Noel Coward's Plays: Sirocco (1921)

Sirocco is a play, in four acts, by Noel Coward. It originally opened at Daly's Theatre, on November 24, 1927. The production was directed by Basil Dean.

Ivor Novello was part of the original cast. The plot told a tale of free love among the wealthy.

The London opening of Sirocco met with violently unfavorable audience reaction and a very harsh critical reception. Coward was later asked whether he had ever despaired when faced with a failure like Sirocco. He replied, "Well, if I'm going to have a flop, I like it to be a rouser. I didn't despair at all. What made it much more interesting was that my mother, who is slightly deaf, thought the booing was cheering. Incredibly Basil Dean, the producer of the play, made the same mistake. He was ringing the curtain up and down with a beaming smile. I said, 'Wipe that smile off your face, dear - this is it.'"


From: http://www.musicals101.com/noelbio2.htm

Coward's comedy The Marquis (1927) opened in his absence, and was a mild success. On his return to England, he avoided performing for more than a year and focused on writing. However, two of his weakest early plays were produced in London during the autumn of 1927, with disastrous results. Home Chat merely closed in a matter of weeks, but Sirocco had one of the most infamous opening nights in theatrical history. The audience responded to this tale of free love among the wealthy with jeers, catcalls, and fistfights after the final curtain. Coward faced the mob at the stage door, where they spat at him. He reacted with extraordinary calm, and the next day insisted on dining at The Ivy (a popular West End restaurant frequented by the theatrical community). But Coward had learned that the same public that fed his popularity could turn on him without warning.