11th Regiment

The 11th Regiment of the British forces was stationed in Cape Town, and some commissioned officers and men from the company apparently put on some theatrical performances in the new Theatre Royal (opened in 1860) and the (resurrected?) Barracks Theatre in 1861-2.

The company

A Captain Staunton appears to have been involved, and a company of eight African Minstrels (perhaps another name for the S.A. Minstrels of 1860), led by Colour Sergeant Heaven, also performed interludes. (See Minstrels)

The performances

The company was apparently particularly active in 1862, and among the productions mentioned by F.C.L. Bosman (1980: pp. 166-7) are: The Robber's Wife, or The Coiner's Cave (Pocock) and Bombastes Furioso (Rhodes) on Monday 4 February, 1861; Susan Hopley, or The Trials of a Servant Girl (Susan Hopley, or The Vicissitudes of a Servant Girl by Pitt) and Two Heads are Better than One (Horne) on 25 July 1862; and The Miller and His Men, Kiss in the Dark and a performance by the African Minstrels as interlude on Tuesday 2 December 1862.

Sources

F.C.L. Bosman, 1980. Drama en Toneel in Suid-Afrika, Deel II, 1856-1916. Pretoria: J.L. van Schaik: pp. 166-7,

Go to ESAT Bibliography

Return to

Return to South African Theatre Venues, Companies, Societies, etc

Return to The ESAT Entries

Return to Main Page