To write the play, Hastings spent many months conducting interviews with friends and family of the Eliots who were still alive and read through the letters left behind from the family. The play received some controversy over painting T.S. Eliot in a less than flattering light over his treatment of his wife while she was in poor health. Hastings died in 2011.[2]
Synopsis
The play begins with the beginning of the courtship between T.S. Eliot and Vivienne Haigh-Wood in 1914 and ends with their separation in 1933 and Vivienne's gradual mental health decline until her death in 1947. The play also follows the early career of T.S. Eliot, the death of Vivienne's father, and how her mother Rose dealt with her daughter's failing marriage and mental health.
The play premiered in 1984 at the Royal Court Theatre. The same cast, except for Wilkinson who was replaced by Edward Herrmann, traveled to New York and the play was staged at The Public Theater. The play did not transfer to Broadway, and instead returned to London for a short run.[3]
The play script was first published in 1985 by Penguin Books, it was revised in 1992 with additional notes, and in 2000 it was revised and released by Oberon Books.[9]