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described as a "fairy play". It was an ambitious effort with 100 performers, 50 children, 50 trained birds and a special corps de ballet of 25 and an orchestra of 25. It was a great success. In keeping with the title the theatre was decorated in blue. As the performance was in aid of the Prince of Wales Fund, massive oil paintings of the King and Queen and Prince of Wales painted by Yee Cheong of Wyndham Street,* were prominently displayed.
A similar production, not quite so lavish, was put on the next year. It was a fairy ballet entitled "Snow White and the Frog Prince". It was in aid of the Belgium Relief Fund.
Another very elaborate production was "Kismet”, an oriental extravaganza, in 1916. It was in aid of the Star and Garter Fund. All the productions during the war period were in aid of some war related fund. Original music for "Kismet" was written by Mr. Norman Peterkin of the Robinson Piano Company.
"Pinkie and the Fairies", yet another extravaganza, was staged in 1919. It had over sixty performers. The late Sophie Weill Odell appeared as one of the fairies a proper introduction to a long association with the stage through her impresario husband Harry Odell. The programme for "Pinkie and the Fairies" listed all the productions of the A.D.C. since 1870.
Not all Sinclair's plays were along the exotic line. In 1916, there was "The Angel in the House" the success of this play depended on subtle satiric portrayal of character. It put a great demand on an amateur group. Even more demanding was the 1925 production of Shaw's "St. Joan". It was hailed as the greatest triumph of the A.D.C.'s existence. "A great play, magnificently acted" "Memory fades and achievements diminish; time weaves a dusty web over the past and the glamour of a praise-worthy act wears off. History never dies, nor will this epoch-making performance of the A.D.C. be forgotten when the social history of Hong Kong is compiled".
Sinclair also appreciated the sophisticated humour of Noel Coward. "I'll Leave It to You" was staged by him in 1922, It had been Coward's first play produced in London, some two years previous to its Hong Kong appearance.
* Hong Kong Daily Press, 1 Apr. 1884, Advertisement: Yee Cheong, portrait painter, studio corner of Wyndham and Wellington Streets.
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233
described as a "fairy play". It was an ambitious effort with 100 performers, 50 children, 50 trained birds and a special corps de ballet of 25 and an orchestra of 25. It was a great success. In keeping with the title the theatre was decorated in blue. As the performance was in aid of the Prince of Wales Fund, massive oil paintings of the King and Queen and Prince of Wales painted by Yee Cheong of Wyndham Street,* were prominently displayed.
A similar production, not quite so lavish, was put on the next year. It was a fairy ballet entitled "Snow White and the Frog Prince". It was in aid of the Belgium Relief Fund.
Another very elaborate production was "Kismet”, an oriental extravaganza, in 1916. It was in aid of the Star and Garter Fund. All the productions during the war period were in aid of some war related fund. Original music for "Kismet" was written by Mr. Norman Peterkin of the Robinson Piano Company.
"Pinkie and the Fairies", yet another extravaganza, was staged in 1919. It had over sixty performers. The late Sophie Weill Odell appeared as one of the fairies a proper introduction to a long association with the stage through her impresario husband Harry Odell. The programme for "Pinkie and the Fairies" listed all the productions of the A.D.C. since 1870.
Not all Sinclair's plays were along the exotic line. In 1916, there was "The Angel in the House" the success of this play depended on subtle satiric portrayal of character. It put a great demand on an amateur group. Even more demanding was the 1925 production of Shaw's "St. Joan". It was hailed as the greatest triumph of the A.D.C.'s existence. "A great play, magnificently acted" "Memory fades and achievements diminish; time weaves a dusty web over the past and the glamour of a praise-worthy act wears off. History never dies, nor will this epoch-making performance of the A.D.C. be forgotten when the social history of Hong Kong is compiled".
Sinclair also appreciated the sophisticated humour of Noel Coward. "I'll Leave It to You" was staged by him in 1922, It had been Coward's first play produced in London, some two years previous to its Hong Kong appearance.
* Hong Kong Daily Press, 1 Apr. 1884, Advertisement: Yee Cheong, portrait painter, studio corner of Wyndham and Wellington Streets.
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