The Insect Play

Summary

1960 BBC production of The Insect Play by Karel apek and Josef apek. The Radio Times, 17 June 1960, p. 3 notes that ‘The production will be staged in two studios, of which one will be entirely occupied by the elaborate flying apparatus which has been installed to cope with the butterfly sequence’.

Theatre play

The Insect Play [Ze života hmyzu] by Karel apek and Josef apek [more information]

Play synopsis

'A satire in which insects stand in for various human characteristics: the flighty, vain butterfly, the obsequious, self-serving dung beetle.' Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karel_%C4%8Capek.

Production history

Dated to 1921.

Date of transmission

Sunday 19 June 1960

Time

8.20-9.50pm

Series

Twentieth Century Theatre

Channel

BBC Television

Production company

BBC

Credits

Producer

Hal Burton

Playwright

Josef apek

Playwright

Karel apek

Adapted for Television by

Hal Burton

Translator

Paul Selver

Set Designer

Hal Burton

Costume Designer

Hal Burton

Cast

John Bennett	Otto / Journalist
Joby Blanshard	Parasite / Quartermaster General / Woodcutter
Anna Cropper	Chrysalis
Gerald Cross	Lepidopterist / First Snail
Angela Crow	Mrs Cricket / Schoolgirl
William Devlin (1911-1987)	First Engineer
Gretchen Franklyn	Mrs Beetle / Aunt
Elvi Hale	Iris / Second Snail
Barry Jackson	unnamed part
David Jarrett	Mr Cricket / Philanthropist
Patrick McAlinney	Tramp
Katharine Newman	Larva
Rex Robinson	Victor; Inventor
Jack Rodney	Mr Beetle; Blind Ant
John Scott	unnamed part
Jack Smethurst	Male Beetle / Telegraph Officer
Ronnie Stevens	Felix
Pamela Strong	Clythie
Patrick Troughton	Second Engineer
Ken Tyllsen	unnamed part
Esmond Webb	unnamed part
Arthur White	unnamed part
Arthur Wilman	unnamed part
Richard Wordsworth	Ichneumon Fly / Commander in Chief of the Yellows

Additional details

Play tags

Czech drama

Audiovisual sources

Title

The Insect Play (BBC, 1960)

Archive

BBC Information and Archives [more information]

Address

White City
London
UK

Telephone

+44 (0)20 8008 2288

Website

http://www.bbc.co.uk/informationandarchives/

Access

BBC Information and Archives is not open to the public.

Print sources

Title

Radio Times, 17 June 1960 (Magazine)

Linking notes

article, with photograph, p. 3; listing, p. 9

Title

Twentieth Century Theatre: The Insect Play (BBC, 1960) (Blog article)

Author/creator

John Wyver (Author)

Reference

http://screenplaystv.wordpress.com/2011/06/14/twentieth-century-theatre-the-insect-play-1960-bbc, published 14 June 2011