Between Pinero's play and the work with which Alexander's name has become most closely associated – "The Importance of Being Earnest" – came Alexander's most conspicuous failure. The celebrated novelist Henry James had written a play, "Guy Domville", about a hero who renounces the priesthood to save his family by marrying to produce an heir, but finally reverts to his religious calling. The play had been turned down by one London management, but Alexander took it on and opened it at the St James's on 5 January 1895. It was received politely by those in the more expensive parts of the house and impolitely by those in the cheaper seats. The reviews were unenthusiastic; Alexander kept the play on the bill for a month before turning to Wilde as a more theatrically adept writer.