Peggy
Ashcroft (1907-1991) made her first appearance in Twelfth Night
in 1938 in Michael Saint-Denis' London production, under whose direction
she had recently performed in an historic staging of The Three Sisters
at the Queen's Theatre. But the magic failed to reignite for Saint-Denis
at the Phoenix, and Twelfth Night (and its companion piece The
White Guard) was met with critical indifference (despite a cast that
included George Devine as Toby, Vera Lindsay [pictured] as Olivia, and
a young Michael Redgrave as Sir Andrew Aguecheek) with the exception of
Ashcroft's exquisite performance of Viola. Despite the tepid critical
reaction to the production, it was immortalized on January 2, 1939 as
one of the earliest Shakespearean plays to be televised by the BBC.
Far
better received was Ashcroft's return to the role at the Old Vic Theatre. The
building had been severely damaged by bombing in 1941 and the Old Vic Company
was forced to relocate to the New Theatre for the duration of the decade. But
the repair work was finally completed in 1950 and the theatre was reopened with
a production of Twelfth Night that feature a cast that included Leo McKern
as Feste, Paul Rogers as Malvolio, and Alec Clunes as Orsino. Though Hugh Hunt's
direction stressed the low comedy antics of the play, the production was an
emotional experience in part because of the poignant circumstances of its premiere
but mainly due to Ashcroft's sublime interpretation of Viola. W.A. Darlington
wrote in The Daily Telegraph "Peggy Ashcroft (is) the most delightful Viola
of my experience. She has passion, she speaks the verse exquisitely, she has
her own gift of perennial youth, and she makes a really credible boy. As for
the lighter scenes, she has an enchanting gaiety."