Judge, 1924-03-15 · page 24 of 36
Judge — March 15, 1924 — page 24: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page satirizes 1920s Broadway musical comedy trends by imagining Shakespeare's "Antony and Cleopatra" reimagined as a modern musical revue. The joke targets several contemporary preoccupations: **The epigraph** criticizes chorus girls' scanty costumes, with the quote suggesting they wear only "censor leaves" (minimal coverings) to evade censorship—a real concern in the Jazz Age. **The "musical numbers"** parody modern Broadway's frivolous song titles ("Paddlin' Down the Nile," "I'm a Roman Romeo," "The Ebony Jazzarimba Band"), treating Shakespeare's tragedy as mere vehicle for dance spectacle and jazz. **The casting** includes "Six (6) Stepping Soothsayers," "Bootleggers," and a "jazz band"—anachronistic additions mocking how 1920s producers updated classics with contemporary references and entertainment gimmicks. **The illustration** shows six stylized chorus girls in minimal costumes with large feathered fans, embodying the "modern Eves" referenced in the epigraph—embodying both the era's sexual liberation and its perceived moral decline. The satire critiques how commercial theater prioritized spectacle and sexuality over artistic substance.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
“We are the musical comedy chorus; Oh, we are the modern Eves, The pulpit and press would bar us unless We appeared in our censor leaves.” How Shakespeare Might Have Done “Antony and Cleopatra” To-day The Avon Amusement Corporation takes great pleasure in presenting William Shakespeare’s New Musical Comedy HELLO, CLEOPATRA With Cleopatra, Mark Antony and the Six (6) Stepping Soothsayers Book by William Shakespeare and Josephus Miller, pere Music by G. Cleff Lyrics by William Shakespeare Dances by those that do them the Stratford Easy Company Entire production under the personal direction of William Shakespeare Settings by Payments Furniture Cast or CHARACTERS Mark Antony, a man of affairs ( Octavius Caesar M. Aemilius Lepidus Sextus Pompeius Scarus Et cetera Agrippa t Dolabellaf‘** °°" cc ct trees teee Soothsayers. Bootleggers. Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt. Octavia, sister to Caesar and wife to Antony. Soldiers, messengers and attendants. Ladies of the chorus. Gentlemen of the chorus. . .triumvirs j seeeeseeessss... friends to Antony -friends to Caesar —Ernest Glendenning. SYNOPSIS OF SCENES Act 1 Scene 1—Alexandria. A room in Cleopatra’s palace. Scene 2—Rome. On the Forum. Scene 8—Cleo’s houseboat on the Nile. Scene 4—In the shadows of the Pyramids. Acr 2 Scene 1—A street in Rome. Scene 2—The divorce court in Renus. Scene 3—The same as Act, 1, Scene, 1. Scene 4—The palace at Rome. MUSICAL NUMBERS Act 1 Opening Ensemble. Cleopatra and Ensemble Just the Two of Us... . Harry and Cleopatra Lend Me Your Ears and I'll Play Some Jazz Mark and Jazz Band a .Six (6) Stepping Soothsayers Paddlin’ Down the Nile . .Cleopatra and Girls Pn a Romian Romeo’ oss sesso ecsesawnviewsernessie Mark If the Spinx Could Talk , Scarus and Et cetera When the Pyramids Crumble to Dust. Mark and Cleopatra Act 2 Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day... You Know You Belong to Me .-Mark and Ensemble 7 . Octavia : (6) Ste pping Soothsayers Why Should I Cry over This Onion? . Octavia Oh, That Wicked Camel Driver, E Gypt Me... .Harry Specialty The Ebony Jazzarimba Band What Are You Doing When It’s Nighttime in Italy, Cleo? Mark I Got the Throw Away the W ineglass Step up on the Wagon Blues. . me seeeeeeess Cleo To-morrow’s Our Wedding Da .. Mark and Cleo Finale . _Everybody Soldier Costumes by the Stratford Boiler Works Canoes through the courtesy of the Avon Rowing Assn. Rosert Cyri O'BRIEN. comicbooks.com