First produced at the Royal Victoria Theatre, Sydney, 4 July 1868.
Performed at the Prince of Wales Opera House, Sydney, December 1868; also produced by Twelfth Night Theatre Co., Brisbane, 29 August 1962.
The Empire provides an advance summary of Walter Cooper's comedy Colonial Experience, to be performed for the first time at the Royal Victoria Theatre on Saturday, 4 July 1868. The play is said to be 'illustrative of the varied and peculiar phases of Australian life' and the production 'seems likely to present a characteristic reflex of the mode and manner of colonial times'. The principal roles in the inaugural production were taken by William Hoskins (Captain Versatile Fluent) and Mr. Andrews (Joe Grudge); the remaining roles were performed by members of the Victoria Star Company.