''The Sunshine Girl'' is an

Edwardian musical comedy Edwardian musical comedy was a form of British musical theatre that extended beyond the reign of King Edward VII in both directions, beginning in the early 1890s, when the Gilbert and Sullivan operas' dominance had ended, until the rise of the A ...

in two acts with a book by Paul A. Rubens and

Cecil Raleigh Cecil Raleigh was the pseudonym of Abraham Cecil Francis Fothergill Rowlands (27 January 1856 – 10 November 1914, London, England), an English actor and playwright. Personal life Abraham Cecil Francis Fothergill Rowlands was born on 27 Janu ...

, lyrics and music by Rubens and additional lyrics by

Arthur Wimperis Arthur is a common male given name of Brittonic languages, Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. An ...

. The story involves a working girl who falls in love with the heir to the factory. He is in disguise and wants to be loved for himself, not his position, so he gets his friend to pose as the heir, leading to complications for both men. The musical was first produced by

George Edwardes George Joseph Edwardes (né Edwards; 8 October 1855 – 4 October 1915) was an English theatre manager and producer of Irish ancestry who brought a new era in musical theatre to the British stage and beyond. Edwardes started out in theatre ma ...

at the Gaiety Theatre in London, opening on February 24, 1912, and running for 336 performances. It starred

George Grossmith, Jr. George Grossmith Jr. (11 May 1874 – 6 June 1935) was an English actor, theatre producer and manager, director, playwright and songwriter, best remembered for his work in and with Edwardian musical comedies. Grossmith was also an important inn ...

as Lord Bicester,

Edmund Payne Edmund James "Teddy" Payne (14 December 1863 – 15 July 1914), was an English actor, comedian and singer best known for creating comic roles in a series of extremely successful Edwardian musical comedies. He was often paired with the comic act ...

as Floot and

Phyllis Dare Phyllis is a feminine given name which may refer to: People * Phyllis Bartholomew (1914–2002), English long jumper * Phyllis Drummond Bethune (née Sharpe, 1899–1982), New Zealand artist * Phyllis Calvert (1915–2002), British actress * Ph ...

as Delia Dale. It also had a Broadway run in 1913 at the Knickerbocker Theatre starring Grossmith's in-law,

Vernon Castle Vernon and Irene Castle were a husband-and-wife team of ballroom dancers and dance teachers who appeared on Broadway and in silent films in the early 20th century. They are credited with reviving the popularity of modern dancing. Castle was a st ...

Port Sunlight Port Sunlight is a model village and suburb in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside. It is located between Lower Bebington and New Ferry, on the Wirral Peninsula. Port Sunlight was built by Lever Brothers to accommodate workers in it ...

is the real life suburb on which the setting of the musical is based. The show introduced the

tango Tango is a partner dance and social dance that originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata, the natural border between Argentina and Uruguay. The tango was born in the impoverished port areas of these countries as the result of a combina ...

to British audiences.

Synopsis

The hero, Vernon Blundell, has inherited the great "Sunshine" Soap Factory at Port Sunshine, but in the will his uncle inserted a clause that Vernon must not be engaged or married before the expiration of five years; otherwise the whole property will be vested in the various heads of departments on a co-operative basis. Vernon, however, had for some months been working in the factory as an ordinary "hand", and in that period of time had fallen in love with pretty Delia Dale, an assistant in the perfumery department. He wants her to love him for himself, rather than for his position, and accordingly he arranges for his stockbroker friend, Lord Bicester, commonly known as "Bingo", to personate him and pose as head of the establishment. After some demur, "Bingo" agrees to the proposition and trusts to chance that his identity will not be discovered. Unfortunately, he quickly finds himself in a tangle of complications. He is recognised by his ''fiancée'', Lady Rosabelle Meridew, and also by Floot, an ex-cabman, who once drove him from a Covent Garden Fancy Dress Ball after a night of more than ordinary exhilaration. Floot arrives at Port Sunshine on his way from

Land's End to John o' Groats Land's End to John o' Groats is the traversal of the whole length of the island of Great Britain between two extremities, in the southwest and northeast. The traditional distance by road is and takes most cyclists 10 to 14 days; the record ...

, his purpose being to win a £50 prize for walking offered by an enterprising newspaper to whomsoever shall accomplish the journey without begging, borrowing or stealing. Floot immediately sees that he has a good thing on, and Bingo has to purchase his silence by making him the general manager of the soap works. Floot is married to Brenda Blacker, who was Bingo's travelling companion on his journey home from the ball. She is now engaged as a cook in the household of the Lady Rosabelle and is also carrying on a flirtation with a longshoreman, known as Commodore Parker. At the end, it is declared that no law can stop a man from marrying the woman he loves, and so the terms of the will are over-ridden, and Vernon and Delia prepare to "live happily ever after".

Roles and original cast

*Lord Bicester (known as "Bingo," a young Stockbroker) –

*Vernon Blundell – Basil Foster *Commodore Parker (known as "Nosey," of the Blundell Line of Boats) – George Barrett *Hodson (Chief Manager of the Works) –

Tom Walls Thomas Kirby Walls (18 February 1883 – 27 November 1949) was an English stage and film actor, producer and director, best known for presenting and co-starring in the Aldwych farces in the 1920s and for starring in and directing the film adapt ...

