Mother Goose is a character that originated in children's fiction, as the imaginary author of a collection of French fairy tales and later of English nursery rhymes. She also appeared in a song, the first stanza of which often functions now as a nursery rhyme. The character also appears in a pantomime tracing its roots to 1806.
George Wild Galvin, better known by the stage name Dan Leno, was a leading English music hall comedian and musical theatre actor during the late Victorian era. He was best known, aside from his music hall act, for his dame roles in the annual pantomimes that were popular at London's Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, from 1888 to 1904.
Frederick John D'Auban was an English dancer, choreographer and actor of the Victorian and Edwardian eras. Famous during his lifetime as the ballet-master at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, he is best remembered as the choreographer of many of the Gilbert and Sullivan operas.
George Windsor Graves was an English comic actor. Although he could neither sing nor dance, he became a leading comedian in musical comedies, adapting the French and Viennese opéra-bouffe style of light comic relief into a broader comedy popular with English audiences of the period. His comic portrayals did much to ensure the West End success of Véronique (1904) The Little Michus, and The Merry Widow (1907).
Adrienne Adele Augarde was an English actress and singer popular for nearly a decade on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, primarily for her roles in Edwardian musical comedy.
John Cheever Goodwin was an American musical theatre librettist, lyricist and producer. Goodwin was born in Boston and graduated from Harvard University. He began a career in journalism before turning to writing for the stage. Early in his theatrical career he worked for Alice Oates, acting in her company and translating French opera bouffe into English for performance by her company. He often worked with composers Edward E. Rice and Woolson Morse. Goodwin was one of the earliest American writers dedicated to musical theatre librettos and lyrics. His first successful libretto was Evangeline in 1874, and his last new work was produced in 1903.
Frederick Charles Emney, was an English comedian and actor, known for his appearances in farce, comic opera, musical comedy, music hall and pantomime. He was a member of a theatrical family: among his uncles was the popular comedian Arthur Williams, and he was the father of Fred Emney, a comic character actor frequently seen on stage and screen in the mid-20th century.
Victoria Rosaline Sarah Vokes was a British music hall, pantomime and burlesque actress and dancer of the 19th-century and a member of the Vokes Family of entertainers. For more than ten years they were the central attraction at the annual pantomime at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane from 1868 to 1879 when their popularity began to wane.
Madge Lessing was a British stage actress and singer, panto principal boy and postcard beauty of Edwardian musical comedy who had a successful career in the West End in London, Europe and on Broadway from 1890 to 1921 and who made a number of early film appearances in Germany for director Max Mack.
Jessie Vokes was a British music hall, pantomime and burlesque actress and dancer of the 19th-century and a member of the Vokes Family of entertainers. For more than ten years they were the central attraction at the annual pantomime at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane from 1868 to 1879 when their popularity began to wane.
Rosina Vokes was a British music hall, pantomime and burlesque actress and dancer and a member of the Vokes Family troupe of entertainers before having a successful career in her own right in North America from 1885 to 1893.
Fawdon Vokes was a British music hall, pantomime and burlesque actor and dancer who performed as a member of the Vokes Family of entertainers popular in the 1870s in Great Britain and the USA. For more than ten years they were the central attraction at the annual pantomime at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane from 1868 to 1879 when their popularity began to wane.
Ernest Albert, born Ernest Albert Brown, was an American painter, illustrator, muralist, and scenic designer. He was a prolific scenic designer, first in St. Louis and Chicago and then on Broadway. He is considered a major American landscape painter and was elected the first president of the Allied Artists of America in 1919.
When Knighthood Was in Flower is a play in four acts by Paul Kester. It is based on the 1898 novel of the same name by Charles Major. The work premiered on Broadway at the Criterion Theatre on January 14, 1901. It ran for a total of 176 performances; closing in June 1901. The original production was produced by Charles Frohman and used sets by Ernest Albert, Frank E. Gates and Edward A. Morange. The costumes were designed by Mrs. Charles Hone and Harper Pennington. The cast was led by Bruce McRae as Charles Brandon and Julia Marlowe as Mary Tudor among others.
John J. McNally was an American playwright, journalist, and drama critic. As a playwright he is best known for penning the books for many Broadway musicals staged between the years 1895–1909. Many of these were crafted for the Rogers Brothers, or were created in collaboration with the songwriting team of Jean Schwartz and William Jerome. He was a longtime drama critic and editor for various Boston newspapers.
Frederick Charles Solomon, sometimes given as Fred Solomon or Frederic Solomon, was a British-born American composer, conductor, actor, librettist, playwright, theatre director, and multi-instrumentalist. After studying music at the School of Military Music, he began his career playing the cornet and acting in Britain before emigrating to the United States in 1885.
Mother Goose is a musical in three acts with music by Frederick Solomon, lyrics by George V. Hobart, and a book by John J. McNally that was adapted from Arthur Collins and J. Hickory Wood's libretto for the 1902 pantomime of the same name. The work's plot pulled loosely from several fairy tales and nursery rhymes, including Mother Goose and Jack and Jill. The work also contained many songs interpolated into the production by other writers, including two songs by George M. Cohan: "Rube" and "Always Leave Them Laughing When You Say Goodbye".
Jay Hickory Wood was an English playwright, novelist, and biographer. Born in Manchester, he was best known as the author of many pantomimes; several of them written in collaboration with Arthur Collins. His first pantomime performed in London's West End was Puss'n Boots at the Garrick Theatre in 1899. He wrote new pantomimes for the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, in 13 consecutive seasons. Several of these were adapted into musicals produced on Broadway by Klaw and Erlanger, including The Sleeping Beauty and the Beast (1901) and Mother Goose (1903).
The Wild Rose is a musical in two acts with music by Ludwig Engländer and both book and lyrics by Harry B. Smith and George V. Hobart. The work also contained the hit song "A Most Unlucky Man" by the songwriting team of Jean Schwartz and William Jerome.
Ella Snyder was an American actress. She was active in theaters in London and New York City and on the American vaudeville circuit during the 1890s and 1900s. She was known for her appearances in musicals on the West End and Broadway.
