Lady Madcap is an Edwardian musical comedy in two acts, composed by Paul Rubens with a book by Paul Rubens and Nathaniel Newnham-Davis, and lyrics by Paul Rubens and Percy Greenbank. The story concerns a mischievous Earl's daughter who holds a ball at her father's castle without permission, pretends to be her own maid, and causes general confusion.[1]
The musical was first performed at the Prince of Wales Theatre, London, on 17 December 1904, under the management of George Edwardes, garnering highly favourable reviews.[2] It ran for 354 performances, nearly a year, closing in November 1905.[3][4] It starred Adrienne Augarde in the title role, and G. P. Huntley as Trouper Smith. Various changes were made to the cast during the run. Among those who appeared in the piece were Zena Dare, Lily Elsie, Gabrielle Ray and Marie Studholme.[5] It then toured in the British provinces, starring Studholme.[6]
In 1906 it ran on Broadway at the Casino Theatre as My Lady's Maid with Madge Crichton in the title role.[7] It also received an Australian production.[8]
- ^ Dangerfield, Fred. "The Story of Lady Madcap", The Play Pictorial, Vol. 5, pp. 79–80 (1905) Greening & Company
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
timeswas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Theatres", The Times, 20 November 1905, p. 8
- ^ Wearing, p. 212
- ^ "The Theatre Zena Dare Knew", The Times, 17 February 1964, p. 14
- ^ "Marie Studholme" performances, Theatre Archive, University of Bristol, accessed 1 September 2015; and *Lady Madcap, Leeds Playbills, Grand Theatre, Leeds (1905), accessed 1 September 2015
- ^ Stubblebine, Donald J. Early Broadway Sheet Music: A Comprehensive Listing of Published Music from Broadway and other stage shows, 1843–1918 (2002), p. 171
- ^ Lady Madcap, The Sydney Morning Herald, 2 December 1907, accessed 1 September 2015