AustLit

Staged in three acts and ten tableaux, the pantomime opened with the traditional Fairy Land setting, where children dressed as elves hammered miniature anvils with little golden hammers. After the Forces of Evil are called up, the scene changes back to Earth: a nautical setting on the banks of the Thames. From here, the story follows, in a fashion, Defoe's original story, including Crusoe's embarkation, the storm and shipwreck, and the island upon which he finds himself stranded. The storyline deviates at various intervals, largely as a means of incorporating spectacle. Two such scenes are 'The Fight with the Tigers' (act 2, scene 2) and 'The Rajah's Palace' (last act), where the Rajah of Chimpanzee consents to the marriage of his daughter with Crusoe, thus bringing the pantomime to an end.

The musical program included 'Sweet Bells Say' (sung by Marie Luella), 'At My Window' and 'What is it Whispering in My Heart' (Edith Moore), 'He Got it Where the Chicken Got the Axe' and 'Ting a Ling Ting' (Bobby Watson), 'The Fighting Tailor' (Tommy Cosgrove), 'I Don't Want to Play in Your Yard' (Florrie Ranger), and 'The Band Played On' and 'The Boy in the Gallery' (Amy William and Amy Gourley). Other musical music highlights included 'The Sinbad Ballet' (performed as Crusoe departs on his voyage of discovery), 'The Trilby Ballet' (staged with 'an entirely new novelty'), 'The Cannibal Ballet', 'The Harem Ballet' (an Oriental dance), and a thirty-member hornpipe dance performed by children.

Among the numerous novelties incorporated into the narrative were 'Peter Jackson the Fighting Kangaroo' and 'Henry the Braying Donkey.' The visual spectacle saw a depiction of Crusoe's ship wrecked in the thunderstorm, with the staging including a mechanical device that allowed Crusoe to be tossed about on his raft. The harlequinade was also described as novel, being staged aboard a train that was apparently racing through the countryside. The transformation scene was titled 'Through the Mazes of Fairy Land to the Home of the Naiads.'

Written and arranged expressly for the Theatre Royal by Frank Ayrton and localized by Nat Gould, Babes in the Wood was essentially an Australianised adaptation of the much travestied story. Produced by George Rignold this Christmas pantomime is said to have been staged in the traditional fashion, although a significant change was made to the narrative development by presenting the babes as cousins in order to provide a 'proper amount of "sweethearting'" ('Musical and Dramatic Notes,' Sydney Morning Herald 19 Dec. 1891, p.5).

The pantomime was viewed by one critic as having been produced according to the necessities of the cast, however, and as a consequence 'the youthful innocence [of the babes] was not essayed, and the treatment [could] at best be described as serio-comic.' In this regard the critic found that the credibility of the work suffered in no small way because of the age of the 'too old boy,' and the 'too saucy girl' suggested that the play was 'over-burdoned with dialogue and characterless music' ('Amusements,' p.5).

Opening in the familiar 'Home of Pantomime,' a glittering stalactite cave, the Gnome King, the Spirit of Pantomime and Father Christmas are proffered subjects for the story until finally they settle on The Babes in the Wood. The scene then changes to the exterior of Sherwood Castle where the audience is introduced to the main characters: the babes, their wicked uncle Sir Rupert de Guile, the two burlesque ruffians Roger Ruthless and Timothy Trembline, and Robin Hood and Maid Marion. The dramatic action loosely follows the usual story, with the babes being lost in the woods and various situations, both comic and pathetic ensuing.

The second act presented a series of 'Dances Of All Nations,' a 'Toy Review' and a cascading fountain of water which flowed beneath coloured lights, while third act highlights were played out in the rich interior of a baronial hall, and included a 'powder and puff' gavotte and a grotesque musical interlude performed by the Leslie Brothers. The transformation scene saw the stage become a blaze of colour with the dazzling framework of flowers and fruits leading to the traditional harlequinade.

Written and arranged expressly for George Rignold this 1891 production, according to the Sydney Morning Herald's theatre critic, 'wisely kept to the story which every child knows... without any complication elements' ('Dick Whittington at Her Majesty's,' p.5). The story emerges from the enmity existing between King Rat and Fairy Silvertone over the fortunes of young Dick Whittington. After having declared war on the Fairy Queen, she vows to protect Dick with the aid of Truth and Industry.

Some of the scene highlights included a ballet of Australian flowers, a raft scene, a battle between Cat and Rats at the palace of the Emperor of Morocco, and a scene at the Guildhall with a procession of various trades. The Herald's review also makes favourable comment on the 'many songs full of local and topical hits,' and records that Maggie Moore, who appears in almost every scene, also has 'at least one song in each' (p.5).