Agnes de Vere, or The Wife’s Revenge

Agnes de Vere, or The Wife’s Revenge, is a drama in three acts by John Baldwin Buckstone (1802-1879)[1].

The play is referred to as Agnes de Vere, or A Wife’s Revenge, Agnes de Vere, or The Broken Heart or simply Agnes de Vere by some authros, but the published versions have the title above.

The original text

According tot the Remarks[2] published in the W. V. Spencer edition (1855), the play was an adaptation from a French play, and was first performed at the Adelphi Theatre, London in October, 1834, with the author playing "Oliver Dobbs". It became very popular in the USA, being performed in New York, Philadelphia and Boston from 1845 onwards, and in the British colonies (e.g. Australia and South Africa).

Published in Dick's series of play texts (as No 805) in 1836?, in Boston by W. V. Spencer, 1855 (No XXIII) and in New York by Samuel French in the same year, then again by Lacy in 1876.

Translations and adaptations

Performance history in South Africa

1859: Performed as Agnes de Vere, or A Wife’s Revenge by Sefton Parry in the Harrington Street Theatre on 5 December. Billed as "a pathetic drama in Three Acts", with a Spanish dance as interlude and The Happy Man, or The Legend of the - (Lover), a one act burlesque act.

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Baldwin_Buckstone

Facsimile version of the 1855 published text, Hathi Trust Digital Library[3]

"Royal Victoria Theatre, This Evening June 10", The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), Sat 10 Jun 1848: page 2. from The National Library of Australia[4]

F.C.L. Bosman. 1980. Drama en Toneel in Suid-Afrika, Deel II, 1856-1916. Pretoria: J.L. van Schaik: pp. 78.

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