THE THEATRE.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 110, 1 February 1908, Page 13

THE THEATRE.

(By " Sylvius.") "Tho world's n theatre, the earth a stage."—Hey wood. "Brewster's Millions." . 0" Thursday next tbo plavgoing public of Wellington will have tho opportunity of wit-, nessing "Brewster's Millions," a comedy based on M'Cutcheon's very readablo nqvel, which has proved a genuine success in America and was well received in England. American writers havo contracted a habit of creating the most absurd situations, - and in framing them so cleverly as to niako thorn even convincing to tho playgoer whoso jaded palato is .tickled, by tho very ludicrousness of tho central idea round which tho playsometimes brightly written and well-con-structed—rovolves. "Brewster's Millions" is, as the name indicates, a money play, and the basic idea or' "niodism" is that young Afonty Brewster shall .loso an enormous sum of money in a given time—lose it legitimately and in conformity with certain conditions— in order to inherit Brewstor's. (senior) millions. Tho young fellow enters cheerfully oil tho task of dissolving tho smaller fortune, speculating wildly, recklessly, but' instead of losing he wins—every "spec", turns out a good, thing, and instead of being elated, as many would bo, ho despairs, for his winnings are as Dead Sea fruit. It is this money-los-ing quest that leads to tho story; which.l will not spoil ,by telling. Eventually, however, tho tide,turns, tho moucv runs away lucrrijy, and in tho end tho desired millions are secured, together \yith the girl, .without which no properly-constructed play is complete. Tho company is haidjd by Air. 'i)ios ;Kingsto'i: formerly lead with Miss Brune, and includes i.' its ranks such old-established favourites a- Mrs. Robt.ißrpunli and Mr. Jas. Bi Athol- . wcod; also Messrs. Vivian Edwards.- T. W. Lloyd, Rotand Staveley, C. ■•,' Harding—a capable company of players all round. Sarah Bernhardt, ' It is understood that Mdmo. Sarah Bornhardtfs tour of Australasia next,year will be ox tended to Nuw Zealand, and that herwork in the Dominion will, consist-of 10 performsanccs ui Auckland, lO in ■•Wellington, six .in Ghristcmirch and six in Dunedin. According th j latest "Stage," Mi l.iaio ww rch-iirs-nig dean Richepiu and Henri Cain's lyric feerio entitled "La. Bebo au Bois Dormant," which was to bo produced just before Christmas. .Mqdamo..was to play the doublo-roles of the poet Landrv and tuo Prince Landry, l'raneois 'Ihorne has written the music lor ■the now play. ' . Laughter. ; , : : - Laughter is an organic necessity. '' In''-tho ■present theatrical, season,as in all theatrical seasons .since Aristophanes; with , his little comedies first shivered the solemnity'of philisophers and gods, mirth jWill predominate .oil the boards—vaudeville', . "French comedy,'' light comedy," "domestic comedy-drama,". 'musical comedy," "comedies of manners." Ibsen, and Strindberg. and Maeterlinck, may come and go, Init the comedian.'in'us goes on forever., Un tho boards "The Mikado" will outlast. "Ghosts," and, "Tho School , for Scandal" will still bo performed when Bernard Shaw and his plays have long been forgotten. ... . ' . No one is stronger than',Proserpine, goddess death, oxccpt Momus, god of laughter, ..whom Proserpine cannot, sliiy. ' . Care cudgels us. by day with , its ebon.'bludgeon, but at night, 0 ye weary and cocktail-ridden and stock-ticker-beriddeu, mortals, get 50 on to the gay White Way, where tho fairy'geddess uttyes her silver-bright stave, commanding all to worship. : There is a comic spirit in'all things. The gods bowl us over and still wo make merry. Hurricane, earthquake and fire conspire to annilnlatp us, but jocosity and joviality flow 111 an unbroken : stream from the springs of buoyancy set deep within the-squl- of- man. ' . Tho: .'instinct that; demands "foolish' humbug', , in' theatricals is a' sound one based i..U])qii human.pxporipnce. ii LauglitQr cleanses; mirth keeps us saiie.' Alliicouiedy is.intellectual and tho,explosive guffaw t]uii. the. clown at the Hippodrome.'elicits, 01;, tlio silent laugh-, ter of : 1110 mind at the incongruous situations in a Barrie fantasy,, such as "The Admirable,'. Cricliton. ! ' ,stems from the same need! The antics of Marcelino and Puck differ, in 'degree,' jipt in kind. Tlio great mass of playgoers-'go'to the thcqtro to have their minds tickled wth tlie straws of.the ridiculous...and absurd. They arp.,conscious of. the eleni'ont. of incongruity and sportive topsy-turviness that runs through all tho .'affairs of life. Wo secretly delight ,'of .watching, a fat man, slip up 011 a banana peel.. How' deep was Shakespeare's. mirth when ho, gav.o us Puck! Puck, tl'lo lordly imp; of ail upsy-downsy universe ; Piick, who is tho 'seer par oxcollenco.of the world; Puck, who put a girdlo of laughter around the world for evermore; Puck,, who smiled and .smiled and ■was not a villain—only a ,diyino sportsman who played with us 011 the field of tho cloth of grey which some have nicknamed Etermty! . 7 ■/,

