Silk and satin theatre playbills and programmes were produced from the 18th century onwards, to commemorate special evenings at the theatre. This silk playbill is especially interesting since it shows that this quite expensive form of theatrical ephemera was also produced in Canada in the early 19th century, even for amateur performances.
This programme was produced for a Benefit Night at the Theatre Royal, Montreal, on the 12th January 1835, in aid of the Ladies' Benevolent Society, when two plays were mounted for the first time in Canada. First was the Scottish drama <i>Gilderoy</i> by W. Barrymore, a success at London's Victoria Theatre where it was originally produced in 1822. Buckstone's melodrama <i>Presumptive Evidence</i> which rounded off the evening, was first produced in London at the Adelphi Theatre in 1828.
The Theatre Royal in Montreal was the first theatre building in Montreal and had opened in 1825, seating 1,500 people. The participation in <i>Gilderoy</i> of the men from the 24th Regiment from the Garrison, 'by the kindness of Colonel Tidy', as Soldiers, Highlanders, Countrymen and other walk-on parts, is also of interest. Colonel F.S. Tidy and the 24th Regiment of Foot came to Canada in about 1833 and were stationed first in Montreal and later in Kingston.