THEATRE ROYAL

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21415, 6 March 1935, Page 16

THEATRE ROYAL

"TEN-MINUTE ALIBI" j To-day's matinee is the last oppor- ] (unity theatre-goers will have of see- j ing "Ten-Minute Alibi," the best | thriller to be shown here for many ' years, which has had a very successful j season at the Theatre Royal. The , caste is a very small one, only seven j people appearing in all. Each, with j the exception of one, has a very im- j portant role to fulfil, and each fills it admirably. The most important part of Betty Findon. the girl in the case, is taken by Miss Jocelyn Howarth, ; whose acting is required to cover, and ; does cover faultlessly, every emotion i from that of the young woman in love ! to the terrified young woman being j interrogated by the police. The part | of the unhappy young man, Colin Dor- I went, is taken by Mr George Thirlwell, j whose acting is exactly what one i ; would imagine was needed. Others j who are especially good are Mr : R. L. Atholwood and Mr Frank Brad- ! ley. ! "THE WIND AND THE ! RAIN" FIRST PERFORMANCE TO-NIGHT j ''There is no way," wrote a Sydney i critic, "of judging whether Dr. Mer- j ton Hodge is a good medico; there is. j however, ample evidence that he is an \ excellent playwright. He wrote 'The : Wind and the Rain,' and you could not I ask for a better example of modern j comedy." The play will commence a : season of four nights and one. matinee :

at the Theatre Royal to-night. Merlon Hodge was born in New Zealand and was educated at King's College, Auckland. That being so, the playgoers of this Dominion should appreciate the fact that he is now regarded as the best young playwright in England. The piece is a simple story of a young student's adventure when he was trying to qualify as a surgeon at Edinburgh University. He had left a Jill in London with whom he had grown up and whom he expected to marry. He met an Anne in Edinburgh .. and for five years • their love adventures were idyllic. It was Anne who helped him through his college tasks and his troublesome adolescence. He found afterwards he could not well go on without her. So he explained it "all to Jill in London and went back to Anne in Edinburgh. That is all very simple and sentimental, but glowing with satisfaction to the playgoers who like the feel of honest romance in the theatre. Its sugary incidents are tinged with bitter sweetness at times, at others hilarious comedy relieves a tense situation. The characters move naturally and there is no suggestion that they go off merely to make room for whatever performers have the next scene. The action is even in tempo and the dialogue is brilliant, clever, bright, and highly amu>ing. True, 'he characters are, it is said, finely limned and interpreted ppiTectlv. (Joor-e Thirlwell is the typical English juvenile, modest, clean and linn. but", anyhow, judging by his characterisation in 'Ten-Minute Alibi,'' ho would be fine m any role. Miss Jocelyn Howarth is said to be delightful in the rule of Anne, and Arundel Nixon. Tomniv Jay, Russell Chapman. Nan Tnvlor. Gwen Munro, Richard Fair. Ronald Roberts were all specially selected for their various roles. The staging and lighting effects are features of the production.