Leisure is the condition, of .laughter.J'Tho comic spirit is born in the cradlo of contemplation. Mirth is a kind of soreno scepticism. Bernard Shaw lias confessed that tho, comic imp iu hiin saved liiiii from 'tho galows. We can readily imagine' that if Harlequin had not incarnated itself-in the', lrisjl- playwright at birth he would havo become a bomb 'maker.'■ . ■ I. ; !' ' 1 1; • ' ■ What saved Shaw was his funny' cells in his brain, .just as wo are all kept'sweet l>v our funny-bone that over ten thousand /artists (sometimes) aro going to tioklo for us all winter. Only the heart"cuffers; the brain is' tho 1 peaooful, undisturbed' 1 eternal spectator of tho monstrous parade called Life. The mind never 'worries, is nover in pain. It is tho heart—that great lupaiiar of desires— that is ' always seducing. tho mind', to itS'will; and its aches and its potty needs. Tho mind left to itself would laugh "forever.' For mirth is as old as-tile first'mind that succeeded in detaching itself—were it oven' for an hour—from- the slavery of tho emotions; Distance,-aloofness, detachment, perspective, impersonality—that is the secret of laughter. Whether it bo Joe Webor>or Coque|in—what wp laugh at in their characterisations 'is—ourselves! " , ••

Moinus. toujou'rsi. The jraucous guffaw of Rabelais reverberates to this day. The silvery rill of Cervantes—who dragged Prometheus from his rock and set him tilting at windmills—is' 'Spain's immortal contribution 1 ' 'to the-'comic view.- The dry, sniilo of Moiiero, still lingers on "the. latest imported iFrench comedy— you can catch it at .tho Einpiro'in "My Wife."—Npw York ■•"Theatre." "Humpty Dumpty's" Course Runs Smooth/ Last week in Jlelbourno with its daily thermometer among tho hundreds must havo been, a-real test of tho drawing power of "Humpty Duuipty," and very triumphantly did it emerge from tho contest. For 1 Her. Majesty's Thuatro every-evening was crowdetl' with an : audienco winch refused absolutely' to allow tile heat to interfere with its enjoyment, whilo both tho matinees were among tlio best tho theatre has ever held. To overy Australian it must bo a source of' gonuino pleasure to see first how the national sentiment is stimulated by tho pautominio; and secondly, how every chanco of "proving their possession of that sentiment is availed of by tho audience. In tho ballet of the .Australian States for oxamplo each lino of eight girls dressed in a costumo typifying respectively tho six States of the Commo- i wealth is welcomed with "a round" impartially distributed from Now. South Wales in. ivool to'-West Australia in gold, and from Queensland in pineapple-green to Tasmania in pink and whito for apple blossom. Tlio .heartiest outburst is earned, however, by tho fmalp of tho ballet when tho girls thronging on to tho stago group themselves in a solid mass and then, to the strains of "Australia" open the quaintly-shaped umbrellas' they carry and form themselves into ono . hugo Aus-. tralian flag. Tho sanio effect as regards enthusiasms is won also in the final march of nations. England, Scotland, Ireland, America, and Franco all conie in to tho music of liandclapping (as indeed in a, sopiowhat lesser degree do all tlio nations),, but thero is a veritablo roar of cheers when Australia in crimson and gold with felt head dress and emu plume, and with a kookooburra perched on tho shoulder of each of the fivo girls, swerves down gallantly tp .thij footlights. It

