Difference between revisions of "Villikins and his Dinah"

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''[[North Lincoln Sphinx]]'' Vol 1, No 8. September 30, 1861.
 
''[[North Lincoln Sphinx]]'' Vol 1, No 8. September 30, 1861.
  
= The stage play by Coyne=
+
= The stage play by Coyne (1854)=
  
 
''[[Willikind and hys Dinah]]'' is described as "[a]n original pathetic and heart-rending tragedy. In three sad scenes" by J.  Stirling Coyne ()[].   
 
''[[Willikind and hys Dinah]]'' is described as "[a]n original pathetic and heart-rending tragedy. In three sad scenes" by J.  Stirling Coyne ()[].   

Revision as of 07:05, 15 January 2019

Villikins and his Dinah can refer to a popular stage song by an anonymous author, or to a burlesque play, using the song, by Francis C. Burnand.

The stage song (1853)

The song

The song Villikins and his Dinah apparently emerged in England in 1853 as a burlesque version of a traditional ballad called "William and Dinah". Immensely popular, the tune was later adopted for many other songs, including "Sweet Betsy from Pike" and two farces were written shortly after, to exploit the popularity of the stage song. Villikins and his Dinah (1855) by Francis C. Burnand and Willikind and hys Dinah (1854) by J. Stirling Coyne.

(To listen to a version of "Villikins and his Dinah" click on this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WHjeDyv6Tzo )

Performance history in South Africa

The original stage song was apparently performed to acclaim by Private W. Dansie of the Ethiopian Serenaders, in the Garrison Theatre of either Grahamstown or Keiskama Hoek, as part of an evening of entertainment by the North Lincolnshire Regiment of Foot. , on May 27, 1861, and was repeated on the June 3.

(See the entry on the North Lincolnshire Regiment of Foot for contemporaneous commentary on the performance.)

Sources

The North Lincoln Sphinx Vol 1, is a 300 page, bound volume, containing a collection of newsletters, mainly recording the social activities, of the 10th North Lincolnshire Regiment of Foot and was printed while the Regiment was stationed on the Eastern Frontier of the Cape Colony (now the Eastern Cape Province of the Republic of South Africa) between 1860 and 1862.

North Lincoln Sphinx Vol 1, No 7. June 13, 1861.

North Lincoln Sphinx Vol 1, No 8. September 30, 1861.

The stage play by Coyne (1854)

Willikind and hys Dinah is described as "[a]n original pathetic and heart-rending tragedy. In three sad scenes" by J. Stirling Coyne ()[].


The original text

First performed in Theatre Royal Haymarket on 16 March, 1854, and published in London by Thomas Hailes Lacy in 1854 as Volume 14 of Lacy's Acting Edition of Plays.

Translations and adaptations

Performance history in South Africa

Sources

[1]

The stage play by Burnand (1855)

Villikins and his Dinah is a tragico-comico burlesque in one act by Francis C. Burnand (1836-1917)[2]

The original text

According to Wikipedia[3], Burnand's play was one of at least two farces written to exploit the popularity of the stage song Villikins and his Dinah (see above), which had emerged in England in 1853 as a burlesque version of a traditional ballad called "William and Dinah". Immensely popular, the tune was later adopted for many other songs, including "Sweet Betsy from Pike". The other farce based on the song is Willikind and hys Dinah (1854) by J. Stirling Coyne.

Burnand's play was expressly written for Amateur performance, and first performed on November 8, 1855, at the A.D.C. Rooms, Cambridge. The text was published by T.H. Lacy in 1855(?).

Translations and adaptations

Performance history in South Africa

1867: Performed by the 9th Regiment in the Theatre Royal, Cape Town, on 25 May, with a "Gymnastic Display" and Mrs White (Raymond).

1867: Performed by the 9th Regiment in the Theatre Royal, Cape Town, on I June, with a "Gymnastic Display" and Jack's Delight (Williams).

Sources

F.C.L. Bosman. 1980. Drama en Toneel in Suid-Afrika, Deel II, 1856-1912. Pretoria: J.L. van Schaik: pp.

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

Facsimile version of the original text by T.H. Lacy, HathiTrust Digital Library[4]

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