The Constant Wife opened in Cleveland, Ohio in November 1926 and despite a nervous Ethel Barrymore having cue sheets all over the stage and the director hidden in the fire place prompting, it transferred to New York where it ran for a year followed by another year on tour. It opened in London in April 1927 and the first night was a disaster because a considerable number of seats had been sold twice, once expensively and once to the pit queue. The latter arriving first refused to budge so that quarrels broke out, delaying the performance and upsetting the actors.

However, the play ran and was seen all over the UK. It has been revived with great success all over the world including a prestigious West End showing in 1975 with Ingrid Bergman in the lead.

Maugham had been influenced by Ibsen in his early plays and it is perhaps not stretching the comparison too far to consider The Constant Wife as A Doll's House turned into a comedy. The comparison between Torvald's treatment of Nora and John's of Constance and the consequent growth to independence in both women is striking. However, one must bear in mind that Maugham saw himself primarily as an entertainer. In his preface to The Collected Plays he wrote:

"...this is the business of comedy. To my mind it is not a work of edification, though it should be a work of art, and if it castigates the follies of the moment that is by the way and only in so far as this ....occasions laughter. The object is the entertainment of the audience not their improvement."

Over the years there has been much discussion about how to interpret the conclusion of the play. Perhaps this is a compliment to Maugham's skill in creating realistic situations. Without revealing too much of the denouement it might be worth quoting part of Maugham's reply when asked what happened next: after giving his opinion he added

"But I may be wrong. The author does not always know."

ALAN CHAMBERS
Director