The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest (German title: Ernst sein ist alles or Bunbury ) is a comedy in three acts by Oscar Wilde , premiered on February 14, 1895 in London's St. James Theater in a production by George Alexander . There is also a four-act preliminary version that was never played during Wilde's lifetime, but which forms the basis of the first German translation of the material.
The original title of the piece (best to translate into German as "The importance of being serious" ) is based on a play on words : Earnest means "honest", which is only inadequately reproduced in the German translation with "serious" / "serious", at the same time the first name "Ernest" plays a central role in the story.
The comedy is one of Wilde's successful dramas , in which he attacked the men and women of the upper class in a witty and ironic way, but without fundamentally questioning their parasitic life. Wilde himself considered Bunbury his best comedy.
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The two English gentlemen Algernon and Jack are bon vivants and indulge in fun in their free time. In order to combine this passion with their social obligations, they both came up with an excuse: Algernon invents a sick friend named Bunbury to be able to go to the country every now and then, and Jack pretends to care for his dissolute brother Ernest (in German Translation Ernst) to be able to come to town every now and then.
Jack, who always pretends to be his brother Ernest in town, falls in love with Algernon's cousin Gwendolen and proposes to her. She describes it as her goal in life to marry someone named Ernest. Algernon visits Jack's country house under false claims that he is Jack's brother Ernest. He falls in love with Jack's ward Cecily. She also considers the name Ernest to be an absolutely necessary requirement for her future husband. Algernon's aunt Augusta is absolutely against a marriage of her daughter with Jack, after learning that Jack orphan and an infant at London Victoria station was found in a travel bag. However, she agrees to a wedding between her nephew Algernon and Cecily after hearing of their considerable fortune. But Jack only wants to give his consent if he can marry Gwendolen in return.
It turns out that Cecily's governess Miss Prism accidentally left Algernon's brother in a handbag at the train station many years ago. It finally becomes clear that the foundling Jack was this baby and that he is Algernon's older brother. It also turns out that Jack was actually named after his birth father Ernest John . Jack was telling the truth all along, without knowing it.
To explain: Jack is a slang form of John in English . So Jack Ernest becomes John , the "real John" - a play on words .
Film adaptations (selection)
- 1952: It's all serious , directed by Anthony Asquith
- 1976: No wedding without seriousness (GDR television), director: Kurt Jung-Alsen , a. a. with Renate Blume , Ezard Haußmann , Rolf Herricht and Inge Keller
- 1979: Jak per Důležité MITI Filipa the Czech version of The Importance of Being Earnest (television Czechoslovakia) Director: Jiří Bělka , with Josef Abrhám , Jaromír Hanzlík , Nada Konvalinková , libuše šafránková (Gwendolen Fairfax), Stella Zázvorková , Zdena Hadrbolcová , Lubomír Kostelka , Svatopluk Beneš
- 2002: Everything is serious , directed by Oliver Parker
A comic -version with the Disney -Figuren Donald Duck and his friends included in Donald Duck pocket books , Volume 209 ( 1995 ).
Musical arrangements
- 1927: Oh Earnest, American musical
- 1960s: Ernest in Love, off-Broadway musical with texts by Anne Croswell and music by Lee Pockriss
- 1963: Erik Chisholm : The Importance of Being Earnest, "Comic opera" in three acts
- 1964: Gerd Natschinski : My friend Bunbury , musical, world premiere at the Metropol-Theater , East Berlin
- 2011: Gerald Barry : The Importance of Being Earnest , opera in three acts, world premiere at the Walt Disney Concert Hall , Los Angeles
Radio plays
- 1925: Bunbury - adaptation: Hans Bodenstedt , director: Hermann Beyer , with Friedrich Siems (Algernon Moncrief), Reinhold Lütjohann (John Worthing), Karl Pündter (Rev. Canon Chaunuble), Hans Freundt (Merriman, Diener), Irene Rafael (Lady Brackwell), Käthe Schmidt-Steiner (Gwendolen Fairfax, their daughter), Käthe Franck-Witt (Cecil Cardew), Lotte Schloß (Miss Prism, governess) ( NORAG )
- 1947: Bunbury - Editing and direction: Alfred Schulz-Escher ( HR )
- 1948: How important is it to be serious - Adaptation and direction: Helmut Brennicke , with Axel von Ambesser , Otto Arneth , Alice Verden , Ursula Traun-Lieb , Rosemarie Lang , Maria Stadler , Ernst Schlott ( BR )
- 1949: Bunbury - Composition: Karl Sczuka , adaptation and direction: Karl Peter Biltz , with Horst Uhse (Algernon Montfort), Alexander Hegarth (John Worthing), Günther Vulpius (Dr. Chasuble), Benno Schurr (Merriman), Claire Ruegg (Lady Bracknell), Margot Teichmann (Gwendolen), Margot Müller (Cecily), Anette Roland (Miss Prism) ( SWF )
- 1955: Bunbury - composition: Herbert Jarczyk , arrangement: Hartmann Goertz , director: Heinz-Günter Stamm , with Fritz Benscher (The Conférencier), Martin Benrath (Algernon Moncrief), Gert Westphal (John Worthing), Kurt Horwitz (Pastor Dr. Chasuble ), Joachim Teege (Lane, valet), Leo Siedler (Merriman, servant), Isebill Sturm (Lady Bracknell), Dagmar Altrichter (Gwendolene Fairfax), Elisabeth Wiedemann (Cecily Cardew), Annemarie Holtz (Miss Prism) (BR)
- 1975: Bunbury - adaptation and direction: Klaus Gmeiner , with Heinz Ehrenfreund (John Worthing), Michael Heltau (Algernon Moncrief), Erik Frey (Canon Chasuble), Susi Nicoletti (Lady Bracknell), Elfriede Kuzmany (Miss Prism), Uta Maria Schütze (Countess Gwendolen), Michael Kiurina (Merriman, Butler), Hubert Berger (Lane, Diener) ( ORF / SFB )
German alternative title
The piece, mostly known as Bunbury in German-speaking countries, exists in numerous German translations, transcriptions and versions, some of which differ in terms of the title:
- Bunbury - It is important to be serious
- Bunbury - Being serious is important . A trivial comedy for serious people. Complete new translation by Rainer Kohlmayer
- To be serious! A trivial comedy for serious people ; Translation by Hermann von Teschenberg (1910)
- Being serious is everything
- Ernst and its deeper meaning , comedy in 4 acts; German by Bernd Eilert
- Bunbury . Übers. Rainer Kohlmayer, Reclam Taschenbuch
- You have to be Bunbury or Ernst , A trivial comedy for serious people by Oscar Wilde based on an adaptation by Jean Anouilh , translated into German by Franz Geiger ; Television production
- Bunbury or being serious is everything ; German by Peter Torberg .
- Bunbury, or The Importance of Being Serious
- Bunbury or The Art of Being Serious
- Bunbury, or On the Need to Be Serious
- Bunbury, or The Importance of Being Serious, an easy play for serious people; Translator: Christine Hoeppener
- Life is serious. Bunbury . German version by Elfriede Jelinek based on a translation by Karin Rausch (2004)
- No wedding without seriousness , television production; Translation and editing by Kurt Jung-Alsen
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d The Importance of Being Earnest. Work information and video at Operavision, accessed on April 19, 2020.
- ↑ Operas by Erik Chisholm on erikchisholm.com, accessed April 20, 2020.
- ^ Theatertexte, Berlin: Desch
- ^ Zurich: Harmann & Stauffacher
- ^ Television of the GDR
- ^ Weinheim: Deutscher Theaterverlag
- ↑ full text