portrayal of the heroine: "his Joan of Arc is perhaps the greatest sacrilege of all Joans: for instead of the saint or the strumpet of the legends to which he objects, he has turned her into a great middle-class reformer, and her place is a little higher than Mrs. Pankhurst" (the militant leader of the British suffragettes). Productions Shaw's personal reputation following the Great War was at a low ebb, and it is thought that he wanted to first test the play away from Britain. The play received its premiere on 28 December 1923 at the Garrick Theatre on Broadway by the Theatre Guild with Winifred Lenihan in the title role. The London première, which opened on 26 March 1924 at the New Theatre, was produced by Lewis Casson and starred Shaw's friend Sybil Thorndike, the actress for whom he had written the part. Costumes and sets were designed by Charles Ricketts, and the play had an extensive musical score, specially composed and conducted by John Foulds. Caught between the forces of the Church and the Law, Joan is the personification of the tragic heroine and the part is considered by actresses (see below) to be one of the most challenging of roles to interpret. It is usually played by very experienced actresses who are much older than the age of the character, a teenager. For a film version, Joan was played by Jean Seberg, who was 19. The film and Seberg received strongly negative reviews. Seberg herself said she was “burned at the stake by the critics.” Notable St. Joans Winifred Lenihan – Garrick Theatre, December 1923 – April 1924 (Initial production) Sybil Thorndike – London, March 1924 (Shaw wrote the play with her in mind) Katharine Cornell – Martin Beck Theatre, New York, March 1936 – May 1936 (Tyrone Power made a pre-Hollywood appearance) Wendy Hiller – Malvern Theatre Festival, Malvern, England, July 1936 (honoring Shaw's 80th birthday) Uta Hagen – Cort Theatre, New York, October 1951 – February 1952 Siobhán McKenna – Phoenix Theatre, New York, December 1956 – January 1957, also came to England with this production. (Peter Falk appeared in a small part) Joan Plowright – London, 1963 Sandra Seacat (as Sandra Kaufman) – Community Playhouse, Atlanta, February 12 – 24, 1965 (directed by Michael Howard, Seacat's erstwhile mentor, and featuring Actors Studio founding member William Hansen as The Inquisitor, this was the opening production