Two Old Men

Two Old Men can refer to a Два старика (1885), a Russian short story by Leo Tolstoy, or to a number of stage , radio and other adaptations of the tale. Below are some versions performed in South Africa.

The original Russian short story

Written and first published in 1885, it tells the story of Efim and Elisha, two neighbors who decide to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem before dying.

The story was translated to English by Leo Wiener in 1904 and by Louise and Aylmer Maude in 1906[1]. Widely anthologised over the years.

Dramatised adaptations and translations of the tale

The story was freely adapted as a radio play by Gilbert Phelps and presented by him in The Way of Life on the BBC Home Service Basic, produced by Victor Menzies and broadcast on 3 May, 1959.

The Phelps play was translated into Afrikaans as Twee Ou Manne by Marie van der Merwe in 1962 and was recorded on `14 March, directed by Monica Breedt.

Performance history in South Africa

1962: Twee Ou Manne by Marie van der Merwe broadcast on the programme Radioteater on the Afrikaans Service of the SABC on 20 April.

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two_Old_Men_(story)

https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Twenty-three_Tales/Two_Old_Men

Copy for typed SABC script by Marie van der Merwe, found in the Stellenbosch Drama Department archives in 2022.

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