Union*
)pera Souvenir
OLS' PARADISE"
"FO
SINGLE COPIES FREE ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN, MONDAY, MARCH 12, 1917 NOTHING BY THE YEAR
VARIETY GALORE
IS KEY NOTE OF
1917OPERA MUSIC
E, E. PARDEE,'11, TELLS TRIALS OF
AUTHOR WHO PUTS LOCAL COLOR AND
MORAL INTO ANNUAL OPERA BOOK
EARL V. MOORE SAYS SCORE
SNAPPIEST AND BEST
IN YEARS
IS
GORNETZKY'S SONGS
EXPECTED HITS
Lyrics Possess More Local Color and
Originality than Former Opera
Songs
Music for Michigan's 1917 Union
opera bids fair to be no less uniquely
meritorious than the book and lyrics,
if a citation from Earl V. Moore of
the School of music is acceptable as
criticism. All the music as it was
written was turned over to Mr. Moore
who as musical director of the opera,
passed upon it.
"The music for the 'Fools' Paradise'
in the snappiest and best that has
been produced for an opera in years.
It contains variety galore and is es-
pecially adaptable to modern danc-
ing, which should make it very popu-
lar. The miniature minstrel to be
introduced in the second act is a musi-
cal feature of no small account, and
together with the clever comedy
should make a lasting hit," stated Mr.
Moore.
"The Fairy Princess" by A. J. Gorn-
etzky, '19L, and "Hello Ann Arbor" by
the same author, the director predicts,
will be sung as long and will obtain
as much favor as has been bestowed
on any opera number for years.
Gornetzky, who will be remembered
for his work in last year's opera, and
fir his songs which have found favor
With the campus has dealt with the
Cast of "Fools' Paradise"
LARGE AMOUNT OF EXCELLENT ABILITY
PERSONNEL OF CAST AND CHORUS FOF
More names of men experienced in
operas of the past and in other campus
theatricals are to be found in the per-
sonnel of this year's opera than in
any of the operas of the past. The
leading roles are to be taken by F. J.
Wurster, '17, and R. J. McCaughey, '19.
The final selection of the cast is as
follows:
Daisy Gardner, a charming young
girl who comes to Michigan to college,
F. J. Wurster, '17.
Dick, who falls in love with Daisy,
R. J. McCaughey, '19.
Gwendolyn, a temperamental "co-
ed" who is looking for a husband, L.
T. Donahue, '19.
Virginia, the haughty type of "co-
ed," C. W. Clark, '18.
Myrtle McGovern, a telephone oper-
ator, A. E. Zigler, '19.
Tubby, who aspires to be an ath-
lete, O. G. Williams, '19.
Hiram, a "frosh," C. F. Watson, '17.
Georgia, M. C. Wood, '17.
Mr. Gardner, Daisy's father andI
Dick's guardian, E. E. Hawkes, '17.
Prof. Bookery, a member of the fac-
ulty, R. L. Hardy, '17.'
Rev. Martin Supergood, a wearer of'
the cloth, J. S. Kasberger, '18.t
Tontagini, Spirit of Michigan, 11.
Carlson, '17.
Spirit of Folly, H. K. Keena, '19.l
Pietro, a Spanish street singer, C. A..
Zanelli, '17E.
Sherman, the colored porter, H. W.
Goldstick, '17D.
Mandy, his sweetheart, L. B. Emer-
man, '18L.
The members of the chorus are as
follows:
Ponies-H. M. Putnam, '19E, F. 0.
Clifford, '18D, A. J. Richards, '17D, H.
M. Cowen, '19, M. 14. Friend, '19, C. W.
Norton, '19A.
First Girls-N. Robbins, '18A, R. P.
Hummer, '19, H. R. Cossitt, '19, P. S.
Lowe, '18E, P., M. Moore, '19, C. W.
Bishop, '19.
SHOWN BY THE
First Men-C. F. Boos, '19, C. V.