is a fitting finale to a j ; splendid show. _It must bo remembered inA'tlio samo connection also that tho most sensational spectacular effect of all—tho Wheel of Life—was worked out and perfected entirely by Australians. No other part of tho world, has seen it yet. A Sothern Story. It is related of tho elder Sothern that ho Was once acting the . hero in a'romantic play, which required his leaping"'from "a window in a tall, tower to tho stago'b6low,"whorp hoalighted on a mattress '' behind a wooden rock, and immediately made off rapidly into" a forest. , Ono night ho'huH'his'ankle, and' vowed that ho would leap 'no moro. Accordingly, tho next day h^s- manager'hired a professional circus performer' to do ; the actual leap, whilo the actor * should'slip back under cover of part pf.'tlio tower 'wall; and doscend by a safe but unrpmantic ladder to his dressing-room. , ■... Tho manager provided-tho circu's man with a costunio precisely liko'Sothern's",' arid sent him to tho theatre to practise; 1 ' ' The' man mado tho jump, and set up a loud complaint. ■ _"\Yliat's;'tho row?"; enquireda- young membor of tho company- who'happened to bo' at tho playhouse. . •" "Why, look here," exclaimed tbo professional, "this 'ere drop is too easy. ■•A man with a wooden'leg and.two gjass eyes could do it. Now, if they'd • let 'mo turn two somersaults in the air as I-camfj down I wouldn't mako'no fuss.;" 1 "r " "Capital!" cried tho actor. , "Do it." "You think tbo old covo.wouldn't mind?" sjaid tho athlete, doubtfully.) ~ "Mind I" returned , tho young player. "Why? Ho'd bo tickled to death; and probably raiso your salary as well." "" ■ That evening, when tho-part of tho performance was feached wherein the hero took |eavo of tho heroine, Sothern .was,, "gratified to seo his-substitute crouching in:tfie:shadow of tho casement ready to., leap. "Love, good night—good night!" cried Sothern. ' . . ........ "Stay!"' pleaded tlio~ heroine", , clingiiig round his neck; "stay! thatieap is death!"\ "Nay, hay, sweet ; 'tis; honour. I- leap,' 'tis true, but what in my heart doth bear mo np? . 'Thine image, love. Good night—good night." : ;, Hp kissed her frantically on: tho forehead,: toro himself from her embrace, and rushed across tho open ' space - into : tho shadow."Jump!" ho hissed bptween his;,teeth.,,-: Out .into tlio air shot tlie . circus . man, whirled round twico liko tbo flywheel of a steam er gino, and let lik« a bird; on tho .highest point, of the rock. Tho'applauso camo in .thunders!;' The luan bowed stiffly, .and .Walked; off into tlio \yiugs .wjth his arms, folded.;; : Unfortunately, tlio remarks- of Sothern are lost to history;;" "The Right of Way" Dramatised. ''j Eliminating a previous, acquaintance--with Sir Gilbert' I'arker's novel "Tho -Right of AYay," it cannot- bo "sajd (says tlio-New-York-"Theatre") tljat Mr. ~ Eugene ~ Presbrey's. dramatic version founded on that best: seller -in its day—is an altogether satis-' factory achievement. Tlio play'was written, sdmd yoars ago and its production threatened... from time to time. Fayersham and llellew were both-slated for tlio principal.rolc-but something happened'and hiick.it- went to its; author. ' Messrs; Kliw; "and. those .whose: temerity, rose superior■■ to. the.' faith and confidence of Charles frohhiaii and George W. Tyler. It does'not' seeni, : ,ble that they will securp a'n .adequate'pe'cun-. iary return for their moral --courage., ■; They have: spent - large, sums in- providing a. sump- • tuous sotting. Homer Emons's last - picture of tlio Valley of Cooling jsi p rgem— and they.:have supplied h .largo several popular and .efficient players* for tlio principal roles; Tho great . fault .is that tho i central figure, Charley Steele,' is too. big' for'.' a study limited to.threo hours' exposition on y. ' His views,' his - influences", for evil on others as w;ell as himself—h'isdoiibts" and - his ~ conclusions without .- faith,, li'is, troubles arid his apparent mlemptjpu eyi-' dently shattered by- the'religiWs baiv'that'- is raised if not. treated with, tho greatest; of detail and introspoctivo (Inscription become simply tho pbvious resources ofi conventional:: ; nielocirama. ' And this <is .tlio evident and positive 'weakness of the- ,pliy.?i: ,'To j what- a' devil of- a cynic he' is,, a p'rooession-'of. charact-crs appear; in tlie first sccne.". I ';' .AYitti each ho has', a- colloquy.. .Most have fallen under his:spell for..'ill and, to, ; each Jie Ibises epigrams that aro not convincing or' brllliaiit'. Tho result is an act of - talk , sind: nb' / iictioii. It is tho baldest kind of". lirosentment of' premises.' What followsgives.Httlo'-.ih, dramatic value. He visits, a' water.front're--sort in Montreal in a state; is' hit over. the..head and 'tossed into the river, only to .'ho \rescuod. by-.Joe. rortugais, a; Canadian trapper whoifi'lio saved; once from tho gallows, The Canuclc take's him' to-liis retreat in-, tho wilds where,' Steele; irocovers 'his health but- not his liiiiid; Tho past is a blank. ;:Hero lie falls in loyo witli;.a v ,product: of the iwilds,:' but, a ,visiting' dcictor' performs', an operation and the ,pAst'oSuiOs hack. ; '.' Ho did have a'wife, who in his.absiinco Has;marricd; again, but as the. blossbin Pf tlio wilder-; ness is a sincero Catl)olic-'anid : is'inflnijnced"by ! . her father.'