Twelfth Night

Twelfth Night, or What You Will [1] is a comedy by William Shakespeare. First performed c1601. Perhaps the most popular Shakespeare play in South African theatre, certainly performed more than any other in the 19th century. (???***)

Translations and adaptations

Translated into Afrikaans on request by PACT as Twaalfde Nag by Uys Krige. (HAUM, 1967).

1975: Directed by Cobus Rossouw, assisted by Sandra Kotzé, for CAPAB at the Nico Malan Theatre, opening 29 September 1975 starring Nic de Jager, Regardt van den Bergh, Allan Dyssel, Jana Cilliers, André Rossouw, Fanie Bekker, Sandra Kotzé, Pierre van Pletzen, Mees Xteen, Liz Dick, Pieter Joubert, Pieter Geldenhuys, Marcel van Heerden, Neels Coetzee, Louise Mollett-Prinsloo, Jan Prinsloo, Ralph van Pletzen and Gavin Power. Decor and costumes by Chris van den Berg, lighting by Pieter de Swardt, music by Michael Tuffin. This production opened at the H.B. Thom Theatre on 21 October 1975.

1984: Produced by PACOFS at the National Festival of the Arts in Grahamstown in 1984 under the direction of Truida Louw with Nico Liebenberg, Christo Compion, Franz Grabe, Anita de Jager, Danie Burger, Marko van der Colff, Johan Malherbe, Hélène Truter, Bill Curry, Mary Dreyer, Pierre van Pletzen, Blaise Koch, Christo Potgieter, Hugo Taljaard, Danie Burger, and others. Decor by Johan Badenhorst, costumes by James Parker.

2005: A notable multiracial production of the Afrikaans text was done by Janice Honeyman at the Oude Libertas Theatre in Stellenbosch, KKNK and Baxter Theatre in 2005, featuring i.a. Anna-Mart van der Merwe, Marius Weyers, Peter Butler, Chris van Niekerk, Jeroen Kranenburg, Quanita Adams, Royston Stoffels and Ivan Abrahams. *

Performance history in South Africa

First recorded South African performance in the Military Barracks in Cape Town in 179*?]

1941: Produced by Marda Vanne in the Hofmeyr Hall in 1941, also playing Maria. With Gwen ffrangçon-Davies (Olivia), Lydia Lindeque (Viola), Cecil Williams (Orsino). Settings by Basil South. Music composed or arrangend by Percival Kirby and recorded in Johannesburg.

1949: Leonard Schach directed the Cape Town Repertory Theatre Society for the opening of the Labia Theatre in May 1949. Decor and costumes were by Dorrit Dekk. In the cast were Joyce Bradley, Dorothy Felbert, Gavin Haughton, Cecil Jubber, Ken Taylor.

1953: Performed professionally in English by NTO in 1953 taken on a National tour, directed by Leonard Schach, featuring Gerrit Wessels, Siegfried Mynhardt, Frank Wise, Alan Chadwick, Edna Jacobson, Roma Reilly. Aedwyn Darroll, Vivienne Drummond, Michael Perry, Pieter Geldenhuys, David Ritch, Barry Lategan, Timothy Spring. Decor and costumes Frank Graves.

1964: Twaalfde Nag, the Krige Afrikaans translation, was first performed by PACT on 11 August 1964 (dir. Leonard Schach, the cast including Pieter Geldenhuys, Lourens Odendaal, Kita Redelinghuys, Cobus Rossouw, Marius Weyers, James Norval, Francois Swart, Louis van Niekerk).

1969: Presented by CAPAB at the Hofmeyr Theatre, directed by Michael Atkinson, August 1969, starring himself, Ken Leach, Glynn Day, Brian Kennedy, Roger Dwyer, Lyn Hooker, Elliot Playfair, Pieter Geldenhuys, Ralph Lawson, Wilson Dunster, Bernard Brown, Paul Fosbery and others. Set designed by Raimond Schoop, costumes designed by Chris van den Berg, stage manager Brian Kennedy, lighting devised by Scott Robertson. Music and songs arranged by Michael Tuffin.

