Desire Under the Elms
is a play by Eugene O'Neill, published in 1924, and is now considered an American classic. Along with Mourning Becomes Electra
, it represents one of O'Neill's attempts to place plot elements and themes of Greek tragedy in a rural New England setting. A film version was produced in 1958, and there is an operatic setting by Edward Thomas.
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DESIRE UNDER THE ELMS TICKETS
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Characters
Ephraim Cabot
Simeon
Peter - his sons
Eben
Abbie Putnam
Young Girl, Two Farmers, The Fiddler, A Sheriff, and other folk from the neighboring farms
Synopsis
Widower Ephraim Cabot abandons his
New England farm to his three sons, who hate him but share his greed. Eben, the youngest and brightest sibling, feels the farm is his birthright, as it originally belonged to his mother. He buys out his half-brothers' shares of the farm with money stolen from his father, and Peter and Simeon head off to
California to seek their fortune. Later, Ephraim returns with a new wife, the beautiful and headstrong Abbie, who enters into an adulterous affair with Eben. Soon after, Abbie bears Eben's child, but lets Ephraim believe that the child is his, in the hopes of securing her future with the farm. The proud Ephraim is oblivious as his neighbors openly mock him as a cuckold. Madly in love with Eben and fearful it would become an obstacle to their relationship, Abbie kills the infant. An enraged and distraught Eben turns Abbie over to the sheriff, but not before admitting to himself the depths of his love for her and thus confessing his own role in the
infanticide.
Major productions
Broadway (1952) - Directed by
Harold Clurman, produced by The
American National Theater and Academy. Starring
Douglass Watson as Eben Cabot and Carol Stone as Abbie Putnam, 46 performances.
Asmita Theatre (India, 1995) - Directed by
Arvind Gaur, translated by
Nadira Babbar, starring
Deepak Dobriyal,
Manu Rishi, Deepak Ochani and Arachana Shintre Joshii, 14 performances.
Goodman Theatre (Chicago, 2009) - Directed by
Robert Falls, starring
Brian Dennehy as Ephraim Cabot,
Carla Gugino as Abbie Putnam and
Pablo Schreiber as Eben Cabot
Broadway (2009) - Transfer of the Goodman run; at the St. James Theatre. Previews began April 14, 2009; opened April 27 and closed May 24.