The composer William Shield was still very much alive, and holding the honoured position of Master of the King's Music when this revival of his most famous work took place in Edinburgh. The playbill reveals that it was shown as an afterpiece following a performance of Rob Roy. The Scottish melodies inserted by Shield would therefore follow naturally after the sequence of popular national airs that were the mainstay of theatrical adaptations of Sir Walter Scott's recent masterwork.
Miss Stephens and Mr Horn, performing the lead roles, were billed as star performers up from London. Catherine Stephens, of the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden, had appeared in Edinburgh the previous year as Susanna in the first local performances of The Marriage of Figaro.
© Copyright Opera Scotland 2024
Site by SiteBuddha