The Iron Harp
The Iron Harp is a play by Irish playwright Joseph O'Conor () [1].
Contents
The original text
A play set in 1920, about Captain John Trengarthen, an English officer who has been kidnapped by the IRA. An IRA leader, Sean Kelly, orders Trengarthen's execution as a reprisal for the death of IRA members. This causes a crisis in conscience for the officer's blind guard, Michael O'Riordan.
The play was first performed in 1955, winning the Foyle Award for the best new play. It was produced in 1957 by the Bristol Rep, starring O'Conor.
The text was published in Three Irish plays, introduced and edited by E. Martin Browne. Harmondsworth, England : Penguin, 1959.
Translations and adaptations
The play was adapted as a British television play and broadcast by Granada Television in 1958, featuring Richard Harris in his first TV role.
Translated into Afrikaans by J.F. Marais, probably as Die Blinde Vegter ("The Blind Fighter"), in 1964. (It seems Marais changed the name "Captain John Trengarthen" to "Captain Douglas Tucker" for the Afrikaans version.)
Performance history in South Africa
1964: The Afrikaans version performed by CAPAB, Cape Town, as Die Blinde Vegter.
1965: Die Blinde Vegter performed by PACT in Pretoria, directed by Patrick Mynhardt with Marius Weyers as "Kaptein Douglas Turner".
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Iron_Harp
Die Burger, January 1964
Siener in die Suburbs theatre programme containing list of actors and their roles for PACT 1965-1971.
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