theatre/Amharclann na Mainistreach

• Original Venue

  Abbey Theatre/Amharclann na Mainistreach
  

Source Of Information

The information for this entry was taken from the original production programme and Ireland's Abbey Theatre: A History 1899-1951 by Lennox Robinson, with additional information from press cuttings of the time