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Rutherford and Son

Full-Length Play, Drama  /  4w, 4m

Githa Sowerby

Rutherford and Son
by Githa Sowerby

Rutherford & Son was
written in 1912 and is Githa Sowerby’s most celebrated play. Ahead of it’s
time, the play challenges the role and expectations of women in the male
dominated, industrial North of England.

Rutherford and Son

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  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    4w, 4m
  • SubGenre
    Subgenre
    Period

Details

Summary
Rutherford & Son was written in 1912 and is Githa Sowerby’s most celebrated play. Ahead of it’s time, the play challenges the role and expectations of women in the male dominated, industrial North of England. Rutherford is the owner of a glass works, an oppressive patriarch who, blind to his children’s hopes, has bullied and undermined them without questioning that one day they will take over the business. 

This is the story of a family on the brink of collapse.

M4 (20s, 40s, 60)
F4 (26, 36, middle age, 60)
  • Time Period 1910s/WWI
  • Setting A living-room
  • Features Period Costumes

Media

"...one of the most durable plays of the last century" - The Guardian

"...a first-rate drama." - The Guardian

"If any Edwardian play has stood the test of time, this is unforgettably it." - The Guardian 

"Sowerby’s play is an indictment of patriarchal, transactional, status-obsessed, class-ridden society..." - TimeOut

"a darkly passionate portrait of a feuding family, as well as a canny vision of a business at risk in an age of political and sexual upheaval..." - Evening Standard 

"Sowerby excels at showing the way in which women navigate the patriarchy, the unending compromise and negotiation." - The Stage

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: £70 per performance plus VAT when applicable.

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Scripts

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Authors

Githa Sowerby

Githa Sowerby

Katherine Githa Sowerby was born in 1876 in Gateshead, England. Her first play, Rutherford & Son, originally performed in 1912, was an outstanding success. Credited as G.K. Sowerby, the playwright was assumed to be a man. When Sowerby's true identity was revealed, she became ...

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