Dick Whittington And His Wonderful Cat;And The Butterflies' Ball And Grasshoppers Feast, And The Troublesome Rats Of Morocco.
[n.d., c.1850.]
Play script, letterpress pamphlet, 12mo (185 x 120mm, 7¼ x 4¾"). In non-original wrapper titled in ink mss. front cover. Glued to scrap sheet.
Dick Whittington and His Cat is a folk tale that has often been adapted for stage pantomimes and plays. It tells of a poor boy in the 14th century who becomes a wealthy merchant and eventually the Lord Mayor of London because of the ratting abilities of his cat. The character of the boy is named for a real life person, Richard Whittington, but there is no evidence that Whittington had a cat.The first recorded pantomime version of the story was in 1814, starring Joseph Grimaldi as Dame Cecily Suet, the Cook. The pantomime adds another element to the story, rats, and an arch villain, the Pantomime King (or sometimes Queen) Rat, as well as the usual pantomime fairy, the Fairy of the Bells. Other added characters are a captain and his mate and some incompetent pirates. In this version, Dick and his cat "Tommy" travel to Morocco, where the cat rids the country of rats. The Sultan rewards Dick with half of his wealth.
[Ref: 10642] £80.00
Play script, letterpress pamphlet, 12mo (185 x 120mm, 7¼ x 4¾"). In non-original wrapper titled in ink mss. front cover. Glued to scrap sheet.
Dick Whittington and His Cat is a folk tale that has often been adapted for stage pantomimes and plays. It tells of a poor boy in the 14th century who becomes a wealthy merchant and eventually the Lord Mayor of London because of the ratting abilities of his cat. The character of the boy is named for a real life person, Richard Whittington, but there is no evidence that Whittington had a cat.The first recorded pantomime version of the story was in 1814, starring Joseph Grimaldi as Dame Cecily Suet, the Cook. The pantomime adds another element to the story, rats, and an arch villain, the Pantomime King (or sometimes Queen) Rat, as well as the usual pantomime fairy, the Fairy of the Bells. Other added characters are a captain and his mate and some incompetent pirates. In this version, Dick and his cat "Tommy" travel to Morocco, where the cat rids the country of rats. The Sultan rewards Dick with half of his wealth.
[Ref: 10642] £80.00