Theatre in Film Series: All About Eve (1950) : PerformerStuff More Good Stuff

Theatre in Film Series: All About Eve (1950)

Written by Ashleigh Gardner

May 10, 2016

I’ve been in love with theatre for my entire life, but it wasn’t until a few years ago that I began to truly appreciate film as its own art form. This series features films that display theatre and the lives of actors, directors, writers, and dancers who inhabit the stage. So if you’re itching to watch a film that knows your life in theatre, check out All About Eve, our fourth film, featured below.

All About Eve (1950)

Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Starring: Bette Davis, Anne Baxter, Gary Merrill, Hugh Marlowe, Celeste Holm, and George Sanders

What happens:

Margo Channing (Bette Davis) is approached by Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter), a young fan who would wait on Margo hand and foot. Over a period of a few months, Eve insinuates herself into Margo’s personal circle of friends and sabotages Margo’s career. In a sinister and calculated plot, Eve steals Margo’s prized role and wins a coveted acting award, only to be socially rejected by the people who helped her rise to fame.

Why it matters:

Yes. This film is about the backstabbing that can happen in the theatre. It displays the darkest side of what occurs among a close-knit group of friends when jealousy and confusion take hold. However, it also depicts what happens when a group of old friends sticks together despite a weasel in their midst. Theatre is famous for bringing unrelated people together and making them into a family.

Characters Margo Channing, Bill Sampson, Lloyd Richards, and Karen Richards are intensely close, having worked together through many productions. They represent the deep friendship and dedication that makes theatre such a nurturing environment. Eve Harrington, the dangerous newcomer, represents selfishness and pride, everything that tears theatre apart. Together, Margo and her friends take a stand against what Eve represents, but they don’t even have to lift a finger to give Eve the revenge she deserves. Karma does the work for them: a young fan breaks into Eve’s dressing room, and while Eve lounges on the sofa, the girl secretly models Eve’s gown in the mirror, imagining herself a star. This film examines the ebb and flow of fame and the cyclical nature of theatre. We rehearse, we perform, we strike, and we do it all over again, and we pass on our experience to the younger generations of students and professionals.

This film is featured in Part I of “Theatre in Film”. See below for the others in Part I.

Ashleigh Gardner received her AA in Theatre/Drama/Dramatic Arts from Valencia College and her Bachelors Degree in English Literature and Masters Degree in Literary, Cultural, and Textual Studies from the University of Central Florida. She is a playwright and an actor.