Before the Play

The Shining #0.5

by Stephen King

This story tells of events which occurred before the Torrance family arrived at the Overlook Hotel.

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Thriller, Mystery, Suspense, Short Stories

Unknown Binding

First published August 1, 1982

About the author

Stephen Edwin King was born the second son of Donald and Nellie Ruth Pillsbury King. After his father left them when Stephen was two, he and his older brother, David, were raised by his mother. Parts of his childhood were spent in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where his father's family was at the time, and in Stratford, Connecticut. When Stephen was eleven, his mother brought her children back to Durham, Maine, for good. Her parents, Guy and Nellie Pillsbury, had become incapacitated with old age, and Ruth King was persuaded by her sisters to take over the physical care of them. Other family members provided a small house in Durham and financial support. After Stephen's grandparents passed away, Mrs. King found work in the kitchens of Pineland, a nearby residential facility for the mentally challenged.

Stephen attended the grammar school in Durham and Lisbon Falls High School, graduating in 1966. From his sophomore year at the University of Maine at Orono, he wrote a weekly column for the school newspaper, THE MAINE CAMPUS. He was also active in student politics, serving as a member of the Student Senate. He came to support the anti-war movement on the Orono campus, arriving at his stance from a conservative view that the war in Vietnam was unconstitutional. He graduated in 1970, with a B.A. in English and qualified to teach on the high school level. A draft board examination immediately post-graduation found him 4-F on grounds of high blood pressure, limited vision, flat feet, and punctured eardrums.

He met Tabitha Spruce in the stacks of the Fogler Library at the University, where they both worked as students; they married in January of 1971. As Stephen was unable to find placement as a teacher immediately, the Kings lived on his earnings as a laborer at an industrial laundry, and her student loan and savings, with an occasional boost from a short story sale to men's magazines.

Stephen made his first professional short story sale ("The Glass Floor") to Startling Mystery Stories in 1967. Throughout the early years of his marriage, he continued to sell stories to men's magazines. Many were gathered into the Night Shift collection or appeared in other anthologies.

In the fall of 1971, Stephen began teaching English at Hampden Academy, the public high school in Hampden, Maine. Writing in the evenings and on the weekends, he continued to produce short stories and to work on novels.

Reviews

[Ruben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not ever before had I realized there was this prequel to The Shining and where in 5 different scenes we get to learn more about the origins of The Overlook hotel, its original owner and some of the horrific events that took place before the arrival of the Torrance family to this evil hotel.

In one of the scenes, we also get some background on Jack Torrance's childhood and his abusive alcoholic father, and which gives us some more perspective on why Jack is the way he is and why he was the perfect suit as the caretaker of the hotel.

Being a fan of King's works and having already read The Shining and its sequel, Doctor Sleep, it was imperative I read this hidden jewel to have a wider perspective of it all.

Although a bit creepy (as most Stephen King's books are), this has been a pleasant read.

[Amos · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable and crisply written history of the infamous Overlook Hotel.

4 Beguiling Stars

[Indieflower · Rating 5 out of 5]

A tale told in five acts, of some of the disturbing events in the history of the Overlook Hotel, from it's construction, to some years before the I'll fated arrival of the Torrance family. I don't know how this story has flown under my radar, I must've been asleep at the switch or something, The Shining is my favourite King book so I was absolutely chuffed to stumble across this one. I love how it fleshes out much of the stuff alluded to in The Shining, such as the odious character of Horace Derwent and Jack's relationship with his violent father. Well worth checking out, at the moment free to listen to on YouTube, excellently narrated by Scott MacDonald.

[Benjamin Uke · Rating 4 out of 5]

The original, 5-scened, unpublished prologue of the 1977 Stephen King novel, tells what occurred before the Torrance family arrived at the Overlook Hotel. The origins of The Overlook hotel, its original owner what happened before to the Torrence family arrived in the movie.

In one of the scenes, we also get some background on Jack and his childhood (explaining alot)

Fun fact: JJ Abrams is making a series for HBO Max called "Overlook" which is supposed to tell stories about the history of the hotel.

4/5 while it's not particularly terrifying, the writing and how he manages sentences to keep pacing leaves my jaw dropped.

[Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Burn that fu....g Overlook down already...OK Jack, just do it!

