You’ve Never Seen ‘Heartbreak House’ Like This

Directors

How the late Hermione Gingold inspired this new take on Shaw’s antiwar comedy

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“I loved hearing about Hermione’s escapades during the War,” says David Staller, the artistic director of Gingold Theatrical Group who also helms Heartbreak House. “It was a time when, along with everyone else in London, she never knew if she would make it through to morning because, starting every night at eight o’clock and going on until 6am, the Nazis indiscriminately bombed the city. It has always moved me greatly. We certainly have never had that in our country.”

Gingold was starring in a satirical revue at the Ambassadors Theatre during that period. When the sirens went off, the actors and the audience took shelter in the basement. “To keep spirits up, the performers put on plays in a kind of stage area they created, and the most often requested play was Heartbreak House,” Staller recalls Gingold telling him. “Every night they would switch roles — Hermione played them all, but she most loved to play the old Captain Shotover.” Subtitled “A Fantasia in the Russian Manner on English Themes,” Heartbreak House intentionally recalls the plays of Anton Chekhov as a group of eclectic and lovesick characters converge at Shotover’s country house, unaware that their anxieties over money and romance may soon be overshadowed by an uncertain future.

It was Gingold, a longtime family friend, who sparked Staller’s passion for Shaw. In the late ’70s, the two hosted readings of the great Irish dramatist’s plays in Gingold’s NYC apartment with a revolving roster of actors. Since founding Gingold Theatrical Group in 2006, Staller has continued that tradition with monthly Project Shaw presentations of his 65 pieces for the stage, including sketches and one-acts. The company has also coproduced full-fledged stagings of Shaw’s shows such as Man and Superman with Irish Repertory Theatre and Major Barbara with the now-defunct Pearl Theatre Company. Heartbreak House marks Gingold Theatrical Group’s first solo production.

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Working from a copy of Shaw’s original handwritten manuscript and drawing from subsequent versions of the play, Staller has adapted Heartbreak House to fit the original time frame of 1914. “I’ve been extremely careful to question every change, cut or addition, to make sure the story we are telling is the story that Shaw gave to us,” Staller says, noting that the WWII framing device is the biggest adjustment.

While Staller’s primary goal with Heartbreak House is to entertain audiences, he hopes the play’s unique presentation will also enlighten. “I want to share Shaw’s ideas with others: his precepts, beliefs and his love and encouragement of the best of humanity,” Staller says. “I would like audiences to feel a sense of community, to find some way to deal with the fear by knowing that we are all in this together. Even if we get a direct hit — which we seem to be getting every day in the news — we’ll get through to tomorrow.” Just like Gingold did back in the day.

To read about a student’s experience at Heartbreak House, check out this post on TDF’s sister site SEEN.

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TDF MEMBERS: At press time, discount tickets were available for Heartbreak House. Go here to browse our current offers.

Gerard Raymond is an arts journalist based in New York City.

Karen Ziemba and Tom Hewitt in Heartbreak House. Photos by Carol Rosegg.

Gerard Raymond is a Sri Lanka-born arts journalist based in New York City who’s a member of the Outer Critics Circle and the American Theater Critics/Journalists Association.