The Norman Conquests

The Norman Conquests is the collective name for three ingenious plays by British playwright Alan Ayckbourn (b. 1939)[1].

The original text

Entitled Table Manners, Living Together and Round and Round the Garden, they feature the same six characters over a single weekend in three different parts of a house - the dining room, the living room and the garden respectively. The trilogy was first produced at the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough, where Ayckbourn was artistic director, prior to a successful season in London, with a cast that included Tom Courtenay as Norman, Penelope Keith as Sarah, Felicity Kendal as Annie, Michael Gambon as Tom, Bridget Turner as Ruth, and Mark Kingston as Reg.

Translations and adaptations

South African Productions

1979: The trilogy was first produced in South Africa by the Baxter Company '79, directed by Brian Rawlinson, with Bill Flynn (Norman), Eckard Rabe (Tom). Sandra Duncan (Sarah), Dorothy-Ann Gould (Annie), John Lesley (Reg) and Jana Cilliers (Ruth). The design was by Peter Krummeck and the lighting by Winston Cowie. The Baxter Theatre production, with the same cast, appeared at His Majesty's Theatre in Johannesburg later that year, under the auspices of Brickhill-Burke.