Portrait of Sowerby by George Percy Jacomb-Hood, circa 1912
Katherine Githa Sowerby (6 October 1876 – 30 June 1970), also known under her pen nameK. G. Sowerby, was an English playwright, children's writer, and member of the Fabian Society. A feminist, she was well-known during the early twentieth century for her 1912 hit play Rutherford & Son, but lapsed into obscurity in later decades.[1]
Rutherford & Son was first revived in 1980, and since then there have been several productions, including one at the Royal National Theatre in 1994 and, most recently, by Sheffield Theatres. A biography of Sowerby by Pat Riley, Looking for Githa, appeared in 2009, with a revised edition in 2019. In addition to several plays, Sowerby wrote books of poetry and short stories for children, illustrated by her sister Millicent Sowerby.[2] Her papers and memorabilia are in the collections at the Tyne and Wear Archives.[3]
Life and career
Sowerby was born in 1876 in Gateshead, England, into the Sowerbys, a glass-making family.[1] Her father, John G. Sowerby, was an artist and grandson of naturalist James Sowerby, and her mother was Amy Margaret Sowerby (née Hewison).[2] Sowerby married John Kendall,[2] and they had one daughter, Joan (1918-2013)[4]
Rutherford & Son was a "sensation"[3] and a "massive success"[5] in its 1912 London debut, running for 133 performances in London and 63 performances in New York.[1] Literary critic Barrett Harper Clark, writing in 1915, declared it "among the most powerful works of the younger generation".[6] It was also produced in Canada and Australia, and translated into numerous other languages,[1] including German, French, Italian, Russian, and Bohemian.[3] Originally produced under the pen name "G. K. Sowerby", it was only later revealed that the author of the hit play was a woman; Sowerby then achieved instant celebrity.[5] Sowerby's writing was compared to Henrik Ibsen's at that point, while known only by the gender-neutral initials "G. K."[7]
Kevin De Ornellas, "Githa Sowerby". In Gabrielle H. Cody and Evert Sprinchorn, eds, The Columbia Encyclopedia of Modern Drama, 2 volumes (Columbia University Press, 2007), volume 2, pp. 1265-66. ISBN: 9780231140324.
