NOTES

BETTY BRONSON: A SILENT FILM VERSION

Kinds of Analysis:

Biographical: How Does Barrie’s life impact on the story?
Symbolic: What does the story mean?
Cultural Patterns: What can we say about children in the period in which Barrie wrote? Compare Waterbabies, theft of children by Gypsies.

Barries life:

Biolgraphical approach: How does the author’s life affect the way his story (and perhaps his whole philosophy goes?

BRIEF CHRONOLOGY OF BARRIE'S LIFE

THE BARRIE FAMILY

Parents
Margaret Olgivy (mother)
David (father)

Siblings:

Alexander
Mary (b. 1845)
Jane Ann (b. 1847)
David(b. 1853 d. 1867)
Sara (b. 1854)
Isobella (b. 1858)
JAMES (b. 1860)
Maggie(b. 1863)
two sisters who had died nine years before James was born

THE DAVIES FAMILY

The Parents
Arthur Llewellyn Davies(father)
Sylvia Jocelyn Llewellyn Davies (nee du Maurier)(mother). She is the sister of actor Gerald du Maurier and daughter of George du Maurier author of Peter Ibbetson and Trilby.

The Boys
George (oldest) killed in the war, 1915
John (Jack)
Peter suicide, 1960 Sloane Square station
Michael drowned in boating accident,1921
Nicholas

IMPORTANT DATES IN BARRIE'S LIFE

1860 9 May: James Barrie born at Kirriemuir, Scotland c 1867: Death of brother David at age 13 in a skating accident.
1873-1878: Attended Dmfries Academy
1878: Studies at University of Edinbugh
1882: Receives M.A, from the University of Edinburgh
1885: Moves to London
1887: Publishes first book Better Dead
1888: Publication of Auld Licht Idylls and When a Man is Single
1889: Publication of A Window in Thrums
1891 16 April: First performance of Richard Savage
1891: Publication of The Little Minister
1892 25 Feb: First performance of play, Walker, London
1892 9 May: Accidental death of Barrie's friend Rev. James Winter who was to marry Barrie's sister Maggie. Later she marries James' brother William.
1894 25 June: First performance of The Professor's Love Story
1894 9 July: Barrie marries actress Mary Ansell.
1895 1 Sept.: Death of Barrie's sister Jane Ann 1895 3 Sept.: Death of Barrie's mother 1896: Publication of Sentimental Tommy and Margaret Ogilvy
1897 6 Nov. First performance of Little Minister (320 performances)
1898 March: Receives honorary LL.D. degree from St. Andrew's University, Scotland
1900 27 Sept.: First performance of The Wedding Guest (100 Performances)
1900: Publication of Tommy and Grizel, a sequel to Sentimental Tommy
1902 17 Sept.: First performance of Quality Street (459 performances)
1902 4 Nov.: First performance of The Admirable Crichton (328 Performances)
1902: Publication of The Little White Bird
1903: First performance of Little Mary (208 performances)
1904 27 Dec.: First performance of Peter Pan or The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up - London (145 Performances)
1905 5 Apr.: First performance of Alice Sit by the Fire (115 performances)
1906: Publication of Peter Pan in Kensington Garden
1908 3 Sept.: First performance of What Every Woman Knows (384 performance)
1909 2 April: Barrie receives honorary LL.D from the University of Edinbugh
1911 May: Appearance of Peter Pan statue in Kennsington Gardens
1913: Barrie made a baronet by George V
1916 18 March: First performance of A Kiss for Cinderella (156 performances)
1917 17 October: First performance of Dear Brutus (365 performances)
1918: Publication of four one-act plays called Echoes of War
1919 1 Nov.: become Rector of St. Andrew's.
1919: Publication of Barrie's "Preface" to The Young Sisters by 9 year old Daisy Ashford.
1920 22 April: First performance of Mary Rose (399 performances)
1921 27 May: First performance of Shall We Join the Ladies for festival. Actual run in 1923 ran 407 performances.
1922: Barrie receives the Order of Merit
1926 23 June: Receives honorary LL.D. from Oxford
1930 23 June: Receives honorary LL.D. from Cambridge
1930 25 Oct.: Barrie becomes chancellor of the University of Edinburgh
1936 21 Nov.: First performance of The Boy David
1937 19 June: Barrie dies. Buried in Kerriemuir cemetery wih brother and mother
1960 5 April: Peter Llewellyn Davies commits suicide by throwing himself in front of a subway train.

IS PETER PAN A CHILDREN's STORY?

The Play

What are the famous scenes?

Dog making bed at opening.
Tinkerbell’s entrance
Peter’s entrance
Sewing on the shadow
Departure of children
The first appearance of Indians and Pirates
The first appearance of the crocodile

What are the famous lines?
If you believe in fairies, clap your hands? What problems does this have in film
To die will be an awfully big adventure

AFTER THE FILM

BETTY BRONSON FILM VERSION

What happens with loss of dialogue?
There are more questions about language that we will deal with next week.
How to approach the problem of direct address to audience?

How is the play “altered”?
What cuts are made?
John and Wendy playing mother and father
Economic status (about loosing job etc.)
Freeing of Tiger Lily

What is added?
Political propaganda
Some shift is needed to make it palatable to American audiences (Are the children are American in the film?) They sing "My Country 'Tis of Thee" and swear allegience to the "Stars and STripes".
Pan can not be touched in the published play, but could be here. There is some discussion that this comes about from actresses playing Peter adding this before the publication of the play, but after it opened.

What is involved with the casting?
Casting the same person often to play Mr. Darling and Capt Hook. This is often done and was done in the original production.
Casting a woman as Peter. This was done until the Disney version where Bobby Driscoll's voice is used for Peter and he acted the part and was "drawn" in the cartoon.There is some indication that (a) children were not allowed to appear on stage after 9:00 pm, however John and Michael do. Another possibility is that in British "pantomimes" the male hero of the stories (Sinbad, Alladin, etc.) was often played by a female who would wear revealing shorts and thus appeal to the male population, the members of which had little "leg" to see in the clothing of the time.

Technical problems:
Keeping Pan from having a shadow. Is this well done in the film? Is there an attempt made? How? Flying (easier in film than stage since a cut allows time to get into harnesses. On stage the play contains a scene where the maid Liza returns with Nana and the children hide which gives them time to get into the harnesses for flying.
Tinker Bell's physical appearance. On stage, usually a "ball" of light. What happens in the film?

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