The Cingalee

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The Cingalee, or Sunny Ceylon is a musical play in two acts by James T. Tanner, with music by Lionel Monckton, lyrics by Adrian Ross and Percy Greenbank, and additional material by Paul Rubens. It opened at Daly's Theatre in London, managed by George Edwardes, on March 5, 1904 and ran until March 11, 1905 for a total of 365 (another source giving 391) performances. The musical had a short Broadway run, opening at the Original Daly's Theatre in New York on October 24, 1904 and running for only 33 performances.

The Cingalee is set in Ceylon and concerns colonial tea planters (one of the most popular songs in the score is called simply "Tea, tea, tea"!) in an era before this island paradise became the more troubled Sri Lanka. It was given a showy production and was a success in London. The fashion there for shows set in Asian locales had been started by The Mikado and continued by The Geisha and San Toy. There is little in the music to give The Cingalee an Eastern flavour. However, Monckton's catchy sextet, "The Island of Gay Ceylon" and "Pearl of Sweet Ceylon" and Ruben's "White and Brown Girl", "Sloe Eyes", "Monkeys" and "You and I" are highlights. The condescending racial nature of The Cingalee's libretto, however, would be unacceptable today, and so The Cingalee is unlikely to be revived.

The London cast included Hayden Coffin, Rutland Barrington, and Isabel Jay. A young Lily Elsie also appeared in the show.

The first professional recording of The Cingalee was made in 2003 by Bel-Etage theatre company.

[edit] Musical numbers

ACT I - Vereker's Tea Plantation, "Karagama," Ceylon.

1 - Opening Chorus - "Sleepy Ceylon."
2 - Octet - Tea Girls and Pupils - "Girls on a tea plantation..."
3 - Song - Vereker - "Beyond the bar of fair Manaar..."
4 - Duet - Nanoya and Vereker - "Little girl to school must go..."
5 - Chorus and Scene - "What on earth is that?"
6 - March, Chorus and Song - Boobhamba - "Hail the noble deeply venerated..."
7 - Song - Chambhuddy - "Some years ago when a very chotah boy..."
8 - Song - Lady Patricia - "As you have to decide on a bride..."
9 - Song - Naitooma and Tea Girls - "Tea, Tea, Tea."
10 - Duet - Peggy and Chambhuddy - "White and Brown Girl."
11 - Sextet - "In the Island of Gay Ceylon."
12 - Song - Nanoya - "My Cinnamon Tree."
13 - Finale - Act I - "Have you found the girl?"

ACT II - Boobhamba's Palace by the Lake of Kandy.

14 - Act II Opening Chorus - "At the Palace of Boobhamba..."
15 - Song - Nanoya, Tea Girls and Chorus - "I'm a maiden merry, sorry to be sold..."
16 - Concerted Number - "I'm afraid I do not quite understand..."
17 - Song - Chambhuddy - "If English Pot a rich man be..."
18 - Song - Vereker - "My dear little Cingalee."
19 - Quartet - "True Love."
20 - Song - Naitooma and Chorus - "A Cingalese Wedding."
21 - Chorus - "On the quiet lake the moonbeams shimmer..."
22 - Song - Boobhamba and Chorus - "A Happy New Year."
23 - Song - Nanoya - "You met a little girl one day..."
24 - Duet - Peggy and Chambhuddy - "In a jungle once on a time..."
25 - Finale - Act II - "Cingalee, Cingalee..."
Addendum - Song - Lady Patricia - "You and I, and I and you..."