The first stage adaptation of May's work was Winnetou (1919) by Hermann Dimmler. Dimmler and Ludwig Körner made revised editions of the play. Different novel revisions have been played on outdoor stages since the 1940s. The Karl May Festival in Bad Segeberg has been held every summer since 1952 and in Lennestadt-Elspe since 1958. At some of these festivals, Pierre Brice has played Winnetou. Another festival has been conducted on a rock stage in Rathen, in Saxon Switzerland near Radebeul in 1940 and then since 1984.Hatzig H. Dramatisierungen in Ueding's Karl-May-Handbuch, pp 523–526.
