Skip to main content Skip to navigation

Stage

Amateur

1921 – The Phoenix Society

directed by Allan Wade at the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith, 30 January 1921; revived 1923

1923 – The Marlowe Society, Cambridge

10 March 1923

1932 - the garrick theatre, london

adapted by Stefan Zweig, 24 January 1932

See: James Agate, The Sunday Times, 31 January 1932 

1940 - hertford college dramatic society

directed by Nevill Coghill at the Clarendon Press Institute, Oxford, 30 April 1940

1955 - the marlowe society, cambridge

directed by John Barton at the Arts Theatre, Cambridge 

1955 - the library theatre, manchester

directed by David Scase

See: Gillian Hush, Plays and Players, August 1955, 23

1956 - oxford university dramatic society

  

1965 - the tavistock repertory company

at the Tower Theatre, Canonbury, London

1974 - oriel college dramatic society

directed by David Robson in the Hall, Oriel College, Oxford

opened 18 November 1974

1975 - the shadwell society

directed by Andrew Frape in

Caius Court, Cambridge, 4-7 June 1975

1976 - newcastle university theatre society

in the Gulbenkian Studio, 23-26 November 1976

1978 - the library theatre, manchester

directed by David Scase; run 8 November- 2 December 1978

  

1980 - oxford experimental theatre club

directed by Adrian Jackson at the Oxford Playhouse, 26 February- 1 March 1980

See: Gerald M. Berkowitz, RORD, 26 (1983), 79-80

1982 - birmingham university drama department

directed by Jon Gaunt at the Netherbow Theatre, Edinburgh, 23 August-11 September

See: Gerald M. Berkowitz, RORD, 26 (1983), 79-80

1984 - oxford university dramatic society

directed by Andrew Mulligan at the Oxford Playhouse, 21-25 February 1984

See: Michael Davis and Eric Nicholson, RDN, 5.1 (Spring, 1984), 9-11

1987 - etp at the whitefriars, coventry

10 December- 17 January 1987

Professional

1930 – Cambridge Festival Theatre

1935 – Birmingham Repertory Theatre

taken to the Malvern Festival

1938 – Westminster Theatre

directed by Michael Macowan, January 1938

See: W. A. Darlington, The Daily Telegraph, 26 January 1938

        Ivor Brown, The Observer, 30 January 1938

        James Agate, Brief Chronicles, 83

1940 – Arts Theatre, Cambridge

directed by Donald Wolfit at the Arts Theatre, Cambridge; 1942 – St James’s Theatre, London;

1947 – the Savoy; 1953 – the King’s Theatre, Hammersmith

See: The Times, 10 April 1947 and 13 October 1953

        William Hindle, Shakespeare’s Contemporaries in the Theatre, 1890-1968

        (unpublished MA dissertation, University of Birmingham, 1969), 115-9

1944 – the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon

directed by Robert Atkins

See: The Birmingham Post, 6 June 1944

1952 – the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Stratford-upon-avon

directed by George Devine

press night 15 July 1952

See: The Times, 14 July 1952

        J. C. Trewin, The Birmingham Post, 16 July 1952

        W. A. Darlington, The Daily Telegraph, 16 July 1952

        Cecil Wilston, Daily Mail, 16 July 1952

        The Guardian, 16 July 1952

        The Observer, 20 July 1952

        Harold Hobson, The Sunday Times, 20 July 1952

1954 – The Norwich Players

directed by Lionel Dunn

See: Yvonne Law, Plays and Players, April 1954, 22

1955 – Theatre Workshop Company

directed by Joan Littlewood at the Theatre Royal, Stratford-atte-Bowe

opened 3 March 1955; performed for four weeks

See: The Times, 4 March 1955

        The Stage, 10 March 1955

        Frank Granville-Barker, Plays and Players, April 1955, 20

1955 – the Bristol Old Vic

directed by John Harrison

See: Peter Rodford, Plays and Players, January 1956, 30

1963 – The Billingham Forum Theatre, Teeside

adaptation by George Mike

1965 – the Nottingham Playhouse

directed by Denis Carey

opened 7 April 1965

1966 – the Oxford Playhouse Company

directed by Frank Hauser

opened 20 September 1966; transferred to the Garrick Theatre, London 31 January 1967

