World Theatre (TV series)
Television series
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
World Theatre is a 1959 Drama play series featuring various plays adapted for television. The series was produced by the BBC and broadcast on BBC Television from 5 May 1959 - 11 August 1959.[1]
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| World Theatre | |
|---|---|
| |
| Genre | Drama, Anthology |
| Based on | Stage Plays |
| Written by | William Shakespeare, Georg Büchner, James Maxwell, Federico García Lorca, Ben Jonson, Donald Wolfit |
| Directed by | Stuart Burge, James Maxwell, Rudolph Cartier, Michael Elliott |
| Starring |
|
| Composers | Paul Dessau, George Hall |
| Country of origin | England |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 8 (2 missing) |
| Production | |
| Production location | England |
| Running time | 105, 95, 90 minutes |
| Production company | BBC |
| Original release | |
| Network | BBC Television |
| Release | 5 May – 11 August 1959 |
Plot summary
World Theatre features stage plays adapted for television.
Cast
- Olive McFarland as Kattrin, Gerd
- John Southworth as Androgyno, Bethold
- Dilys Hamlett as Julie, Agnes
- James Maxwell as Camille Desmoulins, Ejnar
- Patrick Wymark as Danton, Mayor
- Peter Sallis as Barere, Simon, Prisoner, Doctor, Provost
- John Moffatt as Casca, Joseph Surface
- Madge Brindley as Citizen, Old Neighbour
- John Wentworth as Metellus Cimber, Sir Politick would-be
- Fulton Mackay as Lacroix, Villager
- Esmond Knight as Corvino, John Barthwick, MP
- June Bailey as Aurore, Former Countess, Woman from the Headland
- Anita Giorgi as Rosalie, Gypsy Women
- Harald Jensen as National Convention President, Young Gentlemen, Villager
- Roy Spence as Soldier, Villager
- Neil Robinson as Man, Servant to Joseph Surface
- Allan McClelland as Moon, Old Peasant's Son
- Colin Jeavons as St. Just, Executioner, Jack Barthwick
- Leonard Cracknell as Lucius, Man
- Rowena Torrance as Wedding Guest, Wheeler
Episodes
The series ran for 8 episodes over one series that aired on Tuesdays.[2][3] The episodes "Danton's Death" and "Blood Wedding" no longer exist in the BBC Archives and are believed now to be lost.[4]
| Ep | Title | Writer | Director | Original airdate | Archive |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 'Julius Caesar'[5] | William Shakespeare | Stuart Burge | 5 May 1959 | Survives |
| Ep | Title | Writer | Director | Original airdate | Archive |
| 2 | 'Danton's Death'[6] | Georg Büchner, James Maxwell | 19 May 1959 | Missing | |
| Ep | Title | Writer | Director | Original airdate | Archive |
| 3 | 'Blood Wedding'[7] | Federico García Lorca | 2 June 1959 | Missing | |
| Ep | Title | Writer | Director | Original airdate | Archive |
| 4 | 'Volpone'[8] | Ben Jonson, Donald Wolfit | 16 June 1959 | Survives | |
| Ep | Title | Writer | Director | Original airdate | Archive |
| 5 | 'Mother Courage and Her Children'[9] | Eric Bentley, Bertolt Brecht, Eric Crozier | Rudolph Cartier | 30 June 1959 | Survives |
| Ep | Title | Writer | Director | Original airdate | Archive |
| 6 | 'Henry IV'[10] | Luigi Pirandello | 14 July 1959 | Survives | |
| Ep | Title | Writer | Director | Original airdate | Archive |
| 7 | 'The School for Scandal'[11] | Richard Brinsley Sheridan | 28 July 1959 | Survives | |
| Ep | Title | Writer | Director | Original airdate | Archive |
| 8 | 'Brand'[12] | Henrik Ibsen, Michael Meyer | Michael Elliott | 11 August 1959 | Survives |
Production
During the filming of the episode "Brand" the production of the play was staged with impressively bleak and vast mountain sets designed by Richard Negri and required really highly complex lighting for the different open air conditions for the specified sets for the play, including the sea storm and avalanche. Patrick McGoohan who played the titled main character in the play it was apparently a very difficult role for Patrick McGoohan to successfully realise mainly due to his character that he was playing being a man who is presented in a state of heightened religious fervour from the first scene of the play when he appears on an arduous mountain pilgrimage. Meyer described the final act of the play leading up towards the avalanche, as being a great theatrical experience. He also said Ibsen was a master of the final act, but he never wrote a greater one than in Brand.[13] The play was also performed live on television at the Lyric Opera House Hammersmith.
Critical reception
DVD release
The only episode that has been released on DVD is the episode "Brand", which was released by Network DVD on the 28 July 2003. The DVD also features an interview with Peter Sallis where he recalled about his experience in the episode "Brand".[15][16][17] When the DVD was released Brian Watson largely approved of the DVD and described it as "This is one Hell of a play, and a must for Prisoner enthusiasts".[18]
