Beyond the Pasty

Biblical Witnesses

Dear Liar

Letters between George Bernard Shaw and Mrs. Patrick Campbell. For 40 years of their very public lives, there existed a private and infinitely intriguing relationship between the famous English actress, Mrs. Patrick Campbell, and George Bernard Shaw, the well-known playwright. When Shaw was, as he said, old enough to know better, he fell head over heels in love with Mrs. Campbell. This is the story of that enchantment told in their own words in the hundreds of letters they sent to one another over the years, letters which they both saved, fought over, returned to each other and very nearly lost in the second world war.

Susan Pellowe and Richard Westphal revive a staged reading of Dear Liar that they first performed 25 years ago, bringing to both the freshness and deeper appreciation that come from renewing acquaintance with a long-lost friend.

"Their comic timing is exceptional.... Westphal does a fine job of capturing Shaw's unusual wit.... Pellowe is full of warmth and vitality and she mesmerizes the audience with her performance" ..."I felt I spent the afternoon with Shaw and Mrs. Campbell in person."

Technical requirements extremely simple: two reading stands, two stools, a small table. Area- and spot-lights enhance the staging and are preferable. A private changing room for the actors. Running time: One hour forty-five minutes.

Dear Liar, A Biography in Two Acts by Jerome Kilty; adapted from the correspondence of Bernard Shaw and Mrs. Patrick Campbell. By special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc.

Book Susan Pellowe and Richard Westphal for Dear Liar