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

A richly evocative prelude to King's novel (which, if I'm not mistaken, also provides the only actual explanation we've ever received for the man in the dog costume in Kubrick's film). I honestly didn't realize this even existed until, oh, a few hours ago?

Mercifully, at the moment one can find this online (I'm including a link below). It's also available in a long-OOP deluxe edition of The Shining from Cemetery Dance (which runs between $500 and $4000 secondhand). Unfortunately, the corresponding "After the Party" section (which also has its own page on Goodreads) has not yet found its way online or into print elsewhere.

This has been up for a decade at this point, so I figure it's safe enough to link directly to it without fear of reprisal: https://the-end-of-summer.blogspot.co...

[Hannah Edmonds · Rating 5 out of 5]

This amazing prequel, although short makes me want to delve into my favourite novel yet again.

It covers some of the Overlook's rich and dangerous past in more detail; the reader is given more information on the opening of the hotel as well as the point of view of Horace Derwent's 'plaything', Lewis.

There was also an unexpected flashback to Jack Torrance's childhood with his violent, alcoholic father.

I think my favourite chapter in this short prequel though was the point of view of a guest on her honeymoon at the Overlook; she has nightmares every night and those nightmares are where King is at his descriptive best; he has always painted a dark, nightmarish picture with his rich vocabulary.

What makes The Shining so wonderfully terrifying is King's imagination and even in these 44 pages, his imagination is at its chilling best.

I may reread The Shining again now! This new knowledge will certainly make for a richer experience.

[Ands · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 ⭐

Hmmm...

[Maggie ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before the Play is quite worth reading if you enjoyed The Shining. It tells the scary and creepy stories of some of characters that lived in the hotel for a while.
Really, the Overlook should have stayed closed.

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this just before and now just after visiting The Stanley Hotel.
I love this work, especially coming to it decades after having read the novel and seen the film & miniseries.
A distillation of SK & a sketch of The Overlook that maintains lots of blank space for imagination.

[Rick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short and interesting, but ultimately it is pretty clear why it was excised from The Shining.

[Old Time Tales · Rating 5 out of 5]

It could easily be argued the King’s short fiction is his best. Especially when it is connected to his more developed work like “The Shining”.

This work is a series of tales which show that evil deeds leave a residue which accumulate and fester.

What you see is what you become.

Cheers!

[Isabelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was interesting to get some insight of the Outlooks history

[Lenka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reviewtje komt samen met "De Shining" :)

[Jason Pierce · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the prologue to The Shining which got axed before publication, and you can read it here.

I enjoyed this, but cutting it from the finished product was definitely the right call. The Shining is a masterpiece of horror and is one of the only books that genuinely spooked me the first time I read it. The suspense and terror is doled out slowly, and it creeps you out as you go along. This dumps a bunch of info on you right out the gate. If I knew all of it before even starting the story, then the atmosphere Stephen King builds as we see things through the Torrances' eyes is completely ruined. That being said, I liked the extra side stories provided in this, but it shouldn't be read until after one has read the book if you want to experience it properly.


Okay, the twins (not to mention the Tin Man) aren't in the prologue. Sorry if I got your hopes up.

[AMZ · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Birth of the Overlook

Oh, what a book! I truly enjoyed every word of this prequel, and it definitely deserves 5 stars. A huge thank you to the King of Horror, Stephen King, for bringing this terrifying world to life. It’s a must-read for anyone who loved The Shining. It provides more detailed insights into the horrifying events that took place at the Overlook Hotel before the Torrences arrived. I especially liked how the prequel begins with the construction of the hotel, the birth of the Overlook, and its insatiable hunger for souls.

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

This short story provided some interesting insight into the events leading up to The Shining. The scene with little Jacky (Jack Torrence from The Shining as a child) and his father was terrifying, further illustrating the trauma that adult Jack was living with.

The beginnings of the Overlook hotel and it's construction were interesting. There was expansion on the bits of information we got in The Shining, which was cool to see.

The only thing I missed about it was there was nothing in here about the Grady family and the "forever and ever and ever" girls.

I had no idea this story even existed and it was a fun serving of extra lore to my favorite Stephen King story.

[OlgaS · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decent enjoyable prequel, with some answers to the questions that arose while reading the main book (though not all), but I can’t give it a 5. It’s not a book—it’s a “preface�� to the “Shining”, and I can’t rate a “preface” the same as the book itself. 4.5

[Siobhan · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you come, come as a dog.

