Operette

London : Heinemann, 1938. First edition. Octavo, gilt-lettered cloth (a little discoloured), in the original dustjacket foxing, short edge tears, large section missing to head of spine), pp. [xvi]; 135, black and white plates, scattered foxing, a good copy.

‘Operette is a musical in two acts composed, written and produced by Noël Coward. The show is a period piece, set in the year 1906 at the fictional “Jubilee” theatre. The story concerns an ageing Viennese operetta star, who warns the young ingenue not to marry a nobleman.

The piece premiered in 1938. Coward’s attempt to follow up the mittel-European nostalgia of his hit operetta Bitter Sweet (1929) was not a success and ran for only 132 performances. It nevertheless contained songs that endured, in Coward’s cabaret act and elsewhere, such as “The Stately Homes of England”.’ – Wikipedia