About the Play:

The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie is a full-length comedy by Jay Presson Allen. A romantic Scottish schoolteacher instills the value of passion in her female students but her controversial teaching philosophy draws the ire of the school's headmistress, in Jay Presson Allen's adaptation of the Muriel Spark novel. Especially recommended for school and contest use.

The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie is about a romantic and frustrated Edinburgh schoolteacher who, for good or ill, has a magnetic influence on her students. Miss Brodie is a teacher, a formidable figure who molds young minds to her form. And what is more, she is so intensely interesting that the girls admire her above all else. But Miss Brodie is not honest. She prevaricates and then tells the girls to do as she tells them, not as she does herself. She is having an affair with the music teacher and has had one with the art teacher, and this is not the most exemplary conduct. A fantastic letter which some of her students write in her name to her lover falls into the headmistress' hands. Dismissal is averted by Miss Brodie's indomitable pluck as she threatens to sue for libel. One girl grows too wise too soon and turns on Miss Brodie.

The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie was a big stage hit in London in 1966, repeated its success on Broadway in 1968 and as a Hollywood film in 1969. Written at a time when few plays or films had predominantly female leading characters, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie garnered much acclaim in all its guises, earning Tony, Olivier and Academy Awards for key actresses. Over the years, the play has become a popular choice for high school and community theatre productions.

Cast: 15 female, 4 male

What people say:

"Fascinating in its insights into a marvelously portrayed eccentric human being." — The New York Times

"Endearing, hilarious, lovely, perceptive, and splendid." — The New York Daily News

"A dramatic intelligent and merciless study of character." — The New York Post

About the Playwright:

Jay Presson Allen (1922-2006) was an American screenwriter, playwright, stage director, television producer and novelist. Known as an adapter of novels for plays and movies, she was one of the few women making a living as a screenwriter at a time when women were a rarity in the profession. Her hit stage transcriptions included The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and Forty Carats (both made into films) and she wrote screenplays for directors including Alfred Hitchcock, George Cukor, Bob Fosse and Sidney Lumet, including the Oscar-winning Cabaret.