Italian Opera Company
The title "Italian Opera Company" refers to a specific category of theatrical company.
The concept
This term occurs throughout much of the 19th and early 20th century writing on music, theatre and performance in South Africa, as elsewhere in the world and usually referred to theatrical companies that offered full or partial versions of the then popular Italian operas, although many also spread their wings to other forms of musical performance as well, even classical theatrical works on occasion.
The names of the manager, or one or more of the leading artists, was usually appended to the title in the formal publicity to distinguish the particular company from any competing companies (e.g. in the format "Mr X's Italian Opera Company"). On the other hand, a number of reviewers and journalists, when writing about a particular person or performance, would simply use a less specific formulation, e.g. as "Mr X, of the Italian Opera Company".