[Alessia Francioni · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short but spooky read about the evil surrounding the Overlook Hotel.

[Desmondella · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always love King’s writing style and way with words but other than that, this was a little bit boring with not much point to it besides backstory, in my opinion, which I guess was the point. It wasn’t bad. Just not groundbreaking. Potentially an interesting read if you love The Shining and want to become more immersed in the story or if you are a big fan of the book or movie.

[The Silent Bibliophile · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before the Play is an unpublished prologue by Stephen King for The Shining and it’s a haunting five-scene vignette that delves into the dark history of the Overlook Hotel from 1907 to 1958. This narrative paints the hotel as a sinister force that feeds off human betrayal, ambition, and despair. Each scene captures a different time period, unraveling the hotel’s supernatural grip and how it influences the tragedies that eventually unfold in The Shining.

In Scene I, set in 1922, we meet Bob T. Watson, the visionary who built the Overlook. Unfortunately, the hotel’s curse takes everything from him—his fortune, his son Boyd, and his wife Sarah. After a disastrous grand opening in 1910 that saw eerie events, including a guest’s ghostly vision and a congressman choking to death, the hotel begins to ruin Bob T. He ends up selling it to James Parris but stays on as a maintenance man, haunted by strange sounds and visions of his son’s tragic accident.

Scene II brings us to 1929, where Lottie Kilgallon, a savvy newlywed, chooses the Overlook for her honeymoon, hoping to manipulate her husband, Bill. But the hotel has its own plans—she is plagued by nightmares of a corpse-driven elevator, eerie hedge animals, and even a living fire hose that strikes fear into her heart. A terrifying encounter with a ghostly hand grabs her from beneath the bed, forcing her to flee. The hotel’s lingering malevolence is too much for her, ultimately contributing to her suicide in 1949 after financial troubles.

In the 1940s, Scene III features Lewis Toner, who has been both the lover and accountant to the hotel owner, Horace Derwent. Betrayed by Derwent, who humiliates him at a masquerade ball by forcing him to dress as a dog, Lewis spirals into despair. Overwhelmed, he drowns in a bathtub after taking mysterious pills that the Overlook may have influenced, while Derwent tries to cover up the tragic event.

Scene IV, set in 1953, introduces us to a six-year-old Jack Torrance. He suffers abuse at the hands of his drunken father, who breaks Jack's arm in a horrifying chase. This traumatic experience foreshadows Jack’s vulnerability to the Overlook’s manipulative powers in The Shining. (I just watched the shining movie few years back, haven't read the book yet.)

Finally, in Scene V, set in 1958, we witness a mob hit take place in the Presdential Suite of the Overlook. Assassins take out two enforcers and a mobster using sawed-off shotguns. The hotel serves as a neutral ground for criminals, amplifying the betrayal and sealing its legacy of violence.


So, in my opinion, Before the Play by Stephen King was an amazing, albeit somewhat creepy, exploration of the dark history of the Overlook Hotel. It covers the story of its construction, the various owners over the years, and the troubled past of the Torrance family. I haven't read The Shining and Doctor Sleep yet, but now I'm more curious, excited, and a little scared to dive into those sequels.


Some lines from the book that have stuck with me for some reason:

From Scene I: The Third Floor of a Resort Hotel Fallen Upon Hard Times:

Richard had only offered an uneasy grin, uneasy, yes, because every Hotel had a skeleton or two in the closet, and sometimes the skeletons rattled their bones.

From Scene II. A Bedroom in the Wee Hours of the Morning:

She left a one-sentence suicide note written on Holiday Inn stationery. The note said: I wish we had gone to Rome.

From Scene V. The Overlook Hotel, Third Floor, 1958:

They left the Overlook behind them, standing gilded in mountain moonlight, white as bone under high stars. It would stand long after the three of them were as dead as the three they had left behind.

The Overlook was at home with the dead.

[Tyler Rice · Rating 5 out of 5]

"And Richard had only offered an uneasy grin: uneasy, yes, because every hotel had a skeleton or two in the closet, and sometimes the skeletons rattled their bones."
___________________________________________

"Before the Play" is an unpublished prequel that chronicles and expands on the Overlook Hotel's checkered history. Split into five parts (or Scenes), King explores the Overlook's mysterious insidiousness, even predating its (not so) grand opening in 1910. Ownership papers are shuffled around every few years; the Hotel is not the moneymaker it was expected to be. Resort guests check out earlier than their reservation--if they are lucky enough to leave at all, that is.

