About the Play:

The Corn is Green has long been a favourite of acting teachers for Male Monologues.

The Corn is Green is a full-length comedy by Emlyn Williams. One person can make all the difference. This inspiring Welsh classic is a semi-autobiographical play about a dedicated English school teacher who makes it her mission to educate the children in a poor mining village in north Wales, and helps one of the students win a scholarship to Oxford. Especially recommended for school and contest use.

The Corn is Green is a semi-autobiographical play about a Welsh miner turned Oxford scholar, and the teacher who pushed him to reach his potential. Miss Lily Moffat arrives in rural Welsh mining village, where boys start work aged twelve, determined to help young local miners out of poverty by teaching them to read and write. Lily soon spots talent in the unruly Morgan Evans, but when she faces growing resistance from the community, she does everything in her power to forge him a new future. Against the prejudice of local folk and the wealthy landowner, simply known as the Squire, she manages to make good. She at last persuades the Squire to lend his support, and she prepares the boy to apply for a scholarship to Oxford. Morgan, however, rebels against help from a woman and temporarily succumbs to the charm of a young school girl. His mistaken sense of obligation nearly ruins his chances of success, and Miss Moffat realizes that her interest in him has become too absorbing. However, her affection for him, her courage and wisdom in the end bring her victory; the gifted Morgan wins the scholarship, and Miss Moffat's work comes to a happy conclusion, and there are lovely, warm laughs along the way. The Corn is Green is a now classic play about an underdog rising to a challenge with underpinnings of class warfare as well as nationalistic and ethnic prejudice.

The Corn is Green premiered in 1938 at the Duchess Theatre in London with Emlyn Williams portraying Morgan Evans. The original Broadway production premiered in 1940 at the National Theatre (now the David T. Nederlander Theatre), and was an outstanding success running for 477 performances. The play has become a favourite scene study vehicle in acting classes and workshops, enjoyed numerous revivals and tours, and has become a popular choice for school and community theatre productions.

Cast: 5 female, 10 male, plus extras

What people say:

"An inspirational heart-warmer. [It] is worth remembering as a social history of the more unbendable days of British class privilege, and also of how generations of working-class school children broke through class barriers thanks to a grammar-school education. Hugely entertaining." — The Guardian (UK)

"...a triumph, an evening full of humour, feeling and inspiration." — WhatsOnStage

About the Playwright:

Emlyn Williams (1905-1987) was an acclaimed Welsh writer, director, and actor – and often all three at once. Overall, he produced dozens of plays, but is best known for his stage thrillers and his autobiographical play The Corn Is Green. As an actor, he internationally toured readings from the work of Charles Dickens and Dylan Thomas, as well as appearing in his own plays, countless classic and contemporary productions, and forty-one films. In addition to authoring or co-authoring nineteen screenplays, he wrote, directed, and appeared in the movie The Last Days of Dolwyn, which marked the film debut of his fellow Welshman Richard Burton.