La Mascotte is the title of a comic operetta written by French composer Edmond Audran in 1880. The story of a a farm girl who brought good luck to whomever possessed her, so long as she remained a virgin, the title was French slang derived from the Provencal term masco, meaning witch. With a degree of musicianship rarely seen in such lighter productions, the operetta ran for over 1,000 performances beween 1880 and 1882. This popularity led to it being translated into English and staged at the Comedy Theatre in London, England beginning October 15 1881, and the Gaiety Theatre in Boston, Massachusetts beginning April 11, 1882. The title was translated as "The Mascot", which initiated the use of that word in the English language to mean an animal, human, or thing which brought luck.
