Zuleika

Between the first performance in Manchester and the opening at the Saville Theatre a month later there were the usual tinkerings with the script and minor roles. Patricia Routledge seems to have lost a character (Mrs Hanbury) by the time the show arrived in London and Clive Exton had moved up from playing Craddock to playing The Hon. Charles Trent-Garby. Also lost along the way was director Alfred Rodrigues who was replaced by Peter Powell and Eleanor Fazan. However the biggest change was the in the eponymous character of Zuleika. Diane Cilento opened in Manchester but was then absent for some performances before returning to the part. It was claimed she was “unwell” and she herself later claimed that there were pressures caused by last minute changes to the script. However matters came to a head when the show was in Oxford and it was subsequently alleged that she had attempted suicide. At the time she was experiencing marital problems and subsequently divorced her Italian husband. Understandably this real life suicide bid did not sit well with the underlying theme of the novel whereby lovesick Oxford undergraduates commit mass suicide for the love of Zuleika. Consequently the part was given to Mildred Mayne who appeared in the London run.

An excerpt from the show was presented on BBC television on the 12^th June 1957 as part of its Theatre Night series. Despite this the show only managed a run of 124 performances.

Cast & Crew

Cast

Observations

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