Friday 17 July 2015

Samuel Taylor's "Sabrina Fair"

Sabrina Fairchild lives in Long Island with her widowed father who works as a chauffeur for a wealthy family named Larabee.  Somewhat of a dreamer, Sabrina longs to see the world.  She sails for Paris where she works as a private secretary for a politician for five years.  She returns to America well educated, beautiful, charming, and with a wealthy French suitor in tow (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabrina_Fair).

However, Sabrina has always had a crush on David Larabee.  David's older brother, Linus, schemes to make David fall in love with Sabrina and he succeeds.  However, in the meantime, Sabrina falls in love with Linus, attracted to his worldliness and intelligence.  

In another plot twist, the working class chauffeur has secretly been investing in the stock market for years and has amassed a fortune.  Knowing that her father is financially set, Sabrina chooses to return to Paris, this time with Linus, her new love.

Sabrina Fair, which comes from a John Milton song from his masque Comus, premiered at the National Theatre on Broadway on November 11, 1953.  Starring Margaret Sullavan and Joseph Cotten, it ran for 318 performances.  The Saturday Review called it "the best American comedy of manners in more than a decade" (http://www.samuelfrench.com/p/6569/sabrina-fair-samuel-taylor).

The play was adapted for the big screen as Sabrina, premiering in 1954 and starring Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart and William Holden.  In 1995, a remake featured Juliette Ormond, Greg Kinnear and Harrison Ford.








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