- Hobson's Choice
"Hobson's Choice" is a play by
Harold Brighouse , the title coming from the popular expression,Hobson's choice — meaning no choice at all.The play was first produced in America, the first English production being on June 24 1916 in London. The story is set in
Salford in 1880.Plot
The plot revolves around Willie Mossop, a gifted, shoemaker employed by Henry Horatio Hobson. Content with his lot, he is persuaded by Hobson's eldest daughter, Maggie (over the hill by Victorian terms at the ripe old age of 30), into marrying her and setting up in a shop of his own..Between her sales talent, Maggie and Willie's buissness is very successful and, within a year, he's taken nearly all Hobson's buisness. At Maggie's urging, Willie goes into partnership with Hobson, now an almost-bankrupt alcoholic, on condition that Hobson take no further part in the business.
Film and television adaptions
The play has been filmed several times, originally as a silent film with
Joan Ritz as Maggie andArthur Pitt as her father. It was filmed again, this time with sound, in 1931, withJames Harcourt as Hobson,Frank Pettingell as Mossop,Joan Maude as Alice, andViola Lyel as Maggie.The best-known film version is that of 1954 directed by
David Lean . It starredCharles Laughton as Hobson andBrenda De Banzie as Maggie.John Mills played Will Mossop, Maggie's suitor, andPrunella Scales made her second film appearance as Vicky Hobson.It was Americanized in the 1983 TV version. It was set in 1914 New Orleans starring
Jack Warden as Hobson andSharon Gless as Maggie. The 1966 Broadway play "Walking Happy " tells the original story.“Hobson’s Choice,” an English ballet adaptation of Harold Brighouse's play of the same title with choreography by
David Bintley and music byPaul Reade , premiered on February 13, 1989 bySadler's Wells Royal Ballet atCovent Garden , London. A video production of the ballet has been seen on television broadcasts, and released on DVD.External links
* [http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext04/hbsnc10.txt Project Gutenberg ebook]
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