The Evening Star (July 11, 1946)
Operetta ‘Mikado,’ long barred, will be given in Japan
By Frank L. White, Associated Press foreign correspondent
TOKYO (AP) – The Gilbert and Sullivan operetta, “The Mikado,” hitherto banned in Japan because of its satirization of the emperor, will be staged July 22 at the Ernie Pyle Theater.
A cast of 65 singers with a 60-piece theater symphony orchestra augmented by a Japanese girls’ ensemble – now under contract to a recording company – will present the gay music and sparkling color of the operetta. It is the most lavish show yet attempted by the Ernie Pyle production unit.
Sponsored by the Army, and with Army personnel augmented by American civilian actresses permanently assigned to the production unit, the theater is turning out a whole series of professionally competent shows which are touring the Pacific areas. Civilian War Department employees in the Tokyo area are assisting.
Last week’s “My Sister Eileen” and this week’s “The Man Who Came to Dinner” brought ovations from crowds of Allied soldiers and civilians filling the seats of the theater at every performance.
Edward S. Stephenson, director for “The Mikado,” said it was necessary to send to the United States for the score, as no copies or recordings of the operetta could be found in Japan. Mr. Stephenson, a graduate of the Pasadena Playhouse School Theater, led his own repertoire company in America for several seasons.
Associate director Frances Holly, also a Pasadena graduate, was acclaimed on Saipan for her part in staging and acting in “The Voice of the Turtle.” She had participated in G.I. shows in the Los Angeles area for several years.