The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1905-11-07
NANCE O. NEIL TO
. ,PLAY IN HONOLULU
Continued from page one).

The performance to be given here will
be of a novel order for it will be spe-
cial matinee commencing at II noon, in
order to allow the company to catch
the boat at 3 o'clock.
"Of course there is q risk in playing
at that hour" said Rankin after the
arrangements had been closed, but
Miss O'Neill did so well here and has
always wished to come before a Homo
lulu audience again as the people were
so kind She has talked so much of the
islands and, like everyone else who ever
visited here she has a great-what do
you call it?-'Aloha' for Hawaii.
1.-THE play that intend to put on is
The Fires of st. john 1t made a ire
mendous hit in Boston, where she was
the first to play it anywhere in Eng
lish, for it is from the German by Sude-
mann. 1t created furore in New York
and in fact all along the line, but do
you know the first time any criticism
was levelled at it was in Australia, or
rather, l should say in Melbourne, for
in other cities in Australia and New
Zealand, it was received with enthu-
siasm. One of the Melbourne papers
attacked it fiercely, saying that the play
was immoral, that in fact no decent
person should go to see The Fires of
st. John OF course you can anticipate
the result. We had to turn people away
after that and the feminine portion of
the community was in the majority.
rs the play immoral? Certainly not,
there is nothing in it that could be adj
judged so excepting by a foul mind, the
sort of mind that finds immortality and
not beauty in a classic statue. How
ever, Honolulu will see for itself and
am willing to risk it's judgment.
81 am leaving a boat ahead of the
company in order to make arrange
ments for the coming season" said the
veteran turning to other matters. 1--WE
open our American tour at the Grand
Opera House in San Francisco on De-
cember 2, then to Los Angeles and
through the usual route of big cities
winding up, as usual in Boston. On
this Australian trip of ours we played
nineteen weeks in all, fourteen in Aus
tralia-Melbourne Brisbane, Sydney
and so on and then five in New Zealand
1t was a success from the start, even
exceeding my expectations, which were
most sanguine."
Asked as to affairs in Australia Ran
kin said that while, politically speaking
chaos was reigning, the country SEEM
ed to have recovered from the period OF
financial depression.
politics there are in a frightfu
state" he said. ct is a sort of farce
comedy. The labor element is in con-
troll and the policy adopted is that OF
the dog in the manger. Capital is driv-
en- away, immigration is discouraged
in fact everything hinges on a perfer-
vid understanding of the cry of Aus
tralia for the Australians
Next year, according to Rankin, ar
rangements by which Miss ONeill anG
her company will tour the world have
been made. They will be away a whole
year coming through here towards the
end of July they will play in Yokoha.
ma, Kobe Nagasah Shanghai, fol
four weeks, Hong Kong for two weeks
Singapore Rangoon, possibly Batavia
Colombo, Calcutta for eight weeks op.
ening November 5, Bombay for foui
weeks and Madras for two weeks.
Miss ONeill had the best of health
while away, as had the members of the
company and by the way the company
which passed through here ten in mum.
Der is coming back numbering seven
teen. Mckee Rankin himself looks as
robust as ever. He says he is fifteeT
pounds lighter but just where he tool
it off is not visible to the unframed eye
Incidentally he is raising a beard, q
fact which will strike horror to the
heart of the theatrical world. At pres
ent the beard looks like badly needed
shave, but he is very proud of it.
1T am raising it on teh sly" he said
adding with a sigh, "but I suppose thai
I shall have to shave it off,"