Character guide
The Prince of Wales
The Prince of Wales is a member of English high society in The Scarlet Pimpernel, moving in the same glamorous circles as Percy Blakeney and his aristocratic friends.
- Show
- The Scarlet Pimpernel
- Broadway premiere
- 1997
- Role
- Supporting
- Music by
- Frank Wildhorn
The Prince of Wales on stage vs screen
Broadway compared with the 1934 film and 1982 TV film
The Prince of Wales was played by Nigel Bruce in the 1934 film and by Julian Fellowes in the 1982 TV film, years before Fellowes wrote the book for the Mary Poppins stage musical. On Broadway in 1997, David Cromwell doubled the Prince with Robespierre, so the same actor played both the English royal and the leader of the Terror.
In the musical, the Prince grows suspicious of the frequent trips to France made by Percy's circle and asks to meet the members of the league, bringing him close to the secret at the heart of the story.
Who is The Prince of Wales?
Positioned within the fashionable world Percy inhabits as his public, foppish persona, the Prince of Wales represents the glittering, oblivious English aristocracy that has no idea a masked hero is operating in its midst. His presence helps establish the contrast between the frivolous high society Percy pretends to belong to and the danger unfolding across the Channel in France.
While not central to the plot's political intrigue, the character rounds out the show's depiction of English nobility and gives texture to the world Percy must maintain as cover for his secret missions.
The role's place in the ensemble
As a supporting role, the Prince of Wales adds color and period atmosphere rather than driving the story's central conflicts. The part suits a performer comfortable with the show's more comic, society-set scenes, helping sell the contrast between English drawing rooms and the perilous streets of revolutionary Paris.
Audiences enjoy these society characters because they heighten the stakes by contrast: while the Prince and his circle indulge in fashion and gossip, Percy is secretly risking his life just across the sea.
The Prince of Wales: frequently asked questions
What show is the Prince of Wales from?
He appears in The Scarlet Pimpernel, the 1997 musical composed by Frank Wildhorn.
Is the Prince of Wales a lead or supporting role?
He is a supporting character within the English high-society scenes of the show.
What is the Prince of Wales's function in the story?
He helps establish the fashionable English world that masks Percy Blakeney's secret identity as the Scarlet Pimpernel.
Think you can name today's mystery character in eight guesses?
Play today's Character GuesserMore characters from The Scarlet Pimpernel
More characters with music by Frank Wildhorn
The Scarlet Pimpernel show guideMusical theatre characters A to Z