I loved this hidden gem and brief return to the world of "The Shining," which I only just departed four days ago. I could see how this gives a little too much away too quickly, but it definitely makes for a fun, yet still atmospheric read after you finish the main novel.

*I just discovered there's a deleted epilogue titled "After the Play," so that's the next read.

[Briancillo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una precuela con bastante sustancia. Tanta que se divide en 5 historias diferentes.

Disfruté mucho de todas, aunque quizás menos de la última (pensándolo bien, tampoco me agradó la del hombre del disfraz de perro). No me pareció la mejor para cerrar.

Aun así fueron aterradores los capítulos de la mujer que se suicida, y el de cómo el pequeño Jacky Torrance acaba con el brazo roto.

Esperaba un poco más de la aparición de Horace Derwent.

Me gustó mucho eso sí la primera historia, la de Bob T. Watson, fundador del Overlook.

Lo cierto es que esta estructura es lo que menos me esperaba cuando pensaba en una precuela de El Resplandor, y es en cierto sentido un pelín decepcionante.

Pero ateniéndonos a la realidad, son 3 fantásticos relatos y 2 pasables por el precio de uno.

Está bien, pero ya está. Lo cierto es que El Resplandor no echa en falta esta adición.

[Matt Holben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not completely necessary to read before (or even after) the Shining novel, so I see why this prologue of sorts was left out from the novel, but it is quite interesting and gives some further backstory on the Overlook and on a young Jack Torrance.

Even with a novella of interconnected short stories like this, King can't help but really flesh out what would otherwise be throwaway characters, and I love that.

If you're a Shining super fan or a King completionist, this is worth your time, but it's not completely necessary for the overall Shining experience. The original novel stands alone perfectly fine. I will say that I am intrigued at the prospect of the content from Before the Play becoming the basis for a long rumored series on the Overlook and the events that happen prior to the main timeline of the Shining.

Overall, I enjoyed this extra slice of the Shining lore.

[Karen Haskell · Rating 4 out of 5]

A crisp, detailed, 5-part prequel to The Shining, before the Play, is an interesting tidbit for lovers of Stephen King and his Shining duology.

The characters, while only seen for a short time are interesting and unique and the additional look at Jack Torrence's childhood and relationship with his father provides another bitter-sweet look at the man who could've been, and the man we've all come to know.

While not wholly necessary for readers, I would recommend BTP for anyone who's finished The Shining or any of King's larger behemoths and just want something small to keep their interests without any real investment.

Still a very easy, but engaging read.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I never knew there was a prequel until this week and I knew that I needed to read it! I liked the part with Jack Torrance as a child living in the household he did. It really does come together to understand why Jack is the person he is and what might draw him to The Overlook. The other stories were a nice addition to our favorite hotel stories that were only alluded to in the book.

This is a little bit of a rarer read- but I found it as an audio on YT for free. I really enjoyed this short story and would recommend it if you 1. Liked The Shinning or 2. Like Stephen King.

[Anonymous Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm diving into the world of The Shining, starting with this 44-page prequel that's broken up into five stories which all take place before the book. It's sort of a mini anthology of its own written by King, and while one of the stories (the second one) is amazing and exactly what I wanted from a collection like this, the other stories range from average to forgettable. The 4th and 5th ones especially are just way too short. Overall, this is a fine little novelty, but it definitely isn't required reading prior to The Shining or Doctor Sleep.

[Mark Alexander · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reads as a prologue to the The Shining, later published as a short story/prequel. Definitely worth a read if you're a fan of the novel. Before the Play consists of two character experiences of people staying in The Overlook (one set in the early 1900s and the second in the 1950s) along with a glimpse at Jack Torrences childhood with his own alcoholic, abuse father.
Some nice easter eggs and references to the novel, too.

[A J R · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am currently on a King reread ,and just started The Shining. I read about this story somewhere and did find it online, so it made a great addition to the story. This is a really nice bonus for the constant readers, and fans of The Shining for sure. But I also see why it has been edited out from the original book. But yeah if The Shining is your thing, this is a must read for you. Or if you are just starting to read The Shining, read this first.