Secret service

   This four-act romantic melodrama, which opened on 5 October 1896 at the Garrick Theatre, was produced by Charles Frohman. It is set during the last days of the American Civil War . It ran for 176 performances and proved to be the only vehicle written by and starring William Gillette that rivaled the enduring popularity of his Sherlock Holmes (1899). Northern agent Dumont is operating in disguise as Captain Thorne, a Confederate officer. His spying in Richmond is hampered by his growing affection for Edith Varney, a young Southern woman who obtains for him a commission as major in the Confederate army. Arrelsford, an officer from the War Office (and rival for Edith's affections), suspects Thorne and obstructs his spying, but when Edith learns Thorne's true identity she attempts to aid his escape despite conflicted loyalties. Thorne refuses her assistance in a highly charged telegraph office scene in which Thorne and Edith find their loyalties tested. He withdraws information he was sending to the North that would lead to a devastating attack on the city and, chastened by Edith's love, Thorne allows himself to be arrested. She promises to await his release at the inevitable conclusion of the war. Secret Service is rarely revived, but a 1976 Phoenix Theatre* production starring John Lithgow* and Meryl Streep* was adapted for public television.*