This is a comprehensive listing of the theatre work of Orson Welles. In 1972 he was in the first set of members elected to the American Theater Hall of Fame.
1918 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References July 10 Madame Butterfly Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, librettoGiacomo Puccini, score Trouble Chicago Opera Ravinia Opera House Cleofonte Campanini 1918 Samson and Delilah Ferdinand Lemaire, librettoCamille Saint-Saëns, score walk-on
1925 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References 1925 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Robert Louis Stevenson, novella)Orson Welles, adaptation Dr. Henry Jekyll/Edward Hyde Camp Indianola Governor Nelson State Park Orson Welles 1925 A Christmas Carol Charles Dickens, novellaOrson Welles, adaptation Scrooge Washington School, Madison, Wisconsin
1926 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References 1926 Nativity play Mary Todd Seminary for Boys Roger Hill 1926 The Servant in the House Charles Rann Kennedy Jesus 1926 Dust of the Road Judas Iscariot
1927 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References May 27 It Won't Be Long Now Roger Hill, librettoCarl Hendrickson, music Jim Bailey Todd Troupers Durand Art Institute Roger Hill
1928 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References May 5 Finesse the Queen Roger Hill, librettoCarl Hendrickson, music William J. Spurns Todd Seminary for Boys Lindo Theatre, Freeport, Illinois Roger Hill Display advertisement, Freeport Journal-Standard, May 2, 1928, page 5. By September 1929, Finesse the Queen was retitled Page the Prince and performed by high school and civic groups throughout the U.S. and in Canada. Performances were directed by the John B. Rogers Producing Company of Fostoria, Ohio, which supplied client towns with scripts, costumes, sets and lights for amateur theatre productions. The Rogers Company Collection is archived at the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution.
1929 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References 1929 Julius Caesar William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Mark AntonyCassius Todd Troupers Todd Seminary for Boys Orson Welles
1930 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References 1930 Androcles and the Lion George Bernard Shaw, playOrson Welles, adaptation Ferovious Todd Troupers Todd Seminary for Boys Orson Welles
1931 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References 1931 Winter of Our Discontent William Shakespeare, playsOrson Welles, adaptation Richard III Todd Troupers Todd School for Boys Orson Welles October 13–31 Jew Süss Lion Feuchtwanger, novelAshley Dukes, adaptation Duke Karl Alexander of Württemberg Dublin Gate Theatre Company Gate Theatre, Dublin Hilton Edwards November 3–14 The Dead Ride Fast David Sears Ralph Bentley November 20–December 5 The Archdupe Percy Robinson Marshal François BazaineMexican Colonel Callow, Simon, Orson Welles: The Road to Xanadu. New York: Viking, 1996. December 6 The Circle W. Somerset Maugham Lord Porteous Abbey Theatre, Dublin December 26–January 9, 1932 Mogu of the Desert Padraic Colum Chosroes, King of Persia Dublin Gate Theatre Company Gate Theatre, Dublin Hilton Edwards December 27 Alice in Wonderland USA Lewis Carroll, novelWilliam Sherwood, adaptation Peacock Players Peacock Theatre, Dublin Wood, Bret, Orson Welles: A Bio-Bibliography. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1990 1931 The Lady from the Sea Henrik Ibsen Dublin Orson Welles 1931 Three Sisters Anton Chekhov 1931–32 Hay Fever Noël Coward Orson Welles 1931–32 Mr. Wu Harry M. Vernon and Harold Owen Mr. Wu 1931–32 The Only Way Frederick Longbridge and Freeman Wills 1931–32 Peer Gynt Henrik Ibsen Peer Gynt 1931–32 The Father August Strindberg Acting role 1931–32 The Rivals Richard Brinsley Sheridan Acting role 1931–32 The Emperor Jones Eugene O'Neill Acting role 1931–32 La locandiera Carlo Goldoni Acting role 1931–32 The Play's the Thing P. G. Wodehouse and Ferenc Molnár Acting role 1931–32 Man and Superman George Bernard Shaw Acting role 1931–32 Grumpy Horace Hodges and T. Wrigley Percival Acting role 1931–32 The Makropulos Affair Karel Čapek Acting role 1931–32 The Dover Road A. A. Milne Acting role 1931–32 Volpone Ben Jonson Acting role 1931–32 Rope Patrick Hamilton Ronald Kentley 1931–32 Richard III William Shakespeare Acting role 1931–32 Macbeth William Shakespeare Acting role 1931–32 Timon of Athens William Shakespeare Acting role 1931–32 King John William Shakespeare Acting role
1932 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References January 12–26 Death Takes a Holiday Alberto Casella, playWalter Ferris, adaptation Baron Lamberto Dublin Gate Theatre Company Gate Theatre, Dublin Hilton Edwards February 2–13 Hamlet William Shakespeare The GhostFortinbras Dublin Gate Theatre Company Gate Theatre, Dublin Hilton Edwards 1932 Doctor Knock Jules Romains Peacock Players Peacock Theatre, Dublin 1932 The Chinese Bungalow Marion Osmond and James Corbet acting role Dublin Orson Welles February 16 - 27 The All Alone Henry B O'Hanlon The Dublin Repertory Theatre Peacock Theatre, Dublin William Sherwood Class: BT26. Ancestry.com, UK Outward Passenger Lists, 1890–1960 [database online]. Provo, Utah: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012.Year: 1932; Arrival: New York, New York; Microfilm Serial: T715, 1897–1957; Microfilm Roll: Roll 5124; Line: 12; Page Number: 152. Ancestry.com, New York Passenger Lists, 1820–1957 [database online]. Provo, Utah: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010.
