Leap Year, or The Ladies' Privilege

Leap Year, or The Ladies' Privilege is a comedy in three acts by J.B. Buckstone (1802-1879)[1].

The original text

First performed at the Haymarket Theatre, London, and Burton's Theatre New York, in 1850. Published in the same year by William Taylor and Co in the series Modern standard drama, no. 83.

Translations and adaptations

Performance history in South Africa

1879: Performed as by Captain Disney Roebuck's Dramatic Company in the Saloon of the Royal Mailship Balmoral Castle, while on its way to Cape Town with the new company, that was to tour the country till the end of 1882. According to the programme, the "entire profits of the evening to be devoted to the benefit of the Sailors Orphanage and the Dreadnought". The performance took place on Friday 28 November, 1879, in a "theatre" designed and erected under the supervision of Mr Dawson, Chief Stewart of the Balmoral Castle, with W.H. Wallace as Stage Manager, R. Eckhardt as Musical Director, and H. Branscombe as prompt. The cast and stage hands consisted of Mabel Hayes, Bella Murdoch, Julia Sydney, T.G. Warren, T. Morton, Wilfred Bayley, Sidney Beltram, Mr McRedie, Mr Towers, Mrs Towers, Miss R. Towers, Miss F. Conliffe, W.H. Wallace, R. Eckhardt and H. Branscombe

The play was no doubt part of the company's repertoire and was performed in various parts of the country on occasion.

Sources

Catalogue listing on WorldCat [2]

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 1932. (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.203-205

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