The Irish Tutor, or New Lights

The Irish Tutor, or New Lights is a farce in one act, possibly translated from an unknown French original, by Richard Butler, the Earl of Glengall.[1]

It is sometimes cited simply as The Irish Tutor, or as New Lights.

The original text

First performed at the Cheltenham Theatre on July 12th 1822 (under the title New Lights or the Irish Tutor), then at the Theatre Royal Covent Garden on October 28th 1822. It was also performed in New York in this period. Published in New York 1823 by J. Robinson, at the Circulating Library and Dramatic Repository.

Performed in New York on 5 May 1863, as part of "Barney Williams Irish Relief Benefit", followed by a series of performances by "Butler's Combination Troupe" (the American Theater, 2-7 November 1863), by Mr. and Mrs. Barney Williams (Niblo's Garden, 4-9 January, 1864), and at the New Bowery Theatre (17, 19, 30, 31 March and 19 July, 1864).

Performance history in South Africa

1824: Performed as The Irish Tutor by the Garrison Amateur Players, in the African Theatre on 4 September as afterpiece to Life (Reynolds). Its star performer was Dr M'Donnell. On request of the Governor, Sir Charles Somerset, and his wife, the plays were repeated on 22 September.

1825: Performed as The Irish Tutor by the Garrison Players in the African Theatre on the 23rd July, as afterpiece to Catherine and Petruchio (Shakespeare) and followed by How to Die for Love! (Von Kotzebue).

1828: Performed as The Irish Tutor by the Gentlemen Amateurs in the African Theatre on the 2 January, as afterpiece to The Miller and his Men (Pocock).

1831: Performed The Irish Tutor, or New Lights on 16 April by All the World's a Stage in the Roeland Street Theatre, as afterpiece to Jane Shore, or The Unfortunate Favourite (Rowe).

1835: Performed The Irish Tutor, or New Lights by the Garrison Players (the Officers of the 98th Regiment) in the African Theatre on the 29th April, as afterpiece to The Flying Dutchman, or the Phantom Ship (Fitzball).

1845: Performed as The Irish Tutor on 22 August by All the World's a Stage in the Roeland Street Theatre, as afterpiece to Charles XII (Planché).

1858: Performed in English as The Irish Tutor by Charles Fraser and a company of amateurs in the Cape Town Theatre on 27 December, with A Blighted Being (Lefranc/Taylor) and The Spectre Bridegroom (Moncrieff).

1860: Performed on the Eastern Cape border on July 30 and August 1, by the North Lincolnshire Regiment of Foot. The cast consisted of J. M'Kechnie (Mr Tillwell), F. Girton (Charles, his son), T. Booker (Dr Flail, a schoolmaster), W. Dansie (Terry o'Rourke and Dr O'Toole), J. Greenan (Rosa, his niece), and J. Durney (Mary, her maid). The evening also included dancing and comic singing by W. Lovett and J. M. M'Kechnie and The Review, or The Wags of Windsor (Colman). (See the entry on the North Lincolnshire Regiment of Foot for contemporaneous commentary on the performance.)

1860: Performed as The Irish Tutor again in the Grahamstown Garrison Theatre by the Band of Amateurs on August 20th and 22nd, with a cast again consisting of J. M'Kechnie (Mr Tillwell), F. Girton (Charles, his son), T. Booker (Dr Flail, a schoolmaster), W. Dansie (Terry o'Rourke and Dr O'Toole), J. Greenan (Rosa, his niece), and J. Durney (Mary, her maid). Also performed was The Iron Chest (Colman).

1860: Performed in the Theatre Royal Cape Town by the Alfred Dramatic Club on 22 August and 15 September, with the "burlesque burletta" The Maid and The Magpie, or The Fatal Spoon (Byron) and songs and dances by Miss Powell. Led by Sefton Parry, amateur company included the amateur comedian Murphy as well as the professional performers Mrs Parry, Mrs Delmaine and Miss Powell. On the second occasion they performed in the presence of Prince Alfred.

1860: Performed once more in the Theatre Royal Cape Town by the Alfred Dramatic Club on 26 November, with Dido, The Queen of Carthage (Bernand) and a performance by the brass band of the 59th Regiment. Parry and his wife were not part of the company, they having left the Cape by this time.

1861: Performed again in the Theatre Royal Cape Town by the Alfred Dramatic Club on 23 February, as part of a "Grand Gala" that also included a repeat performance of Dido, The Queen of Carthage (Bernand).

1861: Performed again as The Irish Tutor in the Grahamstown Garrison Theatre Garrison Theatre by the North Lincolnshire Regiment of Foot on June 3, with the same cast. Also performed was a scene from The Castle Spectre (Lewis) followed by a scene from The Indians of the Far West (Anon.).

1861: Performed again in the Grahamstown Garrison Theatre as The Irish Tutor, by the Amateurs of the Band, and using the same cast, on October 14, along with Slasher and Crasher (Morton), The British Volunteers (Bridgman) and Bombastes Furioso (Rhodes).

1862: Performed as The Irish Tutor in the Eastern Cape village of Keiskama Hoek's Garrison Theatre by the North Lincolnshire Regiment of Foot on May 28, as part of their first production in that venue. The cast featured J. M'Kechnie (Mr Tillwell), F. Girton (Charley, his son), J. F. Gay (Dr Flail, a schoolmaster), W. Dansie (Terry o'Rourke as Dr O'Toole), T. Paterson (Beadle), B. Sheeran (A countryman), J. Davies (Rosa, in love with Charley), and J. Durney (Mary, her maid). The other plays on the programme were announced as Amororosa or King of Little Britain (Planché) and The Omnibus, or A Convenient Distance (cited as being by J.R. Raymond), with J. M'Kechnie and J. Davies singing comic songs during intervals.

1864: Performed The Irish Tutor by the Garrison Players (the Officers of the 11th Regiment) in the Garrison Theatre on the 3 May and 10 May, as afterpiece to Catherine Howard, or The Tomb, The Throne and The Scaffold (Dumas/Suter).

1865: Performed as The Irish Tutor by the Ray and Cooper company in the Theatre Royal, Cape Town, on 26 and 27 December, with A Pair of Pigeons (Stirling) and a locally written "Grand comic Pantomime" called Little Jack Horner, or Harlequin A.B.C. (Mollan).

1870: Performed by "members of the Legislative Assembly", aided by the brass band of the 11th Regiment, in the Oddfellows Hall, Cape Town, "for the purpose of aiding in the establishment of a dramatic club in Cape Town". It was accompanied by a performance of As Mad as a Hatter (Anon.) by the same company.

1877: Performed as The Irish Tutor in the Theatre Royal, Cape Town, by Disney Roebuck's company on 29 August, with David Garrick (Robertson).

1878: Performed in the Good Hope Gardens by "The Paultons" (Tom Paulton and his wife, Emmeline Paulton) and a company of amateurs on 21 October as part of a mixed programme that also included Cut Off with a Shilling (Smith) and Where are we now?, a "comic, topical Negro lecture, written by a Cape Town gentleman".