Tonight at 8.30
Tonight at 8.30[n 1] is a cycle of ten one-act plays by Noël Coward, presented in London in 1936 and in New York in 1936–1937, with the author and Gertrude Lawrence in the leading roles.[n 2] In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Coward wrote a succession of hits, ranging from the operetta Bitter Sweet (1929) and the epic Cavalcade (1931), requiring a large cast, gargantuan sets and a complex hydraulic stage, to the intimate comedies Private Lives (1930), in which Coward starred alongside Gertrude Lawrence, and Design for Living (1932).In fact, if one looks back over the years, one finds that the "triple bill" formula has been used, with varying degrees of success, since the earliest days of the theatre.Occasionally still a curtain-raiser appears in the provinces but wearing a sadly hang-dog expression, because it knows only too well, poor thing, that it would not be there at all were the main attraction of the evening long enough.[…] A short play, having a great advantage over a long one in that it can sustain a mood without technical creaking or overpadding, 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.[28]The New York run finished a month earlier than planned, because Coward's health broke down from overwork and his doctor insisted on an immediate break.[30] Major productions of parts of the cycle included Broadway revivals in 1948 (Red Peppers, Hands Across the Sea, Fumed Oak, Family Album, Shadow Play, and Ways and Means, starring Lawrence and Graham Payn),[n 5] and 1967 (Fumed Oak, Still Life and Ways and Means), 1981 at the Lyric Theatre in London (Shadow Play, Hands Across the Sea and Red Peppers), starring John Standing and Estelle Kohler and at the Chichester Festival in 2006 (Shadow Play, Hands Across the Sea, Red Peppers, Family Album, Fumed Oak and The Astonished Heart).[34] In 2018 a revival played at Jermyn Street Theatre in London, directed by Tom Littler, omitting Fumed Oak but including Star Chamber.
Meet Me TonightLawrenceCowardNoël CowardGertrude LawrenceThe Astonished HeartShadow PlayStill LifeStar ChamberManchesteroperettaBitter SweetCavalcadePrivate LivesDesign for LivingWe Were DancingRed PeppersHands Across the SeaFumed OakFamily AlbumWays and MeansThe New York TimesOpera House, ManchesterPhoenix TheatreJames ThurberBramwell FletcherGraham PaynLyric TheatreJohn StandingEstelle KohlerChichester FestivalShaw FestivalBlythe DannerEnglish Touring TheatreMichael BillingtonNuffield Theatre, SouthamptonJermyn Street TheatreTom LittlerSara CroweIan HallardRosemary Ashefilm of the same nameNorma ShearerMelvyn DouglasBrief EncounterRichard BurtonSophia LorenAnthony PelissierCelia JohnsonMargaret LeightonJoan CollinsBruce ForsythDora BryanEdith EvansProducers' ShowcaseOtto PremingerGinger RogersMartyn GreenGlasgowEdinburghLiverpoolNewcastleBirminghamThe Manchester GuardianThe TimesWayback MachineSheridan MorleyInternet Broadway DatabaseInternet ArchiveLondon Calling!On with the DanceThis Year of GraceWords and MusicSet to MusicSigh No MoreOh, Coward!Cowardy CustardConversation PieceOperettePacific 1860Ace of ClubsAfter the BallSail AwayThe Girl Who Came to SupperThe Rat TrapI'll Leave It to YouThe Better HalfThe Young IdeaThe VortexHay FeverFallen AngelsEasy VirtueThe Queen Was in the ParlourSemi-MondeThis Was a ManSiroccoThe MarquiseHome ChatPost-MortemPoint ValainePresent LaughterThis Happy BreedBlithe SpiritPeace in Our TimeSouth Sea BubbleRelative ValuesQuadrilleNude with ViolinLook After Lulu!Waiting in the WingsSuite in Three KeysIn Which We ServePomp and CircumstancePresent IndicativeFuture IndefiniteThe Noël Coward DiariesTonight Is OursPretty PollyHigh Spirits