King Lear

by William Shakespeare. The play was written between 1603 and 1606 and later revised. The earlier version, The True Chronicle of the History of the Life and Death of King Lear and His Three Daughters, was published in quarto in 1608, and The Tragedy of King Lear, a more theatrical version, was included in the 1623 First Folio. The first recorded performance appears to have been on 26 December 1606.

Performance history in South Africa

18**: First recorded production in South Africa **

1895: Produced at the Standard Theatre , Johannesburg by the W.J. Holloway company, under the auspices of the Wheeler Theatre Company.

1936: Performed as the first Shakespeare to be done at the Little Theatre, directed by Cecil Tugman.

1954: Produced by Leon Gluckman at the Wits University Great Hall in 1954, directed by Elizabeth Sneddon with Gluckman as Lear.

1960: A production by Port Elizabeth Shakespearean Festival, 1960, with André Huguenet as Lear.

1966: Maynardville: Presented by Cecilia Sonnenberg and René Ahrenson in January 1966, directed by British director Alexander Doré on his first visit to South Africa. The cast: Johann Nell as Lear, Roy Searl, Roger Spence, Michael Fisher, Robert Del Kyrke, Will Jamieson, Limpie Basson, Michael Newell, Robin Malan, Joey Wishnia, David Goatham, Ronald Fenton and others.

1969: PACT did a version with Joe Stewardson as Lear, directed by Robert Mohr at the Alexander Theatre. Also starring John Rogers (Edgar), Anthony James as the Fool.

1974: A CAPAB production of the play was performed for the opening of the 1820 Settlers Monument in Grahamstown under the direction of Roy Sargeant with Michael Atkinson in the title role on 8 July. This production opened in the Nico Malan Theatre on 18 July 1974.

1977 Roy Sargeant directed the play for CAPAB, with Michael Atkinson, **

1981: A production by PACT in the Staatsteater, Pretoria Anthony James.

1998 A production by the Take Away Shakespeare Company, directed by James Whyle toured the country, also playing the Grahamstown Festival.

2002: A production by the North West Arts Drama Youth Group, directed by Mbulelo Grootboom at the Grahamstown Festival, June/July 2002

2006: The Actor's Co-Operative in association with the Playhouse Company presented the play at the Playhouse Drama in Durban.

Translations and adaptations

1971: A controversial production of an Afrikaans version of the play (translated as Koning Lear by Uys Krige (HAUM, 1971), directed by Dieter Reible and featuring Cobus Rossouw as Lear) was done by CAPAB at the Nico Malan Theatre in Cape Town opening 28 May 1971 as the first production in the new theatre by the Afrikaans company. The rest of the cast were Siegfried Mynhardt, Pieter Joubert, Jannie Gildenhuys, Johan Malherbe, Katinka Heyns, Margot Luyt, Sandra Kotzé, David Haynes, Mees Xteen, Chris Swanepoel, Martin Crous, Paul Malherbe, Paul Slabolepszy, Price Coetzee, Johann Potgieter, Barry White, Graham Prosser. Costumes by Beatrice Maurer, decor by Pieter de Swardt.

1990: A production of Krige's Afrikaans text was done by PACT, directed by Francois Swart (assisted by Tjaart Potgieter), with Louis van Niekerk (Lear), Peter Se-Puma, Bill Curry, André Stolz, Tjaart Potgieter, Gys de Villiers, Johan Malherbe, André Odendaal, Kevin Smith, Leslie Fong, Dan Sebogodi, Pieter Brand, Antoinette Kellermann (Goneril), Hélène Truter (Regan), Natania van Heerden (Cordelia), Pierre Perold, Nomsa Nene, Nomsa Xaba. Design by Chris van den Berg, lighting design by Paul Pamboukian.

Sources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Lear

King Lear theatre programmes, 1966, 1974.

Koning Lear theatre programme May 1971.

Bosman, 1928: pp.

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