She Would be a Soldier; or, The Plains of Chippewa

She Would be a Soldier; or, The Plains of Chippewa (1819), a play by Mordecai M. Noah. [Park Theatre, in repertory.] When her father insists she marry the bumpkin farmer Jerry Mayflower ( John Barnes), Christine ( Catharine Leesugg) disguises herself as a man and runs away to be with her sweetheart, Lenox ( James Pritchard), who is fighting with the American army in the War of 1812. Entering the army camp she is seized as a spy and condemned to death. Blindfolded and placed in front of a firing squad, Lenox recognizes Christine and stops the execution. Jerry rushes in but, realizing the lengths Christine has gone to be with Lenox, accepts the inevitable. He adds, “Miss Crissy, you look very pretty in pantaloons, and make a fine solger, but after all, I'm glad to have escaped a wife who wears the breeches before marriage.” Written with Leesugg in mind, the play remained popular for many years and was seen in New York as late as 1848. Richard Moody noted, “For its sincerity of tone, its brightness and charm, its democratic spirit, and its praise of the Indian, Noah's play ranks a full step above. . . other dramas dealing with similar historical events.”