Drawing
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Victoria and Albert Museum
London, United Kingdom
It belongs to the collection, but is not on display at present.
- Checked
- 9 days ago
- In this state since
- Sep 25, 2026
- Source
- The museum's own collection data
About the work
This pen and ink caricature shows the comedian and music hall star Dan Leno (1860-1904) in the role of Widow Twankey in the pantomime Aladdin at Drury Lane. Reputed to have made his stage debut at the age of four, Leno was first engaged by the then manager of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, Augustus Harris in 1889 and appeared in the annual pantomime there for a number of years. In 1896 he made a famous appearance as Widow Twankey opposite Marie Lloyd as the principal boy, Aladdin, and in 1901 he performed for King Edward VII at Sandringham, after which he was dubbed 'the King's jester'.
Read on
At this time the pantomimes at Drury Lane were mounted on an epic scale. Months in the planning those mounted by Augustus Harris (between circa 1879 and 1896) often cost between £6000 and £8000 to produce. These spectacular productions were mounted on an annual basis and often featured stars of the day in leading roles
Victoria and Albert Museum
Particulars
- Accession number
- S.1107-2010
What it shows
In the catalog
Sources
- Victoria and Albert Museum: the museum's own open data · fetched 9 days ago
- Image: Victoria and Albert Museum — © Victoria and Albert Museum, London