.of tho church' \vltU';wliota'. Steelfi; has numerous tlieologicaHliseussions of littlo* value, ho is ' left .at tho-' ohd-. to' : go - forf-li. somewhere to st-rugglo- witli' 'himself', aided" by tlio faithful, Pbrtugai?.;--Tlio rccital ;of all this pttkiuees somo vigorous-scjines ot obvious inelodrnnia, but ':ii"is>.not' convincing." through errors of "damllablo', ityrati'oii', 1 antl utter falseness to truth. '"CujvStanding 'as 1 Stcelo does' some straightforward'acting.;■'lt' -■isiiiot subtle, but it is pictiirpsquo,'-.lileasiiifjlV and manly. As -tlio "faithful Portugais'' Theodore .Roberts - has - plenty; of lpcal ■ colour and; an. intplligiblo dialecit'.'|t r ; is "si- sound .pieco -of -'charapterisatioiV,' liiit ■ iii'.' th'eatrical' parlance it• recks of y;'p'■

A Great Dancer. - • ' . i . " ... Millie.. Genee, tho famous London Empire Theatre dancer who .finished 1 ten years'- iservic'o at that house in'.jNov.embcH'ast?, was, born in Denmark, and spent-nine>labarjqus-'years- at a dancing, npailfcrajf iri. BorlinH-Tqrp-sichoro is indeed an exacting, taskmistre-ss, as tho great dareer 'has-.herself said—beforo, slio. was allowed to. make her debut when' she was seventeen. Afcor -short-' engagements,in the Gorman capital and kt.Mip|ich..sho:.Vi'ent to the Empire in 1897 to .'stay six-weeks. .She remained ton years, and left for America at; tho end of . tho year. ; Mdlle. Genee, is-a tiny,■ fair, serious womaii,.earnest,.unaffected,,pro-: fonndly interested in her,.art... It' is .safe to.; say that she knows niore oLtkc theory and: the history of dancing' thW 'any ;-oth«fr»livingperson, and her keenness is-largely'added, of course,: to her secret, of her success. ■ Eulogy has bccomc commonplace in regard to her. dancing, but . perhaps _-her art has been most successfully :summnrised -..by James Douglas,who said to her: "The,charm' of Genee is more than. the; chaxmVof swiftly, rhythmical movement. She dances .with 'her faco as well as with her.fect. -The joy'of life sparkles in her eyes and-gasps in her parted lips. .'Her ' joyousriess. has fascinated tho. fickle public. It is a contagious -gaiety, thatlinks hands with you and whirls you off."' Sunday Closing In .New York. Judge O'Gorman, of the Supremo Court, has actually looked over tho charter governing the places of amusement, and has-actu-ally discovered that it means what it.says.As a matter ,of fact, ijnybody: who was not stone blind could see at once: that the Sunday shows given in this, and otlior cities.were in absolute contravention .of ,tho law, and. the: farce of taking the matter, fronv-.court :to court, when the charter so explicitly, stated: the I facts and is so plain and;complete:iii describing tho style of entertainment : which should not be given on: tho Sabbath,i : wes gone through in all solemnity iiritil it reached the highest court, from, which there is, no appeal, awlithc fiat lias.gonc:forth that all 1 the/ theatres and variety- shows must: from henceforth close down. This, -of.course,-until somo means is devised, either! to evade .the law or to alter it so that the .various managers may resume the acquisition of dollars on tho seventh day, or, as they call, it: here; the first day, of the week. It will be'a very, difficult problem for the New. .Yprkers. wlia't to do with their Sunday if there be no shows, for there is absolutely nothing to do in this human rabbit warren on that day, for tho sardine-boxes in which the majority live have nothing of the liq'me about them, and the only comfortable place,' as a rule, is away from them; they consist, hiostly'of'two'room's in the half light, and the rest In the. dark. But*'the population may rest assured: That; it will not bo very long before some method of dodging the 'ordinance is discovered or, as I said before, a new ordinance is passed.