Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1894-06-07
To be Continued.
EUGENE FIELD IL OPERA.
said 10 Be Writing the Book Of al
Operl-BOuffe.

There has been some speculation as
TO Eugene Fields motive in spending
several weeks in ostensible idleness
near Louisville says the .COurier-Jour
mai Last evening, at a little dinner
given by his host Mr. YenOwine, the
secret OF Mr. Fields rustica ton was
disclosed, and the Courier-Journal, this
morning, is permitted to reveal it for
the first time 10 his friends and adj
mirers throughout the country.
Mr. Field, in brief, is engaged in
writing the book Of an opera-an
opera-bouffe, as he Is particular to
call it, wishing it distinctly under
stood that it is neither romantic"
nor a comic opera.
This announcement Is an interesting
one, but il is the more interesting from
the fact that Mr. Field himself pro
poses td appear in one Of the principal
roles Of the opera. 1t has long been
known to his intimate associates that
not the least of his gifts is a tenor
voice which he modeStly moderated,
but which has been occasionally heard
with good effect in the drawingroom
or the nursery. Last evening, for in
stance, he sang in "A very touching
manner his Little Boy Blue" and
demonstrated to those who had not
beard him before that while his voice
is certainly not equal TO the require
ments Of grand opera, and while il
has not received very much cultivation.
1t is ample for opera bOuffe, for which
culiarly fit him.
Mr.. Field is not willing that the
nature Of his opera shall be yet indi-
Gated further than TO say that it is
founded upon the recent complications
between Hawaii and the Unitel
States. The material for genuine opera
bouffe which these afford has so inn
pressed Mr. Field that for,the past few
weeks he has dropped all other work
and devoted himself to his libretto
with such engroSSing enthusiasm that
he has dlceady completed two acts
and is at work upon the third and last
SouSa, whose spirited Washington
Post March Mr. Field thinks fully
proves his ability for the task, it to
write the music, and has now in hand
the lrst two acts,
These were read by Mr. Field after
dinner last evening, and every one
perseut was delighted, agreeing that
the opera would score a great hit
even without the name of MIR Field
in the cast. 1t makes admirable use
of the picturesque and ludicrOus mate
rial presented by Hawaii and the "Ha-
waiian situation" and if SouSa shall
do his part half as well as Field has
done his, the success of the production
should be nothing short Of sensational.
Mr. Field at first intended to call
the opera The Hawaiians,' but as
that is "a Their difficult Of pronunciation
he has selected Honolulu" as its
name Liliuokalani is to he the princi-
pal female character, and Mr.. Field
laughingly tells it that his manager,
r. Henry French, actually proposed to
open negotiations with the dusky ok
queen with q view to engaging her
to come TO this country and take the
role But Field would not listen to
that, being determined that the opera
should stand 0r fall on its merits.
without the employment Of any such
hippodrome methods Ii is one of his
jokes that it is enough to ask the pub
lie to put up with him in opera, with
out importing any other freaks He
protests, however, that Liliuokalant is
not the part which he intends 10 as
sumo
French wanted to bring out Homo
lulu in New York first, but Field, with
his usual loyalty to the west, insisted
that its first production should be in
Chicago. 1t will be given in that city
at the Schiller theater the second week
in December
Eugene Field does we'll everything
he attempts, and the Courier Journal
is sincere in its prediction that this.
his latest undertaking. will, at least
in n popular sense, far and away
eclipse any Of his previous accomplish
ments