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''The Astonished Heart'' is a short play by Noël Coward, one of ten that make up ''Tonight at 8:30'', a cycle written to be performed across three evenings. The play, described at its first production as "a tragedy in six scenes",〔 is told through a series of flashbacks in reverse order. The title is taken from ''Deuteronomy'' 28:28, "the Lord shall smite thee with madness and blindness and astonishment of heart."〔''The Observer'', 9 August 1936, p. 9〕 In the introduction to a published edition of the plays, Coward wrote, "A short play, having a great advantage over a long one in that it can sustain a mood without technical creaking or over padding, deserves a better fate, and if, by careful writing, acting and producing I can do a little towards reinstating it in its rightful pride, I shall have achieved one of my more sentimental ambitions."〔(''Shaw Festival Study Guide, 2009'' ), p. 4. Accessed 17 March 2010.〕 The play was first produced in 1935 in Manchester and on tour and played in London (1936), New York (1936–1937) and Canada (1938). It has enjoyed several major revivals and in 1949 was adapted for film. At the London première, ''The Astonished Heart'' was played on the same evening as ''Family Album'' and ''Red Peppers''. Like all the other plays in the cycle, it originally starred Gertrude Lawrence and Coward himself.〔Hoare, pp. 268–70〕 ==History== Six of the plays in ''Tonight at 8:30'', including ''The Astonished Heart'', were first presented at the Manchester Opera House beginning on 15 October 1935,〔''The Manchester Guardian'', 16 October 1935, p. 11〕 and a seventh play was added on the subsequent provincial tour.〔 The final three were added for the London run: ''Ways and Means, Still Life''. The plays were performed in various combinations of three at each performance during the original run. The plays chosen for each performance were announced in advance, although a myth evolved that the groupings were random.〔''The Times'', 20 January 1936, p. 10; 11 February 1936, p. 12; 2 March 1936, p. 12; 6 April 1936, p. 10; 2 May 1936, p. 12; 10 June 1936, p. 14.〕 Matinées were sometimes billed as ''Today at 2:30''. On its opening night in Manchester, ''The Astonished Heart'' was presented together with ''We Were Dancing'' and ''Red Peppers''.〔 The first London performance was on 9 January 1936 at the Phoenix Theatre.〔''The Times'', 10 January 1936, p. 10.〕 Coward directed all ten pieces, and each starred Coward and Gertrude Lawrence. Coward said that he wrote them as "acting, singing, and dancing vehicles for Gertrude Lawrence and myself".〔Coward, unnumbered introductory page〕 Coward loved playing in some of the other plays in ''Tonight at 8:30'', particularly ''Fumed Oak'' and ''Red Peppers'', but "I hated playing ''The Astonished Heart''. It depressed me."〔Castle, p. 139〕 ''The Astonished Heart'' was not one of the best-received plays in ''Tonight at 8:30'' (or ''Tonight at 7:30'' as it was billed in Manchester, to reflect the earlier starting time in the provinces in the 1930s). ''The Manchester Guardian'' described it as "a clever play which probably touched nobody's heart", and other reviews said much the same.〔''The Observer'', 19 January 1936, p. 15〕〔〔 The Broadway openings for the three parts took place on 24 November 1936 (including ''The Astonished Heart''), 27 November 1936 and 30 November 1936 at the National Theatre, again starring Coward and Lawrence.〔(''The Astonished Heart'' and other plays ) at the IBDB database〕 The London and New York runs were limited only by Coward's boredom at long engagements.〔Kenrick, John. ("Noel Coward 101: Coward's Musicals", ) ''Musicals 101: The Cyber Encyclopedia of Musical Theatre, TV and Film''〕 Major productions of parts of the cycle were revived in 1948 and 1967 on Broadway and in 1981 at the Lyric Theatre in London, in each case omitting ''The Astonished Heart''. However, it was included at the Chichester Festival in 2006 (along with ''Hands Across the Sea'', ''Shadow Play'', ''Red Peppers'', ''Family Album'' and ''Fumed Oak''). In 1971, the Shaw Festival revived several, and in 2000, the Williamstown Theatre Festival revived six, but ''The Astonished Heart'' was omitted in both cases.〔Brantley, Ben. ("How to Savor Fleeting Joys: Smiles Suave, Brows Arched", ) ''The New York Times'', 28 June 2000,〕 The Antaeus Company in Los Angeles revived all ten plays in October 2007, and the Shaw Festival revived the full cycle in 2009.〔Belcher, David. ("Brushing Up Their Coward in Canada" ). ''New York Times'', 17 August 2009〕 In 1991, BBC television mounted productions of the individual plays with Joan Collins taking the Lawrence roles.〔Truss, Lynne. "Tonight at 8.30", ''The Times'', 15 April 1991〕 A film adaptation was made of the play in 1949 with music by William Blezard.〔(Noël Coward website ).〕 Coward himself played Christian Faber, and it also starred Celia Johnson and Margaret Leighton 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「The Astonished Heart」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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