Percy Fletcher Percy Fletcher i(A94079 works by)
Born: Established: 12 Dec 1879 Derby, Derbyshire,
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England,
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United Kingdom (UK),
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Western Europe, Europe, ; Died: Ceased: 10 Sep 1932 Windsor,
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England,
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United Kingdom (UK),
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Western Europe, Europe,
Gender: Male
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1 1 y separately published work icon The Good Old Days Oscar Asche , Percy Fletcher (composer), 1925 (Manuscript version)x400186 Z850529 1925 single work musical theatre

Musical comedy.

The Times critic wrote of the opening night:

'When the curtain rose, the scenery was promising... for we were introduced, straightaway, to one of those inns which Dickens loved to describe. To this inn came a series of the Dickensian characters that the programme had led us to expect [College Bloods, hunting ladies, hunting men and so on] - and there the promise ended. The piece started haltingly and ended haltingly. In the first act there were real horses, real hounds and a number of real hens; in the last act there were 26 real candles; but there was never a real atmosphere of the 'good old days,' and never a real musical comedy... we were never allowed to guess what it was all about'.

The critic added, 'Its music (by Mr Percy Fletcher) is rarely striking; its book, by Mr Oscar Asche, striking only when it falls into pantomime blank verse. The evening, in fact, was mainly interesting because of the unexpected naivete of the production' (28 October 1925, p.12).
1 8 y separately published work icon Cairo Mecca; Ali Shar Oscar Asche , Percy Fletcher (composer), London : Ascherberg, Hopwood and Crew , 1920 Z858539 1920 single work musical theatre

Described in advertising as a 'mosaic in music and mime', this successor to Asche's immensely popular theatrical extravaganza Chu Chin Chow similarly unfolds around passion and poetry, love and hate, tender slave girls and ardent princes, delicate love, romance, and bacchanalian frenzy in the days of fierce intrigue and savagery.

The story concerns Ali Shar, a wrestler whose daughter Zummurud catches the attention of the young and handsome sultan (Al Malik-al-Nasir) during one of his trips (in disguise) through the city. Prince Nur-al-Din, a crafty villain who covets the throne, orders the death of his sister's child and tricks Ali Shar into attempting to kill the sultan in a wrestling match, by telling him that the sultan intends to add Zummurud to his harem. The sultan eludes Ali's killer grip and then orders the wrestler to make a pilgrimage to Mecca as an atonement. While on his way to Mecca, Ali falls in with a band of pilgrims who are taken prisoner by the prince, who has also taken Zummurud as his hostage. Pretending to be dumb, Ali enters the service of the prince's sister, Sharazad, and together they plot to rescue Zummurud and bring the prince to justice. Zummurud accidentally betrays her father, and he is sold as a slave. He is able to escape, however, and subsequently kills the prince. The sultan and Zummurud are then reunited.

Cairo incorporated ten songs into its narrative: 'From Bagdad We Come', 'Story of the Sphinx', 'My King of Love', 'A Fool There Was', 'When Love Knocked', 'Chinaman's Song', 'Hast Thou Been to Mecca', 'Dance Poem', 'The King of Nur-Al-Din', and 'Love in my Breast'.

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