Andy Blake, or The Irish Diamond

Andy Blake, or The Irish Diamond is an Irish comedy in two acts by Dion Boucicault (1820-1890)[1].

The original text

Founded on the novel Le Gamin de Paris, ou L'enfant de Geneviève by Mme Fanny Richomme ... Paris [1837]" as dramatized by Alfred Bayard, Boucicault drew the plot from this work, but then turned it into a virtually original an Irish play.

Performed under this name on March 1,1854, at the Boston Museum, with Agnes Robinson in the leading role of the boy. Published as Andy Blake, or The Irish Diamond in New York by Samuel French, 1858. (No 110 of French's Minor Drama) and in London by John Dicks, [ca. 1860?] Dicks' standard plays ; no. 556

Afterwards called The Dublin Boy or The Irish Boy and performed as The Dublin Boy in London, 1862. 'The Dublin Boy' ('Le Gamin de Paris') was seen 10 Feb. 1862,

Performance history in South Africa

1878: Performed on 3 April in the Theatre Royal in Cape Town by the Disney Roebuck company, with Constance Young in the cast. Also played was Adrift.

1878: Repeated on 4 April in the Theatre Royal in Cape Town by the Disney Roebuck company. Also played was British Born.

1878: Performed on 15 July in the Theatre Royal in Cape Town by the Disney Roebuck company. Also played was Heroes (Edwardes). This evening a "Grand Comlimentary Benefit for Captain Roebuck".

Sources

Facsimile version of the original novel, Gallica[2]

Facsimile version of the 1857 edition, Internet Archive[3]

https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Boucicault,_Dion_(DNB01)

Robert Hogan. 1969. Dion Boucicault. New York: Twayne Publishers: pp 81-82[4]

F.C.L. Bosman. 1980. Drama en Toneel in Suid-Afrika, Deel II, 1856-1916. Pretoria: J.L. van Schaik: pp. 367, 371.

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