'Come, see, and judge for yourself ' Originating in 1891 in the port city of Surabaya, the Komedie Stamboel, or Istanbul-style theater, toured colonial Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia by rail and steamship, performing musical versions of the Arabian Nights, European fairy tales and operas such as Sleeping Beauty and Aida, Indian and Persian romances, Southeast Asian chronicles, true crime stories, and political allegories. It was the region's first cross-ethnic theater: actors were primarily Eurasians, the original backers were Chinese, and audiences were made up of all races and...