Hicks, '19, M. R. Palin, '17, J. P. Hart,
'19, C. H. Mason, '19, J. S. Wilson, '18.
Second Girls-Spanish, J. M. Kerr,
'19E, C. Buell, '19; Irish, F. W. Shafer,
'18, C. J. Sullivan, '18A; Russian, G.
0. Russel, special, B. N. Tappan, '19.
Second Men-Spanish, F. Newell,
'19, S. A. Lambert, '18; Irish, R. H.
Knight, '19, P. T. Quarry, '19; Russian,
A. A. Clark, '19, T. Saylor, '19.
Alternates-C. E. Gormsen, '18E, S.
G. Miller, '19.
Four members of the cast appeared
in last year's production, these men
being Wood, Carlson, Hawkes, and
Kasberger. This will make the third
appearance in an opera for both Wood
and Carlson, who hold. premier posi-
tions in campus theatricals. A feature
of especial interest will be the sing-
ing of Zanelli, who is recognized as
having one of the best voices of any-
one in the University. His appearance
as a Spanish street singer will be a
valuable asset to "Fools' Paradise."
COSTUMES AND SCENERY
ARE1FETURES OF OPERA1
LIBRARY AND NEW i11CHIGAN
UNION BUILDING TO
BE SHOWN
Gorgeous costumes and scenic ef-
fects promise to be the prominent
features of the 1917 Michigan Union
opera, "Fools' Paradise." In striving
for richness and splendor, Director
Charles Morgan has not overlooked
reality and there is a characteristic
likeness to the natural and the por-
trayed part and scene.
The scenery for the first act has
as its background the exterior of the
traditional ivy-clad Library. The il-
luminated clock and the resounding
chimes have their special part in the
plot of the opera.
First glimpses will be had of the
interior of the new Michigan Union
building, which will be used as the
setting for the second act. Details in
design will be accurately completed
following drawings made by the archi-
tects, who planned the building.
Photographs were also taken of the
Library and artists have nearly finish-
ed painting the scenery for the first
act. It is expected that work on both
scenes will be completed early this
week.
Contracts for making the scenery
were awarded to the So man and
Landis company instead of a Detroit
firm, which, for the past nine years,
has provided the scenery for the opera.
The costumes which were personally
selected by Director Morgan, will be
made by the Van Horn company of
Philadelphia.
Costumes for the chorus were chos-
en with abandon and different types
of University women will be repre-
sented. In addition to the conven-
tional styles, of this country, Director
Morgan has gone to Hawaii, Sweden,
and Russia for ideas, which he has
carried out in fascinating manner.
Military cadets in khaki suits, Red
Cross nurses wearing the uniform 01
the society, and skaters in the lates
sporting dress are likely to produc
a pleasing spectacle. Full dress re-
t hearsals will soon be the order of th
day.
e
- TAKES LONG TIME TO PUT THE
BOOK IN ITS ULTIMATE FORI
e
e "Fools' Paradise" has been in th
s making since spring. At that time,
- plot by E. E. Pardee, '17, and A. S
t Hart, '17, was presented to the boo:
- committee and was accepted alon
e with one other scenario.
e During the summer, Pardee remod
- elled the scenario, added a prologu
y and wrote the dialogue. Even then th
o book was not in final form, as man
- of the lines and situations were r
- written before the author was satis
fied.
SATIRE AN) ALLEGORY USED IN
CONNECTION WITH
PLAY
CO-EDUCATION IS
GIVEN PROMINENCE
Toutagini, Indian Chiieftain, Who Gave
Land to University Will
Appear
"Write a local show, with a moral!"
Such were the instructions handed out
last year to all who were interested in
the writing of the 1917 opera book,
and "Fools' Paradise" is the result of
an effort to follow those lines.
