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Monte Carlo (musical)

Edwardian musical comedy in two acts with a book by Sidney Carlton, music by Howard Talbot and lyrics by Harry Greenbank

Manuscripts, fine bindings, an engraving plate and preserved performance ephemera
Arts and lettersInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionAug 27, 2024
Entity authorityQ6904679 ↗
Source-derived summary

Monte Carlo is an Edwardian musical comedy in two acts with a book by Sidney Carlton, music by Howard Talbot and lyrics by Harry Greenbank. The work was first performed at the Avenue Theatre in London, opening on 27 August 1896. The New York production, which opened on March 21, 1898, at the Herald Square Theatre, was directed by Frank Smithson, who also played General Boomerang.

Roles and original casts

Musical numbers

Act I

Opening Chorus - "Here at Monte Carlo's tables, all our hopes on fortune staking..."

Recit. and Song - Croupier & Chorus - "Now here's a chance for visitors, both masculine and feminine..."

Duet - Ethel & Harry - "Within my chambers daily I sit before my table..."

Trio - Sir Benjamin, General, & Mrs. Carthew - "When a widow makes impression with her beauty rich and regal..."

Song - Dorothy - "O land of heart's desire where love is king, and fancy all a-fire..."

Duet - Dorothy & Dorian - "Along the way where lovers go the roses red are twining..."

Duet - Suzanne & James - "The use of French you ask of me, but spite of your professions..."

Song - Dorian & Men's Chorus - "They tell me that life is a riddle; but whatever may chance..."

Song & March - General Boomerang & Chorus - "Have you ever heard the story of my long career of glory..."

Quartette & Dance - Bertie, Gertie, James & Lorrimer - "I am Gertie Gelatine, and it's easy to be seen..."

Song - Jemima & Chorus - "I'm the pet of all the 'alls - I'm Jemima! And they whistles and they calls for Jemima..."

Duet and Dance - Jemima & Sir Benjamin - "A worthy rural Dean a pair of legs could boast of..."

Hornpipe Trio - Mrs. Carthew, General & Sir Benjamin - "If you'll only come a-cruising..."

Finale Act I - "Oh, what is the matter? Oh, what has occurr'd? ..."

Act II

Chorus of Sailors - "We're an able bodied crew, and our duty is to wrestle..."

Recit and Song - Captain Rossiter - "O gallant tars..." & "Before I sail'd this elegant craft..."

Trio - Mrs.

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Monte Carlo (musical)” as edwardian musical comedy in two acts with a book by Sidney Carlton, music by Howard Talbot and lyrics by Harry Greenbank. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewA productive route into publication, performance and collection histories when the underlying object or edition remains clearly identified. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1896, 1898—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. The account is most persuasive where Monte, Carlo and musical can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the arts & letters register because the source frames it as edwardian musical comedy in two acts with a book by Sidney Carlton, music by Howard Talbot and lyrics by Harry Greenbank. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

Object files, edition statements, performance records and contemporary criticism preserve different stages of the work’s history. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 27, 2024. The linked authority identifier is Q6904679. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1896 and 1898.

Critical limits

Later fame can flatten the distinction between original context, subsequent adaptation and institutional collecting history. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

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  • Tracing reception history
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Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Monte Carlo (musical)”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Monte Carlo (musical) primary sources, Monte Carlo (musical) archive and Monte research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

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  3. Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Monte Carlo (musical)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.