The Flowers of the Forest: A Gypsy Story

The Flowers of the Forest: A Gypsy Story is a drama in three acts by John Baldwin Buckstone (1802–79)[1].

Also found simply as The Flowers of the Forest

The original text

A play about the trial of an innocent gentleman, Alfred, for a murder that was really committed by a Gypsy boy, Lemuel.

First performed at the Adelphi Theatre, London in 1847 and at the Howard Athenaeum, Boston, in 1849 and The Bowery Theatre, 1852. Published in London in 1847 and in New York by Samuel French in 1855(?)

Translations and adaptations

Performance history in South Africa

1861: Performed as The Flowers of the Forest by the Sefton Parry and his company in the Theatre Royal, Cape Town, on 17 and 20 June with King's Gardener, or Nipped in the Bud (Selby) and a dance by Lizzie Powell.

1866: Performed as The Flowers of the Forest by the Le Roy-Duret Company in the Harrington Street Theatre, Cape Town, on 23 and 26 July, with Easy Shaving (Burnand and Williams).

1875: Performed as The Flowers of the Forest by Disney Roebuck and his company in the Bijou Theatre, Cape Town, on 8 and 11 May.

1876: Performed as The Flowers of the Forest by Disney Roebuck and his company in the Athenaeum Hall, Cape Town, on 8 June, with Brown and the Brahmins (Reece). The evening a benefit for Maggie Duggan and Clive Hersee.

1885: Performed as The Flowers of the Forest in the Theatre Royal, Cape Town, produced by Mr H.C. Sidney and partner Mr H.J. Fiedler during the course of the year.

Sources

Facsimile version of the Samuel French text of 1855(?)[2]

https://www.umass.edu/AdelphiTheatreCalendar/img011c.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Baldwin_Buckstone

D.C. Boonzaier. 1923. "My playgoing days – 30 years in the history of the Cape Town stage", in SA Review, 9 March and 24 August 1923. (Reprinted in Bosman 1980: pp. 374-439.)

F.C.L. Bosman. 1980. Drama en Toneel in Suid-Afrika, Deel II, 1856-1912. Pretoria: J.L. van Schaik: pp. 97, 100, 105, 201, 205, 211, 214, 323, 328, 340 and 381.

William Groom. 1899-1900. Drama in Cape Town. Cape Illustrated Magazine, 10(4): 478-481, 517-520, 547-552, 580-584, 640-643, 670-672, 706-708.

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