RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1982 https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/mk61z420p 242 CARL T. SMITH 1 Dec. 1852 - first performance of amateurs under new management. 12 Feb. 1853 — Victoria Amateurs. "Twice Killed" farce (John Oxenham, 1837) "Slasher and Crasher" farce (J. M. Morton, 1848) 19 Mar. 1853 meeting at Victoria Theatre for purpose of forming a Corps Dramatique to arrange for another performance at an early date. 20 Apr. 1853 "Animal Magnetism" farce (Mrs. E. Inchbald, 1758) "A Kiss in the Dark" farce 19 May 1853 last night of season of Victoria Amateurs. "Time Tries All" dramatic drama (J. Courtney, 1848) "Toothache, or The Prince and the Chimney Sweep" farce 1853/54 27 Oct. 1853 Meeting at Victoria Theatre of those interested in theatricals to make arrangements for the coming season. (I found no notice of any performance for this season). 1860/61 3 Jan. 1861 "Still Waters Run Deep" (T. Taylor, 1855) 1861/62 1862/1863 29 Jan. 1861 new theatre, Hong Kong Amateur Theatre, performance by officers and gentlemen who have organized this establishment: "A Bachelor of Arts" (P. Hardwicke, 1853) "A Nice Firm" (T. Taylor, 1853) 25 Feb. 1861 performance of Gentlemen Amateurs Mon. last. 28 Mar. 1861 theatrical season drawing to close. Appreciation to the Committee. Difficult to see how the Amateur Theatrical Company could have managed without aid from the garrison. Dec. 1861 - first performance of season: "Cool as a Cucumber" (M. W. B. Jerrold, 1851) "The State Secret" (A. Snodgrass, 1821, or T. E. Wilks, 1836) in same commodious erection as served so well for last year's performances, 23 Jan. 1862 second public performance of Hong Kong Amateur Theatre: "Not a Bad Judge" comic drama (J. R. Planche, 1848) "The Critics" facetious tragedy (Sheridan, 1779) 1862 season "Cramond Brig" (W. H. Murray, 1826) Dec. 1862 The theatre a reproduction of last year's design. "Uncle Zachary" comic drama (John Oxenford, 1860) "Fearful Tragedy in Seven Dials" (Charles Selby, 1857) ================================================================================ RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1989 https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/8336pm92h 200 rash decision to marry the first that came". Another actor who was to become a local Roscius. Mr. Phunago BRUSHWOOD, "gave the somewhat unusual stage character of a double-faced farmer (Wurzel) all the selfish cunning and irritable tone which it needed". Other parts were taken by Miss Polly DEXTER, Mr. HEAVISWELL, Mr. Jehoshaphat SNAKES and Mr. PLEADWELL (as the lawyer!). In Box and Cox Messrs PROTEUS, BRUSHWOOD and Mrs. CLAY "kept the audience in a roar" (NCH 22.2.1857). 3.3.1857 (Tue) Dramatic readings from Charles Dickens by Mr. Benjamin SEARE. Th: C ― R: In the Herald of February 28 it was announced that "we are apprized by 'Circular' that an entertainment of a novel character in Shanghai, but one which has greatly attracted the fashionable and literary world elsewhere, will be given by Mr. Scare in the Hall of the Shanghai Theatre on Tuesday Evening next the 3rd prox. The subject - The Early Writings of Charles Dickens is a theme affording scope for great versatility of talent. (...) The Community are much indebted to Mr. Scare for his gratuitous offer of an evening's intellectual amusement to diversify and enliven the monotony of Shanghai life. The Circular notifies that the divertissement will commence at half past 8 & precisely, that no personal invitations will be issued and that a syllabus of the Lecture will be placed in each seat for the use and acceptance of its occupant”. Then, in the issue of March 7, a report was published: "A large and select circle of residents had met in the New Theatre". It became a kind of one man show by Mr. Seare, as the "requirements of versatility and mimic power were most successfully supplied. (...) The lecturer was perfectly at home in each and all of the various characters as they turned up, passed from one to another with an ease that was admirable and portrayed each with a force of comic power which elicited much applause, and, to select the most appropriate compliment we can bestow, did justice to the author. All in all the audience was "kept in a roar”. Mr. Seare concluded with some general remarks on the necessity of some recreation of this kind in a community so distant from home and so isolated and comprising at the same time so