1933 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References May Twelfth Night William Shakespeare Todd Troupers Todd School for Boys Roger Hill and Orson Welles July Twelfth Night William Shakespeare Todd Troupers Chicago Drama Festival, A Century of Progress Exposition, English Village Roger Hill and Orson Welles November 29–June 20, 1934 Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare MercutioChorus Katharine Cornell repertory company National tour beginning at the Erlanger Theatre in Buffalo, New York, Cornell's hometown Guthrie McClintic December 2–June 20, 1934 The Barretts of Wimpole Street Rudolf Besier Octavius Moulton-Barrett Katharine Cornell repertory company National tour beginning at the Erlanger Theatre in Buffalo, New York Guthrie McClintic Erlanger Theatre, Katharine Cornell, November 29–30, December 1–2, 1933. Buffalo, New York: Erlanger Buffalo Theatre Corporation (playbill), Vol. X, No. 4, 1933. December–June 20, 1934 Candida George Bernard Shaw Eugene Marchbanks Katharine Cornell repertory company National tour Guthrie McClintic
1934 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References July 12–22 Trilby George du Maurier Svengali Todd School for Boys Woodstock Opera House Orson Welles July 26–August 5 Hamlet William Shakespeare ClaudiusGhost of Hamlet's Father Todd School for Boys Woodstock Opera House Hilton Edwards Leaming, Barbara, Orson Welles, A Biography. New York: Viking, 1985 "Freeporters Thrilled by Performance of Hamlet at Woodstock". Freeport Journal-Standard, July 27, 1934, page 6. August 9–19 Tsar Paul Dmitry Merezhkovsky Count Pahlen Todd School for Boys Woodstock Opera House Hilton Edwards August 22–25 The Drunkard William H. Smith Cameo appearance Todd School for Boys Woodstock Opera House Charles O'Neal December 3–9 Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare TybaltChorus Katharine Cornell repertory company Cass Theatre, Detroit, Michigan Guthrie McClintic Romeo and Juliet, Cass Theater, December 3–9, 1934. The Playgoer (playbill), Vol. 9 No. 7, December 3, 1934. December 10–11 Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare TybaltChorus Katharine Cornell repertory company Hanna Theatre, Cleveland, Ohio Guthrie McClintic Sandusky Register, December 13, 1934, page 4. December 14–15 Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare TybaltChorus Katharine Cornell repertory company Nixon Theatre, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Guthrie McClintic Monessen Daily Independent, December 15, 1934, page 2.Steubenville Herald Star, December 17, 1934, page 12. December 20–February 23, 1935 Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeare TybaltChorus Katharine Cornell repertory company Martin Beck Theatre, New York City Guthrie McClintic "News of the Stage". The New York Times, February 25, 1935, page 14.
1935 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References March 14–16 Panic Archibald MacLeish McGafferty Phoenix Theatre Imperial Theatre, New York City James Light
1936 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References April 12 Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Lafayette Theatre, Harlem, New York City Orson Welles April 14 –June 20 Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Lafayette Theatre, Harlem, New York City Orson Welles July 6–18 Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Adelphi Theatre, New York City Orson Welles July 21–25 Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Park Theatre, Bridgeport, Connecticut Orson Welles July 28 –August 1 Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Hartford, Connecticut Orson Welles August 6 – ? Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Exhibit Theatre, Dallas, Texas Orson Welles August 13–23 Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Amphitheater, Texas Centennial Exposition, Dallas, Texas Orson Welles August 25–29 Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Keith's Theatre, Indianapolis, Indiana Orson Welles September 1–13 Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Great Northern Theater, Chicago, Illinois Orson Welles September 1936 Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Detroit, Michigan Orson Welles September 1936 Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Cleveland, Ohio Orson Welles September 23–25 Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Civic University, Syracuse, New York Orson Welles "Syracuse will be the last stop for the touring 'Macbeth' production … closing a 4,000 mile jaunt with a three-day run at the Civic University, opening Sept. 23." September 26 –December 5 Horse Eats Hat Eugène Labiche and Marc-Michel, playOrson Welles and Edwin Denby, adaptation Mugglethorp Federal Theatre Project Maxine Elliott's Theatre, New York City Orson Welles October 6–17 Macbeth William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Federal Theatre Project Majestic Theatre, Brooklyn, New York Orson Welles October 23 –November 1 Ten Million Ghosts Sidney Kingsley André Pequot St. James Theatre, New York City Sidney Kingsley
1937 Date Title Author Role Company Theatre Director Notes References January 8 –May 29 The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus Christopher Marlowe Faustus Federal Theatre Project Maxine Elliott Theatre, New York City Orson Welles April 21–23 The Second Hurricane Edwin Denby, librettoAaron Copland, score Henry Street Settlement Music School Henry Street Settlement Playhouse, New York City Orson Welles June 16 – July 1 The Cradle Will Rock Marc Blitzstein Federal Theatre Project Venice Theatre, New York City Orson Welles Summer The Cradle Will Rock Marc Blitzstein Federal Theatre Project Tour of steel districts of Pennsylvania and Ohio Orson Welles November 11 – May 28, 1938 Caesar William Shakespeare, playOrson Welles, adaptation Marcus Brutus Mercury Theatre Mercury Theatre, New York City Orson Welles December 5–19 The Cradle Will Rock Marc Blitzstein Mercury Theatre Mercury Theatre, New York City Orson Welles December 25 The Shoemaker's Holiday Thomas Dekker Mercury Theatre Mercury Theatre, New York City Orson Welles
1938