"TEN-MINUTE ALIBI"

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21413, 4 March 1935, Page 6

"TEN-MINUTE ALIBI"

SEASON OPENED AT THE THEATRE ROYAL .Tremendous doings in the Bloomsbury flat of Phillip Sevilla. a villainous-look-ing fellow, and, as it turns out, even more repulsive morally than his looks promise, provide the theme for "TenMinute Alibi," the best thriller for many years, which opened a season at the Theatre Royal on Saturday, and which will be presented again to-night and to-morrow night. The trappings for the best sort of thriller are all there. There is the very attractive girl, the sensible but desperate hero, the already mentioned sinister villain, and, indispensably, the comic relief in the form of a rather blundering section of the police force. As every good thriller should, "TenMinute Alibi" starts with a certain amount of tension, and proceeds to increase that tension till the final curtain falls. It is a murder story, in which the audience is permitted to see not only the actual murder, but also something of the clever scheming that goes to made it a premeditated crime. Needless to say, the sympathies of the audience are all the time with the hero, who in this play is the murderer. The suspense of the plot comes not from watching the actual murder or seeing the murderer nearly caught in the act but in watching the gradual unfolding of the murderer's carefully-prepared story, and its testing at every point. Time and again the audience is in fear that some small point has been overlooked, and that the alibi which

MR GEORGE THIRLWELL

forms the plot will be shown to be the clever arrangement that it is; but every time the murderer—the hero, that'is—meets the questioning, and one is allowed to feel that a thoroughly nasty individual has been removed, as all poetrv and natural justice would have him removed, by the line fellow he is seeking to injure. The technical side of the construction of the play is masterly, and one need have no acquaintance with the mechanics of playwriting to see with a little thought that the who is Anthony Armstrong. "A.A.," of "Punch," has attended to the many details in a way that only a very clever writer could have done. The plot leaves nothing to chance, and no loose or doubtful end is left in its construction. The caste is a very small one, only seven people appearing in all. Each, with the exception of one. lias a very imoortant role to fulfil, and eacn fills it 'admirabiv. The most important part of Bettv Findon. the girl m the ease, is taken by Miss Joeeiyn Howarth. whose acting is required to cover, and does cover faultlessly, c.vvry emoton from that of the young woman in love to the terrified young woman being interrogated by the police. She is excellent, and the applause that she earned on Saturday was most thoroughly deserved. The part of the unhappy young man, Colin Derwent. is taken by Mr George Thirlwell, whose acting is exactly what one would imagine was needed. It was not an easy part to play, that of the highly-excited murderer trying to keep calm, but at the same time communicate some of his excitement to the audience. Mr R. L. Atholwood. as the butler Hunter, was especially good, but among the minor parts, if such import-, ant parts really are minor, Mr Frank Bradley, as Detective Inspector Pcmbor, stood out. Not the least impressive part of'j "Ten-Minute Alibi" is the staging. One whole' scene is a dream, but it is so carefully put on that no sense of stretching the bounds of credibility is given the audience. The dressing is simple, but is modern, and unlike so much modern staging, is in the very best of taste.

NEW ZEALANDER'S FLAY "THE WIND AND THE RAIN" With a pleasantly human story and a tender romance as the keynote, the highly uccessful comedy-drama, "The Wind and the Rain," which owns Dr. Merton Hodge.' as the author, will be presented for the first time in Christchurch, at the Theatre Royal next Wednesday afternoon. Dr. Hodge is a King's College old boy, who. after completing his studies at that school attended the University of Otago, where he took degrees in medicine. From there he went to Edinburgh University and it was while studying there that he conceived the idea of writing this brilliant play, which has aroused public enthusiasm in four Continents. The central figures in "The Wind and the Rain" are a group of young medical students, and the atmosphere of their study in which most of the action of the play takes place, is most realistic. George Thirlwell. who scored such an instantaneous success as "Colin Derwent" in "Ten Minute Alibi," staged at the Theatre Royal on Saturday, will have the leading role. Miss Jocelyn Howarth will play opposite Mr Thirlwell. Other members of the cast will be Arundel Nixon, Tommy Jay, Miss Nan Taylor, R. L. Atholwood, Richard Fair, Miss Gwen Munro, and Ronald Roberts. It is advertised that "Ten Minute Alibi" will conclude with the performance to-morrow night, and that the season of "The Wind and the Rain" will terminate this Saturday. Box plans open at the D.I.C. this morning.