A Princess Of Poland

Examiner of Plays' Summary:

This is a blend of the now common spy-drama with the comedy of Ruritania. Its motive is provide in an attempted Polish revolt against the tyranny of Prussianized Austria. The young Princess who is its heroine has amongst her supporters her lover, an English diplomat, together with his American friend; while the chief enemy of her cause is a treacherous German, who is anxious to make her his wife. The plottings of the latter and his confederates succeed in defeating the proposed revolution, for the failure of which the Englishman is made to appear responsible, and thus to lose for a while the love of his Polish princess. In the end through the falling out of rogues the lovers come to their own, after a series of strange doings in Park Lane and on the banks of the Vistula. The long-winded romance has no vestige of realistic plausibility - but as an effort of uncultured imagination is quite harmless. Recommended for license. Ernest A. Bendall.

Researcher's Summary:

Whether this play -which according to The Stage on 29 April 1915 was ‘not a War Play’ - was ever performed is unclear. It was advertised as ‘Mr. and Mrs. Harry Lyndon’s New Production, in The Stage on 25 March and 1 April 1915. The Stage carried many advertisements for it between 1 April and 5 August 1915, seeking theatres to host it but no reviews were ever published. On 1 and 29 April advertisements sought ‘vacant autumn dates’ and on 13 May an advertisement sought theatres from September onward. From 24 June advertisements sought theatres from Christmas onwards. Often the same advertisement mentioned another play with which Mr. and Mrs. Lyndon were involved and for which theatres were sought, Mrs. F. G. Kimberley’s “The Pet of the Ranch”. However, advertisements from 19 August 1915 to 1 June 1916 stop mentioning “A Princess of Poland”. Each advertisement gave Harry Lyndon as the contact point for interested theatre managers and named the theatres where he could be reached that week and the next. In some cases it has been possible to identify the plays being performed at the theatres where Harry Lyndon was, yet it was never “A Princess of Poland”. It appears that Mr. and Mrs. Lyndon were managing touring arrangements for other plays while endeavouring, unsuccessfully, to arrange a production of “A Princess of Poland”. Perhaps any remaining plans to produce “A Princess of Poland” died with Harry Lyndon who passed away on 19 December 1916 according to In Memoriam notices inserted by his widow and children in The Stage, 16 December 1920.