Cirrus@Austlit

Musical comedy.

With its action taking place in an uptown New York house and later on the Sound steamer Bristol, the story revolves around an the elderly Irish widow O'Brien and her two daughters. Both women have become enraptured by Gilbert and Sullivan's H.M.S. Pinafore, and as a consequence are to be taken to a lunatic asylum.

'It resembles a chapter of the Newgate Calendar dramatised, not forgetting the 'moral' which constituted the sequel to each narrative in that celebrated work,' writes the Argus theatre critic in January 1862. 'Miss Jane Marden (Miss Rosa Dunn) is beloved by a respectable young banker's clerk, Charles Graves by name (Mr. Fawcett), but has also attracted tho notice of an aristocrat young libertine, known as the Hon Algernon Pereau' ('Princess's Theatre.' Argus 21 January 1862, p.5).

The first act, set in England sees Pereau succeed in luring the woman away from her ardent and more suitable, but less well-off, admirer. In Act 2, Jane lives in splendour, but finds her happiness tempered by guilt over her betrayal of Charles. When he attempts to persuade her to leave Pereau she agrees. However, while making their escape they are apprehended, he as a burglar and she as his accomplice, and later transported fore their crimes. The narrative for Act 3, set in Van Dieman's Land, follows the couple's escape, their betrayal by another escaped convict and their eventual death in the presence of Pereau (who is the colony in some 'high civil capacity') atop of Mount Wellington. In their last breaths Jane forgives Pereau, while Graves accuses him of murder.

A comic subplot involved the characters played by Julia Matthews and Mr Stewart.

Also known as Harlequin Puss in Boots, this pantomime was adapted by George Fawcett from Charles Dance's burletta Puss in Boots (1837). The production incorporated numerous hits at local issues and personalities, and also included some well-known Melbourne settings, notably the Melbourne Cricket Ground and Sandridge Pier. One of the characters, the ogre O'Gobble Kilmore, is said to have represented the Victorian Chief Secretary, Mr O'Shanassy.

Though Fawcett began the story by presenting a parody of 'the witches' scene from Macbeth, the Age records that he adhered to the original Puss in Boots story with 'tolerable closeness'. Briefly, the pantomime tells of an old miller's youngest son, Ralph, who is bequeathed a cat by his recently departed father, while the elder son inherits the mill. When Ralph helps out Mother Hubbard, she extends her protection to him and endows the cat with extraordinary powers. Meanwhile, the king of the realm is in despair, having had all his game stolen. When Puss and Ralph are brought before His Majesty, Puss presents him with a rabbit and introduces his master as the latest addition to the colonial peerage. Impressed, the king insists on seeing Ralph's estates. This allows the introduction of a panorama of Australian scenery (corn fields, vineyards and the bush) before they all find themselves at a castle known as the 'Last Retreat of the Squatter Ogre.' When Puss slays the ogre, Ralph is set to inherit his estate and marry the king's daughter when he inadvertently blurts out his humble origins. The king is outraged at the deceit and only the arrival of Mother Hubbard saves Ralph from his wrath. She rapidly transports Ralph, Puss, the King, Princess Rosemead, and the court to the Palace of Jack and the Beanstalk, which heralds a magical transformation scene. The pantomime finished with a harlequinade filled with 'fun, frolic and agility' (27 December 1861, p.5).

A localised adaptation of Robert Brough's Massaniello; Or, The Fish-O-Man of Naples (1857), which is itself a burlesque of the Auber opera. The Argus describes the work as a 'new minstrel burlesque' (24 September 1861, n. pag.).

Written in verse and containing songs and dances, this localised burlesque was adapted from William and Robert Brough's extravaganza The Enchanted Isle, or, Raising the Wind on the Most Approved Principles (1848), itself a burlesque of Shakespeare's The Tempest.

