Ghostlight joins with the Richard H. Driehaus Museum in March to present a staged reading of the recently rediscovered play, The Shadow of A Doubt, by novelist Edith Wharton. The play is part of our For Your (Re)Consideration series that explores the works of historically overlooked female writers.
Set at the turn of the twentieth century, The Shadow of a Doubt, explores the issues surrounding social position, remarriage, the roles of women and euthanasia. Replete with Wharton’s trademark wit and skewering of Gilded Age manners, the play centers around nurse Kate Tredennis, who marries John Derwent, a widower of one of Kate’s former patients and friends. Elevated into society through her marriage, Kate is a model wife and stepmother, but she feels uneasy with her new position and faces constant scrutiny for her lowlier background. Soon, her unease is manifested when a man from her past casts suspicion on Kate and accuses her in the first Mrs. Derwent’s death.
The reading runs about 90 minutes with an intermission. A brief talkback will follow.
More information is available on our show page here, and on the Driehaus Museum’s website here.