Les Deux Orphelines

Les Deux Orphelines ("The two orphans") is a historical play in five acts by Adolphe d'Ennery (1811-1899)[1] and Eugène Cormon (1811-1903)[2]

Also known as Les Soeurs Gérard (The Gérard Sisters) or even as Motherless in one adapted English version.

The original text

A melodrama set during the French Revolution, it premiered in French on 20 January 1874 at the Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin in Paris. Published in Paris by Tresse and Eugène Fasquelle, Éditeurs, 11, rue de Grenelle, 11, 1875.

The plot is simple and commonplace; Louise and Henrietta are two orphans united by the strongest bond of affection, who make their way from the country to Paris. Louise was a castaway in infancy, who had been placed in a cradle on the steps of a church, and was there discovered by the father of Henrietta, who himself had gone to the same spot to leave his own child. As he was about to desert her, however, he heard the cry of the other, and more humane feelings prevailing, he decided, instead of sacrificing the one to keep both the children and for their sakes, try anew the battle of life of which he had previously wearied. At the age of 12 or 14. (it was variously stated by the two on the stage, evidently in error.) Louise lost her eyesight, and at 16, both girls, bereft of the parents who had nurtured them as already stated, made their way to Paris, where, shortly after their arrival, and while standing in the street, Henrietta, was forcibly carried off by the Marquis de Presles, but subsequently rescued by Armand Chevalier de Vaudray. Meanwhile, Louise's helpless condition, for she is alone and friendless, has attracted the attention of La Frochard, an old widow (widower?) and professional beggar who promised to assist in reuniting the sisters, but instead made the poor girl help in her miserable calling and ill treated her on every occasion. The next phase shows Marianne, a poor, fallen widow, resolving to hand herself over to justice for some robbery in preference to continuing her life of infamy with one Jacques. Jacques strong, dishonest and lazy and Pierre, crippled, weak, and honest, are the two sons of Madame Frochard, one of whom wishes to liberate, and the other to keep for himself the poor blind girl. The third phase introduces the Count de Liniere, Minister of Police, and his wife, uncle and aunt of De Vaudray. The count arranged a marriage for his nephew, which the latter declines, and the Countess is asked to bring him to reason, when he confesses his love for Henrietta and also extracts from his aunt the confession that she had in early life, secretly married a peasant and become the mother of a child, but inexorable parents, having loftier views for their daughter, had the husband removed to the Bastille and the child cast away with no other clue to its identity than a request it might be called Louise. All this is a secret from Count de Liniere, who labours under the delusion that his wife bears him the same love he feels. These elements, having all been developed in the play, the work of reconciling then begins and is carried through. Henrietta in consequence of Armand's love, is about to be carried into exile by the all powerful Minister of Police, when Marianne steps forward as a substitute. Jacques is stabbed by Pierre when the former attempts to retain Louise, who has been discovered by her foster-sister. The Countess discovers that the blind girl and her lost child are identical, the count forgives his wife her deception and the curtain falls.

Translations and adaptations

Translated into English as The Two Orphans by J. Oxenford (John Oxenford, 1812-1877[3]) was first produced at the Royal Olympic Theatre, London, (under Mr. Henry Neville's management) September 14, 1874 and published by Samuel French in the 1870s. It is styled "a drama, in eight tableaux, divided into six acts". This is probably the version used in South Africa by Disney Roebuck and The Wheelers.

Another English version, also translated as The Two Orphans, by N. Hart Jackson opened in the United States at A.M. Palmer's Union Square Theatre on December 21, 1874 and became a popular melodrama in the USA.

In some sources it is suggested that the play may have also have been adapted under the title Motherless (circa 1910-15), by an unnamed author. However this is more likely to have been a stage adaptation of the novel by that name by Fanny Eden (Fanny Eadon Horner, 1849–1945) - perhaps better known by its Dutch and Afrikaans translation as Moederloos.

The play was also turned into many other works, including an 1877 novel written by the same authors, an 1878 Portuguese opera and was performed the Moscow Art Theatre in 1927 by Konstantin Stanislavski[4] as The Gérard Sisters (Les Soeurs Gérard). The play/novel was filmed at least four times during the silent film era, including a version by Georges Monca for Pathé (1909, released in the USA with the title, Motherless in 1910) and Orphans of the Storm by D.W. Griffith (1921).

Performance history in South Africa

1876: Performed as The Two Orphans (the six-act Oxenford version) in the Athenaeum Hall, Cape Town, by Disney Roebuck and company on 6, 7 and 9 November, as a farewell benefit for Hilda Temple.

December 4, 1876: Presented by Disney Roebuck's United Service Dramatic Company at the Theatre Royal in Port Elizabeth. Starring Miss Balfe as Louise, Hilda Temple as Henrietta, Mr Yates as Jacques, Mr William Elton as Pierre, who Henry J Vickers, theatre critic for the Eastern Province Herald, wrote a review which was published in the paper on December 5, 1876: "tried hard to do justice to the part, but only succeeded in mixing up Danny Mann and Uriah Heep into a somewhat ludicrous compound very different from what the authors must have intended the cripple to be, and a nasty habit of repeating himself is to be deprecated." (Vickers sued Elton. See William Elton for details of the case). Also starring Miss Georgina Robertson as the Countess, Miss Maggie Duggan as Madam Frochard, Mr Robertson as Armand de Vaudray, Mr W H Thorn as Count de Liniere, Mr Clive Hersee as Lefleur and Miss Fanny Lewis as Marianne.

1878: Performed as The Two Orphans (the six-act Oxenford version) in the Theatre Royal, Cape Town, by Disney Roebuck and company on 20, 23 and 31 May, and again on 20 June (this last performance accompanied by a performance by the local dance troupe "The Grotesques").

1884: Performed in English as Two Orphans in the Theatre Royal, Cape Town, under the management of Henry Harper, as part of a series of plays put on by a company led by H.C. Sidney.

1887: The play was performed in English as Two Orphans and formed part of the repertoire of the Wheeler Theatre Company when they played in the Theatre Royal, Cape Town during April and May. Probably directed by Sutton Vane.

1914: A play called Motherless was performed at the Palladium Theatre in Johannesburg by the London Repertoire Co., with a cast including Hilda Attenboro. Though it is likely that this was a new English version of Les Deux Orphelines, it may also have been a version of Heinrich von Kleist's Der Findling (The Foundling or Motherless Waif in English).

Sources

Eastern Province Herald, Tuesday, December 5, 1876.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Two_Orphans_(play)

https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/22353660?q&versionId=27003085

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Oxenford

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolphe_d%27Ennery

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eug%C3%A8ne_Cormon

D.C. Boonzaier. 1923. "My playgoing days – 30 years in the history of the Cape Town stage", in SA Review, 9 March and 24 August 1923. (Reprinted in Bosman 1980: pp. 374-439.)

F.C.L. Bosman. 1980. Drama en Toneel in Suid-Afrika, Deel II, 1856-1912. Pretoria: J.L. van Schaik: pp. 343, 347, 368-9, 378, 384

New Zealand Herald, 16 October 1915

NZ Truth, 7 October 1916

Rand Daily Mail, 10 June 1919

https://ozvta.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/variety-performers-in-radio-list-1112017.pdf

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm5391139/?ref_=nv_sr_1

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