World premiere
Definitions of "premiere" in the context of the performing arts:
This normally refers to the first public performance of a play or any other type of entertainment.
Merriam-Webster dictionary[1]
1 : to have a first public performance. 2 : to appear for the first time as a star performer. transitive verb. : to give a first public performance of.
This phrase refers to the first regular performance of an theatrical event of any kind, anywhere in the world. However, this term has been misapplied in the case of many South African theatrical productions over the years, very often being used to refer to the first performance outside the country, instead of the first performance ever - inside or outside the country.
To take but one example: to this day the Royal Court Theatre in London lists their 1974 production of Athol Fugard's Statements After an Arrest Under the Immorality Act as the World premiere" of the play, despite the fact that the play had been commissioned by, and had its first run at, the Space Theatre in Cape Town in 1972, with Athol Fugard and Yvonne Bryceland in the leading roles.
While clearly a marketing strategy nowadays, this usage to a great extent derived from the circumstances prevalent in the colonial and Apartheid eras, and perhaps encompasses something of the so-called colonial "cultural cringe", an attitude whereby any artistic work only considered notable if it is recognized abroad.
Sources
Merriam-Webster online dictionary[2]
Cambridge Dictionary online[3]