1970: Staged by the Theatre Workshop Company in Durban, directed by Pieter Scholtz, with himself (Orsino), Gillian Lomberg (Viola), Dennis Schauffer (Malvolio), Nerissa Holdcroft (Olivia), Joseph Ribeiro (Feste), Ann Wakefield (Maria), Phillip Boucher (Sir Toby Belch), Roger Orton (Sir Andrew Aguecheek), Mervyn Podmore (Curio & Priest), Michael Finlay (Valentine), Edwin Winship (A Sea Captain), Garry Gordon (Gentleman), Robert Gordon (Fabian), David Ritchie (Antonio), Michael Roland (Sebastian), Colin Stansell (1st Officer), Keith Humphrey (2nd Officer) and Jeremy Hurley (Servant). Costumes by Tom Owen.

1974: Staged by The Company, directed by Janice Honeyman, with a cast including Lindsay Reardon, Jon Ossher, David Eppel, Danny Keogh, Ron Smerczak, Jud Cornell, Vanessa Cooke, Aletta Bezuidenhout and Sue Kiel. Music by John Oakley-Smith.

1989: Maynardville directed by Keith Grenville starring Ralph Lawson, Pauline O'Kelly, Don Maguire/David Muller (alternating as a sea captain), André Roothman, Timothy Mahoney, Peter Butler, Phillip Boucher, Fiona Coyne, David Alcock, Bo Petersen, James Irwin, Willie Fritz, Edward Turner, Royston Stoffels/John Dennison, Carsten Rieger, André Samuels, Toni Mitchell, Theo Vilakazi, Ivan Abrahams. Designed by Peter Cazalet, lighting by Malcolm Hurrell, music by Péter Louis van Dijk. This production was also seen at the Oude Libertas Theatre.

1990: Directed by Christopher Weare at the Little Theatre, opening 1 September 1990.

1998: Presented atMaynardville directed by Clare Stopford starring Peter Butler, Michele Burgers, Bo Petersen, Langley Kirkwood, Gavin van den Berg, June van Merch, Kurt Wustmann, David Dennis, Ivan D. Lucas, Lee-Ann van Rooi, Terence Bridgett, David Isaacs, Akin Omotoso, Emile Serfontein, Nomzamo Sishuba, Jackson Vuka. Designer Peter Cazalet, lighting designer Malcolm Hurrell, music composition David Kramer, choreography Alfred Hinkel.

1998: Staged at the Market Theatre, 6 May - 6 June starring Esmeralda Bihl, Terence Bridgett, Coco Merckel, Peter Butler, David Dennis, Langley Kirkwood, Ivan D. Lucas, Geoffrey Matentji, Erica Petersen, Carol Radebe, June van Merch, Isadora Verwey, Gavin van den Berg, Kurt Wustmann and others.

Other notable productions include **, **, **, **,. It has been performed a number of times at Maynardville, beginning with ***’s version in 195*, with ** and including Roy Sargeant's 1978 (with Jana Cilliers, Helen Bourne, Evelyn Dalberg, Roger Dwyer, John Whiteley, Daniel Davies, John Burch, Joseph Ribeiro), Clare Stopford's 1998 (an adaptation set in a Cape fishing village, with Michele Burgers, Bo Petersen, Peter Butler, David Dennis, Gavin van den Berg, June van Merch, Ivan D. Lucas, Langley Kirkwood and others, with music by David Kramer) and Geoffrey Hyland’s 2006 versions, with **.

An innovative production by The Company in the Blue Fox, Johannesburg in the 1970s used a set consisting only of two cushions, two deck chairs and a green carpet with a hole in it.

Sources

Trek 26 September 1941, 19.

Helikon, 2(9):19-21.

Inskip, 1977. p 119, 120, 126.

PACOFS Drama 25 Years, 1963-1988.

Twelfth Night theatre programme, 1969.

Theatre Workshop Company theatre programme, 1970.

Twaalfde Nag theatre programme, 1975.

The Company theatre programme (undated).

Return to

Return to PLAYS I: Original SA plays

Return to PLAYS II: Foreign plays

Return to PLAYS III: Collections

Return to PLAYS IV: Pageants and public performances

Return to South African Festivals and Competitions

Return to The ESAT Entries

Return to Main Page