Romance (Sheldon play)

Romance is a play by the American dramatist Edward Sheldon. It was first produced in New York in 1913, and a London production followed in 1915, which ran for 1,049 performances. Both productions featured Doris Keane as an opera star who has an intense affair with a young clergyman.

The play opened at the Maxine Elliott Theatre, New York, on February 10, 1913. It featured Doris Keane as Mme Margherita Cavallini, William Courtenay as Thomas Armstrong and A. E. Anson as Cornelius van Tuyl. It ran for 160 performances.

In London, Romance opened at the Duke of York's Theatre on October 6, 1915. It featured Doris Keane as Mme Cavallini, Owen Nares as Armstrong and A. E. Anson, who produced the play, as van Tuyl. The play ran for 1,049 performances, transferring during the run to the Lyric Theatre.

The play was revived in 1921 at the Playhouse Theatre, New York, opening on February 28 and running for 106 performances. It featured Doris Keane as Mme Cavallini, Basil Sydney as Armstrong and A. E. Anson as van Tuyl.

In his library in Washington Square, New York, Bishop Armstrong learns with disquiet that his grandson Harry is engaged to be married to Lucille Anderson, an actress. Harry says that the bishop has never felt the way he does; in response, the bishop finds a box of mementos (a handkerchief and dried violets) from an affair of long ago, and starts to tell Harry a story. The following scenes are a representation of the story.

About 1867, there is an evening reception at the house of Cornelius van Tuyl, a wealthy banker. The guests include Madame Margherita Cavallini, an Italian opera star. Tom, the rector of St Giles (the bishop in younger days) is a friend of van Tuyl, who supports his church work. Van Tuyl expects Tom to say he wants to marry his niece Susan; instead, Tom says he disapproves of his association with Mme Cavallini, who has a bad reputation.

When Mme Cavallini (Rita) enters with her admirers, she and Tom immediately notice each other. Tom awkwardly introduces himself to her, and she is interested in him. She says their moment together is like her bouquet of violets, to enjoy before they die. He wants to see her again, and she asks him to come to her hotel apartment. All this time he does not know who she is; as she leaves, she asks van Tuyl to tell him.

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