Halley's Comet, Stage Play & the Brickyard

This attached article from the May 11, 1910 Indianapolis Sun reports on what seems an odd attempt at whimsy by the cast of a George Arvine play - "A House of a Thousand Candles" - being performed at the Indianapolis Park Theater at the time. This was the month of debut of the Brickyard - the May 1910 race meet at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The May 1910 race meet weekend included "national championships," a newly-announced distinction by the American Automobile Association (AAA) for select race meets. Car manufacturers were keen to make a great showing. Check out other articles that provide additional summaries on the results of the races staged May 27 and May 28 elsewhere on First Super Speedway.
 
This was also the year Halley's Comet captured the world's attention with it's celestial display in nighttime skies. The cast made a curious request of their production's management: that they be given a holiday to attend the upcoming races. Interestingly, the headline sets the date at May 18, but the race meet took place May 27-30 with no racing on Sunday the 29th.
 
The attachment here is in poor condition, but useable. It consists mostly of the cast's petition and I provide the text here for your convenience:
 
"We, members of the Arvine-Benton Stage Company, patient and ever considerate, desire to place before you a formal proposition not yet grown into the proportions of a demand, tonight: On May 18, the same being the month upon which we have just entered, Haley's Comet will be in perihelion with the automobile races to be held at the Indianapolis Speedway. If the creator of the universe has taken the trouble so to arrange the schedule of the heavenly bodies as to bring his chief pyrotechnical display in conjunction with said races, we say, Halley's Comet has raced something like 3,000,000,000 miles through unknown space to get into conjunction with said races, if, as we verily believe, the whole world awaits with baited breath this unprecedented speedway event, why should not we mortals show a proper appreciation? Think of it: the comet, dragging behind it a tail 20,000,000 miles in length, to say nothing of losing part of it in the rush deems it none too great an honor to premise a shower of meteors for said speedway races and here we are, idly whiling away our time with matinees that bring nothing but gross wealth and opulence to the gentlemen we hereby address. How absurd. Let us rise above the common place. Let us grasp the psychological moment now at hand. As to the matinee of May 18, the same being the day of the auto races, we say in chorus, 'Cut it out.' Think it over. Drink it over. Take it to your bed at night and awaken with it in the morning. It is worth the worry. As for the undersigned, we remain, as ever, full of hope."
 
The performers who signed the petition are listed in the article:

• Harry Preston Coffin
• Louise Dunbar
• Fay Baker
• Frank Jones
• Carl Metcalf
• Thomas Chatterton
• L. Joyner

 
Mr. Arvine's response? He promised to cancel the matinee if the comet hit Earth.