Saint Joan is a play written by Bernard Shaw, premiering in 1923. In the early 1920s, Shaw was experiencing a period of professional depletion. Between 1918 and 1920, he had written a cycle of 5 interconnected plays called Back to Methuselah. When these plays premiered in 1922, they were not well-received. Shaw was tired and disappointed, and at age 67, he pondered giving up writing plays altogether. However, current events intervened. Shaw had long been curious about Joan of Arc and had considered writing a play about her in 1913. In 1920, Joan was canonized by the Catholic Church, and her story received considerable attention. Inspired, Shaw decided to write a play telling Joan's story.
Saint Joan was staged for the first time at the Garrick Theatre in New York in December of 1923. Winifred Lenihan played the title role. The play was staged in London in March 1924, where it ran at the New Theatre starring Sybil Thorndike. The critical response was generally positive. While writing the play, Shaw made use of the numerous historical sources, including transcripts of Joan's trial. The play helped to cement Shaw's reputation, to the extent that, in 1926, he received the Nobel Prize for Literature. Shaw accepted the prize but declined the accompanying prize money.
The lead role of Saint Joan was quickly recognized as a challenging and important role for a female actor. The play has been staged regularly throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, although less frequently than some of Shaw's other works. In 1957, the play was adapted into a film directed by Otto Preminger and starring Jean Seberg. A 2018 production of the play ran at the Manhattan Theatre Club in New York, starring Condola Rashad. Rashad won a Tony Award for Best Actress the same year, honoring her portrayal of Joan.
