Pygmalion
A Greek mythical character, about whom a number of dramatic works have been written.
Contents
The character
Pygmalion is the Greek version of the Phoenician royal name Pumayyaton, and is most familiar from Ovid's narrative poem Metamorphoses, X, in which Pygmalion was a sculptor who fell in love with a statue he had carved.
There have been a number of theatrical works over the centuries based on the story of the Greek mythological figure Pygmalion. Many works used this title or use the name in the title of the work.
Among them are Jean-Philippe Rameau's opera Pigmalion (1748); Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Pygmalion (1762, staged 1770); Donizetti's first opera, Il Pigmalione (1816); William Brough's Pygmalion; or, The Statue Fair (1867); W. S. Gilbert's Pygmalion and Galatea (1871), Marius Petipa and Nikita Trubetskoi's four act ballet Pygmalion, ou La Statue de Chypre(1883); George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion (1912, staged 1914).
Plays performed in South Africa
A number of the above works have been performed in South Africa, and they are discussed below.
Pygmalion by Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1762).
The play
A one-scene lyric drama by Jean-Jacques Rousseau, with music by Horace Coignet. Can be considered one of the first ever melodramas, in the original sense – i.e. a play consisting of pantomime gestures and the spoken word, both with a musical accompaniment. Written in 1762, It was first performed by amateurs at the Hôtel de Ville, Lyon in 1770, became part of the repertory of the Comédie-Française for about five years.
South African Performances
Sources
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pygmalion_(Rousseau)
Pygmalion by G.B. Shaw (1912).
The play
The story of the poor flower seller who want's to be a lady, and is taught to "speak proper" by the professor Higgins. Written in 1912, it was first staged in 1914.
The play has had many spin-offs, perhaps the most famous being the stage and film musical My Fair Lady.
South African Performances
Pygmalion was first produced in South Africa by Disney Roebuck in 18**. ??* In 19** it was done by Anton Ackerman with Pikkie Uys in the lead.
The play was entry of the University Players for the 1943 F.A.T.S.A. Play Festival.
Sources
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pygmalion_(mythology)#Stage_plays
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pygmalion_(Rousseau)
Trek, 8(7):20, 1943.
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