Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him in his old age, and he made a richly ornamented robe for him. When his brothers saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could not speak a kind word to him. Joseph had a dream and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more.
(The brothers) saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him.
So when Joseph came to his brothers they stripped him of the richly ornamented robe he was wearing and took him and threw him into the cistern.
When the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt.
Then they got Joseph's robe, slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood. They took the ornamented robe back to their father and said, "We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son's robe."
He recognized it and said, "It is my son’s robe! Some ferocious animal has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces."
After Joseph had been taken down to Egypt, Potiphar, an Egyptian who was one of the Pharaoh's officials, the caption of the guard, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.
Joseph was well-built and handsome, and his master's wife noticed and said, "Come to bed with me!" But he refused. Joseph's master took him and put him in prison... The Pharaoh was angry with his two officials, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker, and put them in the same prison where Joseph was confined. Each of the two men- the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Egypt, who were being held in prison - had a dream the same night, and each dream had a meaning of its own. Joseph asked them to tell him their dreams, to which he told them what the dreams had interpreted.
When two full years had passed, the Pharaoh had a dream. In the morning his mind was troubled, so he sent for all the magicians and wise men of Egypt. Pharaoh told them his dreams, but no-one could interpret them for him.
Then Joseph interpreted the Pharaoh's dream to which the Pharaoh said, "Since God has made all this know to you, there is no-one so discerning and wise as you. You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people are to submit to your orders. Only with respect to the throne will I be greater than you." The Pharaoh put Joseph in charge of the whole of Egypt. All the countries came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe in the whole world.
Israel's sons were among those who went to buy grain, for the famine was in the land of Canaan also.
As soon as Joseph saw his brothers, he recognized them, but he pretended to be a stranger and spoke harshly to them. When Joseph came home, they presented to him the gifts they had brought into the house, and they bowed down before him to the ground. He asked them how they were, and how his father was. They bowed low to pay him honor.
Joseph said to his brother, "Come close to me." When they had done so, he said, "I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now, do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you."
"Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in Egypt and about everything you have seen. And bring my father down here quickly." Joseph had his chariot made ready and went to Goshen to meet his father Israel. As soon as Joseph appeared before him, he threw his arms around his father and wept for a long time.
| 1968 | London |
World Premiere London |
| 1972 | West End |
Original London Production West End |
| 1973 | West End |
West End Transfer West End |
| 1976 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway Revival Off-Broadway |
| 1981 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway Revival Off-Broadway |
| 1982 | Broadway |
Broadway Transfer Broadway |
| 1991 | West End |
London Revival West End |
| 1992 | Toronto |
Toronto Production Toronto |
| 1993 | Los Angeles |
Los Angeles Production Los Angeles |
| 1993 | Broadway |
Broadway Revival Broadway |
| 1995 | US Tour |
US Tour |
| 1996 | London Fringe |
Return Engagement [London] London Fringe |
| 1999 | Milburn, NJ (Regional) |
Paper Mill Production Milburn, NJ (Regional) |
| 2000 | Regional (US) |
Regional (US) |
| 2003 | West End |
London Revival West End |
| 2005 | US Tour |
Touring Revival US Tour |
| 2007 | West End |
London Revival West End |
| 2011 | Chicago (Regional) |
Chicago (Regional) |
| 2014 | US Tour |
Touring Revival US Tour |
| 2017 | West End |
Metro Radio Arena Revival West End |
| 2019 | West End |
London Revival West End |
| 2020 | Off-Broadway |
Manhattan Concert Productions Concert Off-Broadway |
| 2021 | West End |
West End Revival West End |
Videos
