The Glass Menagerie

Past Productions

The Glass Menagerie opened on Broadway in the Playhouse Theatre

on March 31, 1945. It then moved to the Royale Theatre from July 1,
1946, a month later.

Laurette Taylor's performance as Amanda set a standard against

which subsequent actresses taking the role were to be judged,
typically to their disadvantage. Many Broadway veterans rank
Taylor's performance as the most memorable of their lives.

Two Hollywood movie versions of The Glass Menagerie have been

produced. The first, directed by Irving Rapper in 1950, starred
Gertrude Lawrence, Jane and Kirk Douglas. Tennessee Williams
himself characterized this version, which had an implied happy
ending grafted onto it in the style of American films from that era, as
the worst adaptation of his work, and most critics agreed.

The second film directed by Paul Newman in 1987, starred Joanne

Woodward, Karen Allen, John Malkovich and James Naughton and, if
anything, was even less well-received than the earlier film and sank
without much attention.

So it doesn’t seem particularly easy to film this particular text,

however there is a critically acclaimed Indian adaptation of the play,
filmed in the Malayalam language.