No doubt popular demand favors a
local show once in a while at least, to
tell us what we think of ourselves, but
the "moral" part of the prescription
at first sight seems a thing quite
divorced from the ordinary notion of
a musical comedy or comic "opera"
as we wont to call our annual per-
formance. We prefer to think of the
"moral" element as attached more to
church sermons than to musical com-
edies. In "Fools' Paradise" however,
an attempt has been made by the use
of satire and allegory to avoid a too-
evident desire to preach or point a
moral.
No musical comedy audience could
stand it to sit through two hours or
more of a performance unless someone
was in love with someone else and
something stood between the party of
the first part and the party of the sec-
ond part to prevent a realization of
that love. Of course, therefore,
Abraham J. Gornetzky, who has
written the majority of the music for
the last three operas.
slightly heavier type of composition,
remarkable for depth and purity of
sentiment. He was assisted in his
work by the contributions of Seymour
B. Simons, '17E, whose work runs
along lighter, catchier lines.
Simons has been collaborating with
one of the best known lyric writers
of the country, in conjunction with
(Continued on Page 4)
Original Policy
Resumed in Opera
Intermediate Operas Tended to Drift
Away from Ann Arbor
Setting
"Fools' Paradise" represents a re-
turn to the policy that was first pur-
sued in the production of Michigan
operas. During the ten years that the
Mimes of the University of Michigan
have been presenting operas, the ac-
tion had at times centered around
local customs and things Michigan,
and at other times, they have been
laid afar, the scenes ranging from
the jungle lands of Africa to mystic
Egypt and "gay Paree."
The first opera was a strictly local
affair. "Michigenda" was Michigan to
the last degree. The next production
went outside the environs of Ann Ar-
bor in only one particular, taking in
the fair sister school of Ypsilanti, and
the many gibes and caustic commentsl
on the Normalites enlivened the lines1
and action of "Culture."
The jungles of Africa next greeted
the Michigan actors, in the produc-i
tion "Koanzaland." In the next pro-
duction, "The Crimson Chest" a com-
promise was made, and although none
of Ann Arbor was included in the]
scene of action, the book did attempt
to portray Michigan customs and ex-
pressions.
Egypt, for one brief scene, held the
stage in the next production, "The
Awakened Rameses." Then the action
shifted to Ann Arbor, with the usual
number of satirical comments on the
faclty and university life.
Ann Arbor scenes were again ex-
cluded in the offering of 1913, "Con-
trarie Mary." Local references,
though, reflected to some degree the
life of the school.
"A Model Daughter" was the most
radical departure from the preceding
operas in the matter of the scene of
action. In this production University
life was entirely excluded, and the
play took on the aspect of the profes-
sional musical comedies.
Local scenes were again forsaken
in "All That Glitters," and the same
policy was pursued in the production
of "Tres Rouge," last year's opera.
In "Fools' Paradise," the attempt
has again been made to Michiganize
the play. The first act is laid on the
lawn between the Kappa Climax fra
ternity home and the Cookberry dor
mitory. In the background will be
seen the towers of the library, and the
library clock. The second act takes
place in the lobby of the new Mich
igan Union. The special scenery tha
will be used will show with a re
markable fidelity the interior of th
new Union after it is completed. Th
lines, the plot, and the action is thor
oughly Michigan, satirizing the pett:
factions that are apt to spring int
being with the growth of any univer
sity. Local allusions abound through
out the course of the production,
E. E. Pardee, Author of the Book
and Lyries,
"Fools' Paradise" has its lovers and
they have their difficulties. But Cupid
is not given the stage to the exclusion
of everyone else, in fact he is per-
mitted to show his art only in occa-
sional moments during the action of
the piece.
"Fools' Paradise" is intended as a
satire on present-day Michigan life.
(Continued on Page 4)
I
I
i
A TWO ACT MUSICAL COMEDY
I
tee
o
Is'
ar a
.iS
9"
' '
GORGEOUS COSTUMES
See Library and New Union
Building in this year's Opera
SNAPPY MUSIC
Union Member's ticket sale afternoons all
this week HILL AUDITORIUM.
General ticket sale on and after March 17 at
WHITNEY THEATRE box office.
1