The Mock Catalani in Little Puddleton

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The Mock Catalani in Little Puddleton, or The Sham Catalani in Little Puddleton, is a 1842 Australian play or "musical burletta". It was based on a German play, with adaptation and music done by Charles Nagel. [1] [2] [3]

It was one of the earliest locally written plays although the plot was set in Italy. The play was given a licence to be performed in Australia despite being an original work which was extremely rare [4] The play was devised as a vehicle for Joseph Simmons. [5]

Reviewing a performance the New South Wales Examiner said it "took the audience by surprise, and brought down a hearty and unrestrained effusion of merriment, such as the walls of the theatre have seldom witnessed." [6]

The Sydney Herald said "the dialogue is smart, some of the original music (composed by the author) is pretty, and on the whole the piece was successful." [7]

The Australian said "This species of entertainment is not now much in vogue, and without offending the squeamishness of any portion of our Colonial audience, we may say, that it is one to which they have not been sufficiently familiarized to be very competent critics. But all men, women, and children, know when they are pleased, and the vast majority of such in the theatre, on Saturday night, expressed their pleasure in a manner that could not be mistaken for any thing else than the spontaneous effusion of their delight. " [8]

The Sydney Gazette said "Great credit is, notwithstanding, due to the author, for the admirable manner in which he has dramatised it." [9]

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References

  1. ↑ "To the Editor of the Australian". The Australian . Vol. IX, no. 1112. New South Wales, Australia. 19 May 1842. p. 3. Retrieved 11 May 2024– via National Library of Australia.
  2. ↑ "CHARLES NAGEL, ESQ., AND THE "MOCK CATALANI."". Australasian Chronicle . Vol. IV, no. 396. New South Wales, Australia. 21 May 1842. p. 2. Retrieved 11 May 2024– via National Library of Australia.
  3. ↑ "Advertising". The New South Wales Examiner . No. 10. New South Wales, Australia. 4 May 1842. p. 3. Retrieved 11 May 2024– via National Library of Australia.
  4. ↑ Williams, Margaret (1983). Australia on the popular stage, 1829-1929 : an historical entertainment in six acts. Oxford University Press. p. 18. ISBN   978-0-19-554398-8.
  5. ↑ H. L. Oppenheim, 'Simmons, Joseph (1810–1893)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/simmons-joseph-2663/text3621, published first in hardcopy 1967, accessed online 11 May 2024.
  6. ↑ "THE THEATRICAL EXAMINER". The New South Wales Examiner . No. 12. New South Wales, Australia. 11 May 1842. p. 3. Retrieved 11 May 2024– via National Library of Australia.
  7. ↑ "DOMESTIC INTELLIGENCE". The Sydney Herald . Vol. XIII, no. 1548. New South Wales, Australia. 5 May 1842. p. 3. Retrieved 11 May 2024– via National Library of Australia.
  8. ↑ "THE DRAMA". The Australian. Vol. IX, no. 1108. New South Wales, Australia. 10 May 1842. p. 2. Retrieved 11 May 2024– via National Library of Australia.
  9. ↑ "Theatricals". The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser . Vol. XL, no. 4402. New South Wales, Australia. 12 May 1842. p. 3. Retrieved 11 May 2024– via National Library of Australia.
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