The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1891-09-26
BONG All SUES VOICE.
It Dropped to Dnsso rrorundo and &c
Two Thousand Dollars Per Ycnr

1t Dropped to n Dnsso Profundo and to
Two Thousand Dollars Per Year.
Bong All Sue has lost his voice. and
Chinatown is stricken with dismay,
says the San Francisco Examiner lie
mas been the greatest soubrctte on the
Chinese stage for fifteen years, and was
brought TO this city ten years ago at
great expense and on II contract guar
nntccing him six thousand dollars a
year.
If Il man were Edwin Booth or Sarah
Bcrnhardt on the Chinese stare lie
could only command Il small salary in
his own country, but just as Tarnagno
or Scalchi might work for IL pittance in
their native Italy and receive Il princcly
income in New York SO would the ia
voritc but starving actor i'll Canton or
Foochow receive u fortune in San Fran
cisco.
The tragedian of the jackson Street
thcatcr receives eight thousand dollars
Il year, even in these dull times, and
the leading lady gets seven Thousand
five hundred dollars, although she is
only 4 man with IL falsctto voice.
But while these stars appeal to the
staid and ancient merchants of Jackson
soubrcttc, Bong All Sue, is beloved of
the masses.
To be sure Bong All Sue has played in
the roles of chambermaid and walking
lady and irate cook, etc, but then he
was the Lolita, and Minnie Palmer, the
Fay Tcmpleton, the Flora Walsh, the
May Irwin and many others of the
Chinese stage. When Bong All Sue
stepped on the stage of the jackson
Street thcater, with his soft, womanly
scrccch, there was always n tempest of
delight, laughter and applause.
With his large salary Bong All Sue
was invincibe with the ladies. He
simply had to glance toward the upper
boxes, sacred precincts of the great
mercantile families, and he would win
IL dozen eyes fraught with admiration.
lie is also great stage manager, and
MS such is as invaluable as the late Dion
Boucicault or the later Lawrence Bar
ret in staging 4 mclodrama or manag-
ing difficult tragedy.
Ills salary enabled him to dress rs
gorgcously in his way as Billy Emerson
or Maurice Barrymore. But now he
has had to lend his diamonds to n
greedy broker in order to maintain his
crstwhilc style, and to leave his cnam-
clcd watch with an uncle on his cousins
side to preserve his prestige with China
town society.
Bong All Sue lost his voice as sudden
~ as did the famous Italian tenor Ron
conf, who split his vocal chords in
twain at G nlt- 1t was only last Mon
day that this dramatic tragedy hap
pened The role was difficult and re-
Quired u succession of monologucs from
the soubrctte that would tax the efforts
of tho greatest artists.
Suddenly, in the middle OF the third
net, Bong All Sues delicate falsctto
went stale. With n hidcous grating it
fell to coarse basso profundo.
The audience shouted with glce ut
first and thought it simply merry Jest.
With grimacc of pain Bong All Sue
strove to throw his register back TO
placc-bu<- only Il dreadful Shrek came
out. Then the people knew that their
idol was fallen, they ceased their mp
plause and let the plny drag itself TO its
mournful end
Bong All Sue floundcrcd manfully
through low notes and high notes to the
end, and walked off the stage to his
rooms Il broken man.
His salary falls from six thousand to
two thousand Il year, and to live he will
have to cschcw the world, the flesh and
the devil, and settle down to the grim
necessities of minor roles.