The King of Diamonds

There are two South African plays by this name. (According to Stephen Banfield[1] Stephen Sondheim also did a film treatment called The King of Diamonds with Larry Gelbart in 1954. No trace of a film can be found however.)

The King of Diamonds by Harold J. Laite (1953)

The original play

Written as a three-act play by Harold J. Laite, dealing with Cecil John Rhodes (1853-1902) [2] and Barney Barnato (1851-1897) [3]. It was published by Pioneer Press in Cape Town in the 1956.

South African performances

1953: First presented at the Labia Theatre, Cape Town, 1953.

Sources

Text of The King of Diamonds, University of Stellenbosch Library Catalogue.

The King of Diamonds - the musical by Bob O'Keefe, and Edgar Adeler

The text

Possibly based on Harold J. Laite's play, The King of Diamonds is a musical play with Barney Barnato (1851-1897) [4] as central figure and hero, with a book by Bob O'Keefe, music by Edgar Adeler.

South African Productions

1961: Produced by NTO in 1961. Directed by Robert Langford. Cast included Roscoe Behrmann; Virginia Lee; Joe Stewardson; Viviene Adley; Jimmy Asser; Patrick Mynhardt; Hugo Warren; Bella Mariani; Elizabeth Evans; Tiny Walker; Jo-Ann Pezarro; Gabriel Bayman; Sheila Forbes; Diana Shahn; Patsi Kahn; Ronald Bloch; Alan Cean; George Jackson; Hugh Claven; Ivo Pellegrini; Casper Dyason. Musical director: Bill Walker. Choreography: Richard Daneel.

Sources

The King of Diamonds theatre programme, NTO, 1961.

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