much intelligence and ability" (NCH 7.3.1857). One wonders how Mr. Seare was able to give these lectures free of charge; had he been a touring artist that would of course have been impossible. But as it turns out he was a mercantile assistant in the employment of Gilman & Co (this according to the Shanghai Almanac for 1858). In May 1865 he gave another performance (see 27.5.1865). No further details are available about the programme, but no doubt the characters from The Pickwick Papers figured largely in it. Who, after all, can resist Mr. Pickwick, Mr. Jingle and Sam Weller? Dickens himself began readings from his own works one year later, in April 1858, in Britain and the United States. 26.3.1857 (Thur) J.B. BUCKSTONE: "A Kiss in the Dark" (1840) T: Farce (1 act) M.B.W. JERROLD: "Cool as a Cucumber" (1851) T: Farce (1 act) H. DANVERS: "A Conjugal Lesson" (1856) T: Farce (1 act) C: Amateurs Th: N.N. (CH R: In a witty mind "The Man on the Bund" informed us that "by way of introduction there was a kiss — and in the dark too! — perhaps the sweetest kiss of all, administered with enviable gusto by Mr. SNAKES as Fathom. Mrs. Pettibone submitted to it with less indignation than the fact of her being so much respected led us to suppose. But then, it was to punish the odiously jealous Mr. Pettibone who would insist on making Page 225 Page 226 ================================================================================ RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1989 https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/8336pm92h 217 2.3.1864 (Wedn) Performance by the amateurs of the Royal Artillery. No plays are mentioned in the announcement (NCH 27.2.1864). 4.3.1864 (Fri) Performance by Mrs. Greig: "dramatic reading and English ballad music” with the cooperation of Mr. Marquis Chisholm, piano, and the Rhenish Band. N.N. (H) R: This was an evening at which the Herald predicted that "ladies may without impropriety be present". Mrs. GREIG had had “a most successful career in India and the colonies" and it was the first time she had come to Shanghai (NCH 27.2.1864). 28.3.1864 (Mon) T. KORNER: "The Governess" (“Die Gouvernante') T: Farce (1 act) A.F.F. Von KOTZEBUE: "The Harvest at Home" N.N.: Bullrick at Kroll" C: Amateurs of His Prussian M.S. Gazelle Th: On board ship(?) N: It is not recorded in which language these pieces were played: titles and authors are those given by the Herald. Of Kotzebue's play I have not been able to find a German equivalent. HED, however, mentions some plays with the same title by British authors: Thomas Parry (1848) and Charles Dibdin (1787), as well as some by unknown playwrights. R: Perhaps in some fear, the Herald noted with a sigh of relief that "the evening passed off without a single contretemps" (NCH 2.4.1864). Curiously enough the only ship in port with the name "Gazelle" was a British merchantman which had arrived there from Hankow on the 22nd. 30.3.1864 (Wedn) M.W.B. JERROLD: "Cool as a Cucumber" (1851) T: Farce (1 act) J. KENNEY: "Raising the Wind" (1803) T: Farce (2 acts) J.S. COYNER: "Duck Hunting” (1862) T: Farce (1 act) C: Amateurs of the Shanghai Volunteer Corps F: Prologue, spoken by Commm. R.C. Antrobus Th: N.N. (H) N: First performance of the season R: After a brief period in which the actual names of resident-amateurs had been published, there was a reversion to the old practice of stage names, at least probably for most actors. A whole list was printed in the Herald (Messrs Talbot, De Jones, Robinson (were these latter two the same as those active in 1858?), Carnegie, Coke, Dolittle, Smith, Blister, Buttons, Bellingham and John; and Mesdemoiselles Olivia, Pipchin, Robinson and Sally), of whom only Mr. Talbot may have been genuine. As usual the female characters of the farces were played by men ("prettier and more graceful amateur ladies than we have ever seen before"), a generally horrid sight for the serious theatregoer. Not so for Shanghailanders for "large numbers of residents who were desirous of obtaining admission were excluded for want of room” (NCH 2.4.1864). A detailed review had appeared in the Daily Shipping News of 31.3.1864, no longer available. Increasingly, instead of full reports, summaries from the daily edition were published until one has to resort entirely to the Daily News; of Survey). ================================================================================ RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1989 