A Day after the Fair

A Day after the Fair is a farce or burletta by Charles A. Somerset (fl. mid-19th century).

Some editions (e.g. Elton, 1830), describe it as "A Burletta, in One Act", others ; (e.g S. French, 1856?) "A Burletta", and while other versions (e.g. Cumberland, 1829; and Davidson et al, 1830) refer to it as "a farce in two acts".

This is not to be confused with a 1972 play by Frank Harvey called The Day after the Fair[1] and adapted from Thomas Hardy’s short story, "On the Western Circuit".

The original text(s)

Some uncertainty exists about the first performance, but it was apparently done at the Surrey theatre, London, in 1827, the Bowery Theatre in 1828 and at the Sadler's Wells Theatre in 1829 (possibly the first performance of the two act version).

Printed inter alia by Elton's Dramatic Repository, 1828, by John Cumberland in London, 1829 and by G H. Davidson, 1830, all of them claiming to be from the acting copy, the latter two also containing "remarks biographical and critical by D-G" (George Daniel) .

Translations and adaptations

Performance history in South Africa

1834: Performed in the The Amateur Theatre, Cape Town, by the Private Amateur Company on 5 November, as an afterpiece to Othello, or The Moor of Venice (Shakespeare).

1834: Performed in the The Amateur Theatre, Cape Town, by the Private Amateur Company on 5 November, as an afterpiece to Guy Faux, or the Gunpowder Treason Conspiracy (Marfarren).

1835: Performed under the patronage of Lady D'Urban in the The Amateur Theatre, Cape Town, by the Private Amateur Company on 8 April, as an afterpiece to Venice Preserv'd (Otway).

1846: Performed in Cape Town (possibly by All the World's a Stage) in the newly renamed Hope Street Theatre, now called the Victoria Theatre, on Tuesday 21 July, 1846, as afterpiece to Charles the Second, or The Merry Monarch (Payne) and Fortune's Frolic, or The Ploughman Turned Lord (Allingham) as an interlude.

1868: Performed by the Lanarkshire Dramatic Club (amateur players from the 99th Regiment) in the Garrison Theatre, Cape Town, on 4 November, with Whitebait at Greenwich (Morton).

1869: Performed by the Lanarkshire Dramatic Club in the Garrison Theatre, Cape Town, on 24 January, with The Sergeant's Wife (Banim). Music by the Regimental Band and a song sung by R. Norcliffe.