SHAKESPEARE IN CAIRO.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20310, 19 January 1928, Page 10

SHAKESPEARE IN CAIRO.

MR R. ADKIN’S TOUR. VERY SUCCESSFUL SEASON. A WEEK IN ALEXANDRIA, (Fbom Oue Own Correspondent.) LONDON, December 14. Mail letters from Cairo refer to the glowing success that has been achieved by the recent three weeks’ Shakespearean season. It may be recalled that Mr Robert Adkin’s Company 'whose leading lady was Miss Marie Ney, of Wellington) went to Cairo at the special invitation of the Egyptian Government. So great has been the success and so enthusiastic have been the audiences in Cairo, that residents and students in Alexandria requested an extension of the tour. This was granted. The company should arrive in London in a few days’ time.

Writing from Cairo, the Morning Post correspondent said: — The local “ boom ” in Shakespeare has been astonishing. Persons who have neglected the bard for ages now spend their leisure reviving rusty (nemories of “ Othello ” or “ The Merchant of Venice,” while to many “ Measure or Measure ’ came as completely virgin soil. Discussions on Shakespearean characters, formerly taboo as high-brow, are vigorously conducted wherever men meet. Occasionally the bolder spirits, who assume that “ they know Shakespeare/ are led by the valour of ignorance to remarks like, “ Petruchio—yea—why, he’s the comic chap in Twelfth Night ’ ” ! One gratifying feature of the production has been the keen interest taken in it by Egyptian- Every night they termed no mean quota oP the audience, and from the discussions with them afterwards one is glad to learn how much they appreciate both the acting and the interpretation of the plays. FIRM FAVOURITES. The wishes of the Egyptian student* were consulted through their headmasters as to which plays they preferred. The choice fell on ‘ Hamlet ” and “ Othello, extra matinees of which were arranged for their benefit. Much credit is due to All Shams! Pasha, the Minister for Education, for his keenness in supporting the original proposal that the players should come, and for his valuable help in making their visit a success. Of the company and the producer be it said that they revealed the best tradition and training of the “ Old Vic., partly by their fine diction—severely tested inside an opera house —partly, also, by their restrained gestures,the simple scenery, the excellent costumes worn with a natural ease, the effective grouping, and the genuine atmosphere of “ the plays the thing.” Selection of names is ever individious, but one can frankly say that Mr Wilfrid Walter and Miss Marie Ney are firm favourites with the Cairo public, closely followed by that natural comedian, Mr Stanley Lathbury. Some liked Mr Ernest Milton as Hamlet, others preferred inm as Shylock, but we all adored Miss Grace Allardyce, both as Nerissa and as Maria. To them all and to Mr Adkin, our farewell message is “ Will ye no’ come back again? ”