Van Druten, John

Van Druten, John (1901–57), dramatist, of Dutch extraction, born in London, but later an American citizen. He first came into prominence with Young Woodley, a slight but charming study of adolescence which was produced in New York in 1925. Unaccountably banned by the censor in England, it was first produced privately by the Three Hundred Club (see STAGE SOCIETY) in 1928, and when the ban was removed had a successful run at the Savoy later that year. Van Druten's later plays, mainly light comedies, include After All (1929; NY, 1931), a study of family relationships; London Wall, a comedy of office life, and There's Always Juliet (both 1931, the latter seen in New York in 1932); The Distaff Side (1933; NY, 1934), in which Sybil Thorndike gave a moving performance as the mother; and Old Acquaintance (1940; NY, 1941), a study of two women writers. The Voice of the Turtle (1943), a wartime comedy which had a long run in New York, was coldly received in London in 1947, but Van Druten achieved a success in both capitals with Bell, Book and Candle (NY, 1950; London, 1954), an amusing comedy on witchcraft in which Rex Harrison starred. Van Druten's adaptation of stories by Isherwood as I am a Camera (NY, 1951; London, 1954) was later used as the basis of the musical Cabaret (NY, 1966; London, 1968).