Chicago (play)

Chicago is a 1926 play written by Maurine Dallas Watkins. It was based on two unrelated 1924 cases of two women, Beulah Annan and Belva Gaertner, who were both suspected and later acquitted for murder, that Watkins had covered for the Chicago Tribune as a reporter. The play would later inspire a 1927 movie; Roxie Hart, a 1942 movie; and a 1975 stage musical, which in turn inspired the 2002 Best Picture-winning film. Watkins wrote the script (originally titled "Brave Little Woman") as a class assignment while attending the Yale Drama School.^[1] The play debuted on Broadway at the Sam Harris Theatre in late December 1926, directed by George Abbott, where it ran for 172 performances.^[2] To avoid confusion with the musical play and rights held by that show's producers and creators, the play is now titled Play Ball, when it is performed.^[3]

See also

• Machinal, another play from the 1920s, inspired by a real-life case of a woman convicted of murder.

References

1. ^ Phillips, Michael (2010-04-08). "Silent 1927 'Chicago' to make a musical comeback". Chicago Tribune. http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/talking_pictures/2010/04/silent-1927-chicago-to-make-a-musical-comeback.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+chicagotribune%2Ftalkingpictures+(Chicago+Tribune+-+Talking+Pictures). Retrieved 2010-06-02. 
2. ^ "Stagings of Chicago". http://www.maurinewatkins.com/stagings_chicago.htm. Retrieved 2010-06-02. ^{[dead link]}
3. ^ Tomell, Renee (2010-15-03). "'Play Ball’ — inspiration for ‘Chicago’ — hits Geneva stage". On The Go. http://otg.mysuburbanlife.com/2010/03/15/%E2%80%98play-ball%E2%80%99-%E2%80%94-inspiration-%E2%80%98chicago%E2%80%99-%E2%80%94-hits-geneva-stage. Retrieved 2010-06-02.