Men Doet Wat Men Kan, Niet Wat Men Wil

A Dutch translation of the French comédie-proverbe for two actors On fait ce qu’on peut et non pas ce qu’on veut, by Dorvigny (Louis-François Archambault - 1742- 1812; stage name Dorvigny)

Performed for the first time in Paris at le Théâtre des Varieties Amusantes in 1779. Published in French “au Magasin général des Pièces de Théâtre, chez J.B. Broulhiet, rue Saint-Rome”, Toulouse , 1785.

The Dutch version, translated from the French by Hendrik Ogelwight jr, was published in 1787 (and again in 1805) in Amsterdam by Pieter Johannes Uylenbroek.

Performance history in South Africa

First performed in South Africa by a French Amateur Company in the African Theatre, Cape Town on 31 May 1806, with Pigmalion (Rousseau) and a Lyrische Scene("Lyric Comedy", by Delémery).