AustLit

Adapted from Francis Cowley Burnand's extravaganza of the same name (1868). The Age critic writes of Walch's adaptation:

The general dissatisfaction resulting from [the company's] efforts must be accounted for on the principle of ex nihlo nihil fit. Burlesque writing, in fact, seems a lost art, and must remain so til another Planche becomes famous... [but] the ladies of the company were well received as they appeared on the scene, and the approval of the audience was frequent during the evening as song after song was given, and tableau followed tableau" (8 June 1874, 3).

The plot sees Princess Daisy is cursed by Furibund so that she will be turned into a white fawn if she sees daylight before her sixteenth birthday. The Prince unwittingly wounds her in that shape, and so she becomes a fawn at night. After many adventures the curse is lifted. The production contained references to Melbourne politics and personalities.

[Source: Australian Variety Theatre Archive]