[ { "id": 211778, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1989", "page_number": 193, "title": "RAS-1989", "content_text": "168\n\nso called Christy's Minstrels --- a famous group in the United States, yet it may be doubted severely whether it was the same one that visited Shanghai.\n\nEight years later, the first company to come down to Shanghai from Hong Kong, where they had also been playing, was the one led by a Mr. C.R. Faylor. On February 10 1864 Lytton's The Lady of Lyons was on the bill as the opening piece, but the Herald thought it a failure in consequence of \"that portion of the company which had been collected in Shanghai and pressed into service\". How this is to be understood is not quite clear. Did Faylor's company consist of only a few actors, who were to be supplemented by local worthies? But then, who else could they be but amateurs, the darlings of the foreign community? However this may be, on May 9 at an evening in which also the \"Royal Shanghai Ballet d'Action\" [so far for fancy names!] participated, the \"celebrated comedy Nature and Philosophy or Eighteen Years Labour Lost” was given. As members of the company were mentioned Mr. and Mrs. C.R. Faylor, Mr. and Mrs. E. Yeamans and Major Pegus. Amateurs almost always adopted stage names in order to hide their real identity, but with professional actors it may be assumed these names were real.\n\n45\n\nA more substantial contribution to the amusement of the Shanghai public was made by Lewis' Dramatic Company. It was of Australian origin and the \"musical director and manager\" was Charles Edouin. Other members of the group were Tilly Earl, Mrs. Gill, Lizzie Naylor, Jenny Nye, T. Andrews, Henry Birch, J.B. Creswick, W.B. Gill and nearly the whole Edouin (or, rather, Bryer) family: Julia, Rose, John and Willie. Rose (1844-1925) married G.B. Lewis and became later an actress at, among others, the Maidan Theatre in Calcutta. Her brother Willie (1846-1908; his real name was John Edward Bryer) first appeared in public when he was six; after the tour to Australia, India, China and Japan he played in Melbourne, California, New York and London.46 In 1862 the \"Lewis' Equestrian Australian Troupe\" had visited the port with \"six of the best horses ever landed in China**,** but in 1864 the company had turned to drama and from October 6 until their departure in December an eight week season provided an unprecedented shower of farces, burlesques and even some quality pieces like Sheridan's The Rivals and the prison scene from Shakespeare's King John (Act IV, sc. 1), in which the role of prince Arthur was played by an actress, Julia Edouin, who took \"the house by storm\".48 The success of the company was apparently so great that they returned in March of the following\n\n47", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1989.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/8336pm92h", "rank": 0 }, { "id": 211839, "series_id": 26, "series_slug": "histsyn-rashkb-journal-engine", "series_title": "RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊", "series_use_hku_proxy": false, "document_key": "RAS-1989", "page_number": 254, "title": "RAS-1989", "content_text": "229\n\n19.4.1865 (Wedn)\n\nW.B. GILL: \"Aurora Floyd burlesqued\" J. TOBIN: \"The Honeymoon\" (1805)\n\nT: Comedy (5 acts)\n\nN.N.:\n\nA Rourer*\n\nC: Lewis A.D.C.\n\nTh: Lyceum Theatre (1)\n\nN: Mr. W.B. Gill's benefit\n\nR: SCR 22.4.1865; no review\n\n21.4.1865 (Fri)\n\nW. EDQUIN: A Christmas Pantomime\n\nC: Lewis A.D.C.\n\nTh: Lyceum Theatre (1)\n\nN: Mr. Willie Edouin's benefit\n\nR: At a rather odd time of the year there was a Christmas Pantomime written by Willie Edouin, a member of the company (of Survey). Again the Shanghai Commercial Record was enthusiastic: \"This bold venture was completely successful. The local hits were clever and met with great applause. The usual jokes, fun and frolic were duly given and some of the jumping very dexterously gone through. The get up and accessories of the said pantomime deserve all praise and the dresses and costumes were remarkably tasteful. JULIA EDOUIN danced with her usual grace and elegance. Miss NYE was particularly pretty and helped in a great way to make the performance lively and amusing”. All in all it “would be long remembered by those who saw it as a decided hit in the theatrical annals of Shanghai\". About Jenny NYE the Record wrote further: \"The lightness and airiness of her motion and unaffected style did much to relieve some very heavy and stilted acting. Her manner is composed and, never attempting to do too much, always ends in doing well. Simplicity of manner is not a fault and a graceful quietness in acting has often more effect than the lofty dignity of a Tragedy Queen\" (SCR 5.5.1865).\n\n25.4.1865 (Tue)\n\nD. BOUCICAULT: \"The Colleen Bawn\" (1860)\n\nT: Drama (3 acts)\n\nC: Lewis A.D.C.\n\nTh: Lyceum Theatre (1)\n\nR: Tonight Dion Boucicault's most famous Irish play, The Colleen Bawn, was given. The Record (5.5.1865) thought it a \"bold step for any company to attempt in Shanghai\". But the result was a success: \"the actors entered into their parts with a determined earnestness to succeed and on the whole it may be classed as a creditable performance\". Earlier, however, it had stated that the play \"depends much more on scenery than on acting\", a judgement that was hardly likely to please the author as it was not his intention to write a purely melodramatic piece, that indeed often heavily relied on spectacular Stage effects.\n\n26.4.1865 (Wedn)\n\nW. SHAKESPEARE: \"Richard III”, act V\n\nT: Tragedy\n\nN.N.: The Frantic Husband**\n\nand probably:\n\nA. MAYHEW & H.S. EDWARDS: \"The Goose with the Golden Eggs\" (1859) T: Farce (1 act)\n\nC: Lewis A.D.C.\n\nTh: Lyceum Theatre (1)", "txt_file_path": "txt/dfo323lmgvd/RAS-1989.txt", "external_url": "https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/8336pm92h", "rank": 0 } ]