THE ANTICIPATED VISIT OF JOSEPH OF " CAANAN."

Otago Witness, Issue 2318, 4 August 1898, Page 39

THE ANTICIPATED VISIT OF JOSEPH OF " CAANAN."

MR ALFPvED WOODS'S NEW ZEALAND

TOUR.

It has been announced that "Joseph of Caanan," a fine spectacular play, by the Ro/. Georcto Walters, of Sydney, will shortly bo toured through Maoriland by Mr Alfred Woods and a specially-selected company, iueludmg Miss Maud Williamson.

Having had the pleasure of witnessing tho perfoi mance of this drama when it was running to crowded houses in Melbourne, I hail wich delight the prospect of seeing- it pgain thij time upon the New Zealand stage.

Much has been said or written recently with leforerre to the influence of the drama upon public manners and moials, while one specimen of the religious melodrama has hod a gioat career through England, America, and Australia.

An opinion, shared by many with whom the subject has been discussed, is that both as a literary production and as a stage spectacle, " Joseph of Canaan " is supei'ior to any of its rivals. The author is a reeiik'iif, of iSjdnoy, and has been a resident of A^elbourne, so tha-t the great success of his play in those two cities seems to prove that a prophet may sometimes have at lenst a fair measure of honour even among his own people

I shall never forget the fir^fc evening when tin curtain went up, and there was disclosed to my vision a picture of "a dry and thirdly land, ' wheve shepheuls were reposing in picliuepniie attitudps, ard into which thoie came the young lad, "the dreamer of dreams." The prologue, for such it was, ga"e ample promise of the treat thai was io follow. Then, for two or three hours, I ho vast audience was back in ancient Egypt, lnag centuries bofore the beginning of ihe Christian era. We were let into ihe Fccrets of private as well as .social and political life, in th:>l civilisation that was once so powerful, but has now well-nigh passed away. We wire eye-witnesses of a stately religious ceremony in one of the old and massive temple". We sa.iv the play of human passion, strangely similar then to what it is now. And so, in fce.ie after scene, the familiar story of "Joseph and his brethren," there worked up inio a more dramatic form, v/a.s retold in a fashion as simple as it was fascinating. The press criticisms in bith Sydney and Melbourne wore exceptionally laudatory — in fact it would be difficult to point to any \ lny ih't was ever received with so unanimous a chorin of praise.

Tr must have been a bitter disappointment to the Rev. Mr Walters when the Lord Chamberlain's Licenser of Plays in London refused to sanction its performance because it was founded upon a Biblical narrative. For many years prominent men in literary and dramatic circles have protested against the aibitrary character of the decisions given from that office of conservative stupidity. Mr Walters, as was pointed out in many leading papers, suffered in good company, for among those whose works had more or less been interfered with by the Court official were Douglas Jerrold, W. S. Gilbert, Charles Dickens, and Dumas. This, however, was cold comfort for an author whose drama was shut out from the profitable English "market," and who could hardly expect to reap a substantial reward in the colonies alone.

All the more reason, I venture to think, that lovers of high-class dramatic work here in Maoriland should rally to " one of themselves" and show their appreciation of work thit has run the gauntlet of colonial criticism.

In the talented company by which the play wi>l be interpreted, the name part will be played by Mr Alfred Woods, who is already popular throughout Maoriland, and by whom, wo may rest assured, justice will be doae to tho noble-minded and pure-souled Hebrew, -whose fame has come ringing down to u-3 from far-distant ages. The important and difficult part of Aye«ha (Pot'phar's wife) will be in the hands of Mis 3 Maud Williamson, who " created the character in Sydney and Melbourne, and who is certain to win favour with Maoriland playgoers, who have the prospect of a genuine dramatic treat in the projected tour of " Joseph of Canaan " by Mr Alfred Woods and his company.