Tea and Sympathy (play)

Tea and Sympathy is a 1953 stage play in three acts by Robert Anderson.

The play is about a male private school student, Tom Lee, who faces accusations of homosexuality. A woman, Laura, who is married to an instructor, opposes the students' shaming of Lee and romantically pursues him so he can prove that he has a masculine character.

Everett Evans of the Houston Chronicle wrote that the play was "one of the first plays to tackle the then-taboo topic of sexual orientation and related prejudice." Evans stated that the play's final line, "Years from now, when you speak of this, and you will, be kind," is "one of the most quoted curtain lines in stage history".

The play premiered on Broadway at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre on September 30, 1953, in a production by The Playwrights' Company, directed by Elia Kazan and designed by Jo Mielziner. The play starred Deborah Kerr, Leif Erickson, and John Kerr. It transferred to the Longacre Theatre, and later the 48th Street Theatre. It had a total run of 712 performances. During the run, Joan Fontaine and Anthony Perkins took over the roles played by Deborah Kerr and John Kerr.

The play was first performed in London at the Comedy Theatre under membership conditions, because of the ban imposed by the Lord Chamberlain.

A French adaptation was presented at the Théâtre de Paris, Paris, starring Ingrid Bergman and Jean-Loup Phillipe and directed by Jean Mercure.

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