The Sultan of Sulu
In 1900, diplomat Michael Dowling was sent to the Philippines for a survey of the schools there. While there, he visited the Sultan, and was amused by the pomp and circumstance surrounding the interview. On his return to the US, he told George Ade about the celebration, commenting that if an American theater were to duplicate it, audiences would "go into hysterical laughter". Ade rose to the challenge, and The Sultan of Sulu toured the country for 5 years after its Broadway premiere in 1902.
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