The Circus Girl

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A musical play in 2 acts, 4 scenes: Book by James T. Tanner and Walter Palings; Lyrics by Harry Greenbank and Adrian Ross; Music by Ivan Caryll; additional numbers by Lionel Monckton.

Daly's Theatre, Broadway- 23 April, 1897 (75 perfs) Reopened 16 August 1897 (97 perfs) total perfs 172.
Gaiety Theatre, London - 5 December, 1896 (494 perfs)

Synopsis

Dick Capel deputized occasionally at a Paris circus as "The Cannon King", impressing pretty Dora Wemyss, a school girl. Dick, however, is engaged to be married.

Dora's father, Sir Titus, an English tourist, has been hiding in the cannon, because he has been flirting with the circus girls and is avoiding his wife. Dick shoots Sir Titus out of the cannon.

Meanwhile Bugs, a silly American bartender, agrees to fight a celebrated wrestler, The Terrible Turk, in order to win over Lucille, the girl who walks the slack wire. La Favorita is a bareback rider.

Musical Numbers:

  1. Mi Carême - Opening Chorus
  2. The Barman - Biggs and chorus
  3. I Love Her - Dick, Reggie and Biggs
  4. The Uses of Advertisement - Drivelli and chorus
  5. La Favorita - La Favorita
  6. Professions - Lucille and Biggs
  7. A Paris - Dora
  8. In the Ring - Dora and Dick
  9. Now You Know Your Way - Gaston and chorus
  10. A Wet Day - Dick and chorus
  11. The Master of the Ring - Albertoni
  12. A Circus Girl - La Favorita
  13. She Never Did the Same Thing Twice - Dick and chorus
  14. Farandole - Chorus
  15. Wine, Women and Waltz - Gaston
  16. A Simple Little String - Dora
  17. Clowns - Lucille and Biggs
  18. The Way To Treat A Lady - Mrs Drivelli
  19. Danse des Polichinelles

Dramatis Personae

Sir Titus Wemyss
Dick Capel
Drivelli - Proprietor of the Circus
Hon Reginal Gower
Albertoni - Ring Master
Vicomte Gaston
Commissaire of Police
Auguste & Adolphe - Clowns
Toothpick Pasha - The Terrible Turk
Rudolph - The Common King
Folbert
Cocher
Sergent de Ville
Valliand
Biggs - An American Bar Tender
Lucille - A Slackwire Walker
La Favorita
Mme Drivelli
Lady Diama Wemyss
The Serpentine Quartette (Marie, Liane, Emilie, Juliette)
Comtesse d'Epérnay
Marquise de Millefleurs
Mdlle Gompson
Dora Wymss

Scenes:

Act I - On the Boulevard, outside the Café de la Régence

Act II

Scene 1 - In the Ring at Drivelli's Circus
Scene 2 - Bureau of the Commissaire of Police
Scene 3 - The Artists' Ball

Time - The Fêtes of Mi-Carême