See: Derick Grigs, Plays and Players, November 1966, 30

        Irving Wardle, The Times, 2 February 1967

        J. W. Lambert, The Sunday Times, 5 February 1967

        Benedict Nightingale, Plays and Players, March 1967, 22

1967 – the Royal Lyceum, Edinburgh

directed by Michael Burrell

opened 15 November 1967

1968 – the National Theatre Company

directed by Tyrone Guthrie at the Old Vic

opened 14/ 16 January 1968

See: Henry Popkin, The Times, 18 January 1968

        Ronald Bryden, The Observer, 21 January 1968

        Martin Esslin, Plays and Players, March 1968, 14-7

1968 – the Billingham Forum Theatre

directed by George Roman in the adaptation by Stfan Zweig

opened 4 March 1968

See: Peter Roberts, Plays and Players, May 1968, 44

1969 – the Birmingham Repertory Theatre

directed by Michael Simpson; performance run February-April 1969

1972 – Bristol Old Vic Company

directed by John David at the Theatre Royal, 1-25 March 1972

See: Michael Anderson, Plays and Players, April 1972, 56

1977 – the National Theatre Company

directed by Peter Hall in the Olivier

opened 21/ 26 April 1977

See: John Barber, The Daily Telegraph, 27 April 1977

        Michael Billington, The Guardian, 27 April 1977

        Irving Wardle, The Times, 27 April 1977

        Robert Cushman, The Observer, 1 May 1977

        Bernard Levin, The Sunday Times, 1 May 1977

        Ned Chaillet, Plays and Players, June 1977, 22-3

        RORD, 20 (1977), 66-7

1981 –  the Croydon Warehouse

directed by Richard Ireson, May 1981

1983 – Theatr Clwyd, Mold

5-24 September 1983

1983 – the Royal Shakespeare Company, the other place

directed by Bill Alexander at The Other Place, where it opened October 1983; transferred to Gulbenkian Studio, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 5 March 1984 and to the Pit, London, 16 April 1984

See: Richard Edmonds, Birmingham Post, 6 October 1983

        John Barber, The Daily Telegraph, 7 October 1983

        Michael Billington, The Guardian, 7 October 1983

        Irving Wardle, The Times, 7 October 1983

        Michael Coveney, Financial Times, 7 October 1983

        Robert Cushman, The Observer, 9 October 1983

        James Fenton, The Sunday Times, 9 October 1983

        R. V. Holdsworth, TLS, 14 October 1983

        Paul Merchant, RDN, 4.3 (1983), 3-5

        RORD, 26 (1983), 80-2

        Giles Gordon, Plays and Players, July 1984, 32

        Robert Warden, Plays and Players, July 1984, 33

1984 – the Churchill Theatre, Bromley

directed by Peter Coe in an adaptation entitled The Fly and The Fox, 11 July- 4 August 1984

See: RORD, 27 (1984), 132-3

1986 – Birmingham Repertory Studio Theatre

in an adaptation by Ken Morley, 10 April- 3 May 1986

1986 – the Duke’s Playhouse, Lancaster

7-31 May 1986

See: A. C. Elmy, RDN, 7.1 (Summer, 1986), 8-9

1987 – Salisbury Playhouse

directed by David Horlock, March 1987

1995 - National Theatre Company

directed by Matthew Warchus at the Olivier Theatre

opened 29 September 1995, preceded by a Dialogue: Matthew Warchus on Volpone

1999 - Royal shakespeare company, the swan

directed by Lindsay Posner

opened 24 March 1999 at the Swan, Stratford-upon-Avon; transferred to Newcastle Playhouse, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, for eight performances, 2-6 November 1999; to the Pit, London, 9 December 1999; and to The Drum, Plymouth, for eight performances, 17-22 April 2000

Film

1948 - produced by Stephen Harrison, 27 June 1948

1959 - adapted by Donald Wolfit and produced by Stephen Harrison, 16 June 1959

1960 - original air date 7 Match 1960 (season 1, episode 22) as part of the TV series 'Play of the Week' 1959-1961

1965 - production for schools, adapted in three parts by Michael Simpson, 21 September-5 October 1965 which broadcast 66 plays (this was 22)

Foreign film

1941 - directed by Maurice Tourneur and adapted by Jules Romains (France, French) Begun in 1938 by Jacques de Baroncelli (with Jean Tissier), the production shut down because of financial difficulties. Maurice Tourneur took over and the shooting resumed on 23rd March 1940 (minus Jean Tissier). The scenes shot in 1938 were incorporated in the final print.

1965 - Norway, Norwegian, TV

1966 - Volpone oder Der Fuchs, directed by Hansgünther Heyme and adapted by Heinrich Carle and Lothar Hirschmann (West Germany, German, TV)

1974 - directed by György Fehér (Hungary, Hungarian, TV)

1978 - directed by Annelies Thomas (West Germany, German, TV)

1978 - directed by Pierre Sabbagh and adapted by Jules Romains; original air date 8 December 1978 as part of the TV series "Au théâtre ce soir" 1966-1985 whcih broadcast 405 episodes (Volpone was 393); (France, French, TV)
 

1988 - Il Volpone, directed by Maurizio Ponzi and adapted by Leonardo Benvenuti
Piero De Bernardi (Italy, Italian)

2003 - directed by Frédéric Auburtin with a screenplay by Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt (French, TV)