One of the features of the production was George Fawcett's impersonation of 'a well-known medical practitioner' (Age 25 Apr. 1859, n. pag.). A critic writing for Bell's Life in Victoria records, 'Mr Fawcett... gives the jokes entrusted to him with solemn gravity. He has refined, in some degree, upon the design of the authors, and identifies himself very funnily with a person in our local pill interest. The hits levelled at the individual in question are racy, although they occasionally approach the broad in their reference to the aperient qualities of the vegetable specific which is profusely commended by its inventor to the Victorian stomach.' Concerning the other local hits, the critic goes on to write, 'Many of them are cleverly strung together and judiciously interpolated' (30 April 1859, p.2).

A similarly titled pantomime written by Thomas Pavey (and subtitled Harlequin the Mysterious Prince and the Magician Father) is not believed to be related to Rowe's burlesque. The Pavey production was staged in Melbourne in December of the same year as Rowe's burlesque.

A localised adaptation of James Robinson Planché's burlesque pantomime Beauty and the Beast, this version was presented 'for the first time in these colonies' during a season of theatricals starring the Gougenheim sisters, Josephine (aka Joey) and Adelaide. The Age records that the local hits, written by Mr Fawcett, were 'plentifully interspersed throughout the piece, and many of them were very smart and pointed' (18 January 1858, p.5). The critic, however, put forward one particular criticism about the local allusions, namely the obvious want of judgment displayed:

In putting them all into the mouth of one performer, and in modernising a portion of the extravaganza so as to render the dialogue a curious jumble of allusions to two distinct epochs and to antipodean localities with nothing whatever to justify the forcible association of the defunct George Robins with the living Samuel Bottomley; or of Imperial incidents many years old with Mr Fellows and the squatters (p.5).

The Argus review also notes that two or three new songs had been introduced, among them a parody on 'Old Dog Tray' (18 January 1858, p.5). Performed by Joey Gougenheim, who presented a 'capital imitation of [George Coppin] our favourite comedian', the song was described by the Age theatre critic as 'inane and as pointless as the original, [and] elicits a corresponding amount of applause.' The lyrics of the song, which paraphrased a recent speech by Coppin, are said, on the other hand, to have been 'received with such shouts of applause and laughter' that it had to be repeated. In another scene, Joey Gougenheim is reported to have 'especially served out to our ministry some admirably new views for petticoat government'. The scenery for the Princess Theatre season (described as excellent despite the limited area of the stage, and as 'reflecting great a credit on the pencil of Mr Hennings') included a 'capitally arranged' snow storm (18 January 1858, p.5).

This 'Grand Musical Fairy Extravaganza' is described in the ^Age^(http://www.austlit.edu.au/austlit/page/C278194) as being 'as old as the hills, as old as our grandfathers and grandmothers [and] a chef d'ouvre of the "Child's Own Book" imprinted indelibly in the memory'.

The storyline follows the adventures of three sisters who disguise themselves as men. One of the women, Myrtina, obtains the goodwill and assistance of Fairy Favourable and assumes the name and arms of Fortunio. During the course of the story, she battles a dragon and becomes 'confounded by the feats and powers of the seven gifted servants.' The burlesque ends 'in the most approved manner [when Fortunio is] revealed in his true character, as the fair, the chaste, the inexpressive, [and thus] espouses the King Alfourite' (Age 28 December 1857, pp.5-6).

The Argus theatre critic records that the production contained 'local hits, songs and adaptations', with the topicalities aimed at subjects such as the Land Bill, the City Council, and the squatters (28 December 1857 p.5). The Age review also notes that the local hits were occasionally telling. 'There is a song about the Yan Yean', writes the critic, 'and another about the Land Bill, the latter of which sung, with great point by Miss Joey, was re-demanded. The City Council, the squatters and other celebrities got their share of the wit of the piece, and in turn elicited loud laughter' (p.6).

While the authorship of the localisations remains uncredited, George Fawcett likely had a hand in their creation. Although his name is not mentioned in any reviews for this production, Fawcett was engaged by the Gougenheims throughout much of their Princess's season, and is known to have adapted and localised material for his own role in their production of Beauty and the Beast.