https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/8336pm92h 237 COYNE, Joseph Stirling (1803-1868) "Binks the Bagman" (13.12.1843). P: 8.10.1857 "Duck Hunting" (29.9.1862). P: 30.3.1864; 4.4.1865 "The Infanticidal Farce or Did you ever Send your Wife to Camberwell?" (16.3.1846). P: 21.2.1856 **Urgent Private Affairs** (7.1.1856). P: 5.5.1858 CROSS, John C (d 1810?) The Golden Farmer or Harlequin Ploughboy (28.6.1802). P: 8.10.1857 DANCE, Charles (1794-1863) **Delicate Ground or Paris in 1793** (27.11.1849). P: 13.2.1864 "The Dustman's Belle" (1.6.1846). P: 9.2.1858 DANVERS, Henry (??) **A Conjugal Lesson** (3.7.1856). P: 26.3.1857 DIBDIN, Thomas John (1771-1841) **The Birthday** (16.3.1799). P: 9.2.1858 DUMAS, Alexandre fils (1824-1895) "Camille" (English adaptation of 'La Dame aux Camélias') (1852; London: 1858). P: 27.3.1865 EDWARDS, Henry Sutherland (1828-1906) **The Goose with the Golden Eggs** (with A. Mayhew) (1.9.1859). P: 13.2.1863 FITZBALL, Edward (1792-1873) "The Daughter of the Regiment" (30.11.1843). P: 15.4.1865 GILL, W.B. **Aurora Floyd Burlesqued**. P: 19.4.1865 "Which is Which?". P: 27.3.1865 GORE, Catherine Grace Frances (1799-1861) **A Good Night's Rest or Two in the Morning** (19.8.1839). P: 21.2.1856 HALLIDAY, Andrew (1830-1877) "The Area Belle" (with W. Brough) (7.3.1864). P: 30.9.1865 HARDWICKE, Pelham: See C. Mathews HARRIS, Augustus Glossop (1826-1873) "The Rose of Castille" (Music by M.W. BALFE) (29.10.1857). P: 8.10.-14.10.1864 HAZLEWOOD, Colin Henry (1823-1875) ? "Aurora Floyd or the First and Second Marriage" (21.4.1863). P: 26.11.1864; 17.4.1865 ? "Lady Audley's Secret" (25.6.1863). 142 P: 28.12.1864 "Rob Roy" (19.6.1864). P: 28.3.-5.4.1865 JERROLD, Douglas William (1803-1857) "Black-eyed Susan or All in the Downs" (8.6.1829). P: 28.3-5.4.1865 JERROLD, M. William Blanchard (1826-1884) ================================================================================ RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1989 https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/8336pm92h 241 Aurora Floyd Burlesqued: W.B. Gill; 19.4.1865. The Babes in the Wood: J.H. Byron; 17.4.1865. A Bachelor of Arts: P. Hardwicke; 10.2.1858, 8.5.1865. Betsey Baker; J.M. Morton; 23.3.1853. Binks the Bagman: J.S. Coyne; 8.10.1857. The Birthday: T.J. Dibdin; 9.2.1858. Black-eyed Susan: D.W. Jerrold; 28.3-5.4.1865. Bombastes Furioso: W.B. Rhodes; 28.1.1851, 5.5.1858. The Boots at the Swan: C. Selby; 14.12.1865. Box and Cox: J.M. Morton; 15.5.1854, 18.2.1857. The Bride of Abydos: H.J. Byron; 22.10.-28.10.1864. Bullrick at Kroll: N.N.; 28.3.1864. Camille: A. Dumas Jr; 27.3.1865. A Capital Match: J.M. Morton; 23.4.1857, 3.12.1864. Charles the Second: J.H. Payne; 16.3.1858. Cinderella: H.J. Byron? T. Taylor?; 12.11.-18.11.1864, 28.4.1865. The Colleen Bawn: D. Boucicault; 25.4.1865. A Conjugal Lesson: H. Danvers; 26.3.1857. Conrad and Medora: W. Brough; 12.E.-18.E.1864. Cool as a Cucumber: M.W.B. Jerrold; 26.3.1857, 30.3.1864, 4.4.1864. Crinoline: R.B. Brough; March 1863; 16.3.1863, 1.4.1864. The Daughter of the Regiment: E. Fitzball? 15.4.1865. A Dead Shot: J.B. Buckstone; 11.4.1865. The Debut: N.N.; 1.4.1864. Delicate Ground: C. Dance; 13.2.1864. Diamond cut Diamond: W.H. Murray; 12.12.1850. Done on both sides: J.M. Morton; 10.2.1858. The Dragon of Wantley: H. Carey & J.F. Lampe; 26.1.1852. Duck Hunting: J.S. Coyne; 30.3.1864, 4.4.1864, The Dustman's Belle: C. Dance; 9.2.1858. Faint Heart never won Fair Lady: J.R. Planché; 8.10.-14.10.1864, 14.12.1865. A Fast Train! High Pressure!! Express!!!: J.M. Maddox; 8.3.1854. A Fearful Tragedy in the Seven Dials: C. Selby; 15.2.1860. Fitzsmythe of Fitzsmythe Hall: J.M. Morton; 26.3.1863. The Flowers of the Forest: J.B. Buckstone; 28.3.-5.4.1865. Fra Diavolo: H.J. Byron; 15.10.-21.10.1864. The Frantic Husband: N.N.; 26.4.1865. The Golden Farmer: J.C. Cross? B. Webster? 8.10.1857, A Good Night's Rest: C.G.F. Gore; 21.2.1856. The Goose with the Golden Eggs: A. Mayhew & H. Sutherland; 13.2.1863, 17.2.1863, 26.4.1865 The Governess (Die Gouvernante): T. Körner; 28.3.1864. Grimshaw, Bagshaw and Bradshaw: J.M. Morton: 2.6.1859. The 'Green' Bushes: H.J Byron: 30.9.1865. A Hard Struggle: J.W. Marston; 12.11.-18.11.1864. The Harvest Home: A.F.F. von Kotzebue; 28.3.1864. The Haunted Inn: R.B. Peake; 6.5.1852. The Heir at Law: G. Colman the Younger; 21.4.1851. ================================================================================