*Stepneyak (Manager of the Foreign Department) – Robert Nainby *Dever, Whitley, Telfridge, Garing, Wears and Nelgrove (Managers of the various Departments of the Works) *Clarence (a Footman) – F. Raynham *Floot (An ex-four-wheeler driver) –

*Lady Rosabelle Merrydew (Lord Bicester's Fiancée) –

Olive May Olive May (November 17, 1871 – July 24, 1938) was an American stage actress. She appeared in the popular play ''Arizona'' and appeared in Maude Adams's company. Personal life May was married to playwright Henry Guy Carleton from 1894 to 1898.( ...

*Marie Silvaine (Head of the Packing Department at the Works) – Mabel Sealby *Emmeline (A Workgirl) – Violet Essex *Sybil, May, Lucy, Violet, Lily and Kit (Heads of the various Departments) *Miss Molyneux – Gladys Wray *Hon. Miss Grey – Pattie Wells *Brenda Blacker (Floot's wife, calling herself by her maiden name) –

Connie Ediss Connie Ediss (born Ada Harriet Whitley; 11 August 1870 – 18 April 1934) Gänzl, Kurt"The real Connie Ediss, or 'She was a Milliner's Daughter'" Kurt of Gerolstein, 6 November 2020 was an English actress and singer best known as a buxom, good-h ...

*Delia Dale (of the Perfume Department of the Works) –

Musical numbers

;Act I – Port Sunshine. *No. 1. Chorus – "When you want a cake of soap to finish off your toilet, we're the folks who boil it" *No. 2. Marie & Chorus – "There's a little fable: When the cat's away, on the kitchen table, mice begin to play" *No. 3. Delia & Vernon – "There is a fever that few understand – you must take care when it is there!" *No. 4. Lord Bicester – "Two young chaps may be sent, perhaps, to the same old Public School" *No. 5. Mrs. Blacker & Parker – "It was leg-o'-mutton day when I first met you" *No. 6. Chorus – "Here comes our new proprietor!" *No. 7. Lord Bicester & Delia – "Ladies, you were born to rule us ever since the world began" *No. 8. Marie & Floot – "Man's no longer Lord of all Creation, as he used to be" *No. 9. Octet – "Men of Business" – "Each one of us has a special occupation" *No. 10. Mrs. Blacker & Chorus – "Lots of people nowadays, they go abroad for a holiday" *No. 11. Delia & Chorus – "You should always try to look your very best; men will be impressed" *No. 12. Finale – "Now, Mister Blundell, we wait for you instructions" ;Act II – Mr. Blundell's Private House at Port Sunshine. *No. 13. Chorus – "Every kind of party we have read about" *No. 14. Emmeline & Chorus – "Here's to love and laughter, never mind what comes after" *No. 15. Marie, Mrs. Blacker, Floot & Lord Bicester – "When there's a party held upstairs" *No. 16. Delia & Chorus of County Ladies – "There lived a little lady once, as dull as she could be" *No. 17. Floot – "The art of being lazy is a science in its way" *No. 18. Lord Bicester & Girls – "When a man sees a maid, and a maid sees a man" *No. 19. Lord Bicester & Floot – "We get some funny cases to attend to nowadays" *No. 20. Lady Rosabelle & Chorus of Workgirls – "There lived a little lady just a hundred years ago" *No. 21. Delia & Lord Bicester – "Wouldn't it be jolly if we took a little holiday?" *No. 22. Mrs. Blacker & Chorus – "I've had a trip on board of a ship" (known as "I've been to the

Durbar Durbar can refer to: * Conference of Rulers, a council of Malay monarchs * Durbar festival, a yearly festival in several towns of Nigeria * Durbar floor plate, a hot-rolled structural steel that has been designed to give excellent slip resistance o ...

") *No. 23. Finale – "Little girl, little girl, little girl, little girl, you are a dear!"

Critical reception

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' praised the piece. "We have never known a gayer evening in the gay and absurd world behind the footlights of the Gaiety. … As to the acting and the singing, every one was at their best." ''The English Review'' thought the performances finer than the play: "Strip ''The Sunshine Girl'' of the ladies, and not even the turns of the Payne-Grossmith-Barrett trio could hold it together … yet all Mr. Grossmith has to do is to appear now and then in fashionable suitings, just to see, as it were, how things are going." ''

The Manchester Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' commented, "The whole is as good as any other Gaiety piece. The plot goes entirely to waste in the second act. … The great successes of the evening were Miss Ediss's uproariously funny songs about Brighton and the Durbar and a duet sung by Mr. Payne and Mr. Grossmith (as Lord Bicester) representing the adventures of two London policemen." ''

The Illustrated London News ''The Illustrated London News'' appeared first on Saturday 14 May 1842, as the world's first illustrated weekly news magazine. Founded by Herbert Ingram, it appeared weekly until 1971, then less frequently thereafter, and ceased publication in ...

'' gave a uniformly excellent notice: "''The Sunshine Girl'' is an appropriate title: all is brightness and light and geniality in the new Gaiety entertainment. ... The music of Mr. Rubens is deliciously light and tuneful, and there is more than the customary amount of clever dancing."Art, Music and the Drama", ''The Illustrated London News'', 2 March 1912, p. 328

Notes

External links

Song list and links to Midi files, lyrics and cast listInformation about the Broadway production
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sunshine Girl, The 1912 musicals West End musicals Original musicals British musicals