THE THEATRE.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1013, 31 December 1910, Page 10

THE THEATRE.

I ' ■ vr' ~ REVIEW OF THE YEAR,

(By . Sylvius.)

As is'usual in this side-street of thea« h'ical endeavour wu have liad a little of all sorts during the year—good, bad, and indifferent—arid, looking over 'the list 'of attractions which have been £et out for 'the.delectation o£ playgoers, it would be " rasli to state which particular kind of' theatrical fare has predominated. The operations of.the year have- 1 -! s-eak for Wellington only—convinced motliat the', taste for the more banal forms of melodrama is declining. ."Wellington is beginning to look for something a little .better, and it has not omitted to show .' its appreciation for that which makes an... ; ; attempt at least.to appeal to thei intellect. That.l fancy i.mny fairly claim as a featuri',' and' a praiseworthy ."feature , of the year. "Wo had melodrama to commence , the year with—"The Cheat" .and "The' Silver King"—but they werei -' <• melodramas a good deal in advance of •the queer concoctions which are invariably being served up as "the latest London successes." If one could depend-on getting something near ' "The, ' Silver King,"- melodrama would be palatable, but the' standard has been lowered sensibly,- and-we: get such crude imaginings . 1 as "When- llidnight. Chimes," ."Married to the Wrong Man," and "A Woman's Hate", given.'us as the latest and great- .". est. J: C. Williamson, Ltd.; was with; as dramatically .when the New' Tear open- !• > - ed, and* the firni sees the year ont operati-' eally -with tho • sparkling- "fiollar 'Priricess,' Company.. In between whiles thef firm has given us a few delightful shows, which have been much appreciated. I refer to "Peter Pan,". Barrie's delicious dream, played here in March last, -and to -the season of the Grand Opera Companv, which gave us our first full draught of Puccini.

An Epoch in Opera. , Tho performance ,'ot "Madame Butter-' fly" was a verr good, one indeed, and the " performances both of-Mdlle. Bel. Sorel ' '. and Miss Amy Castles, in tlie name part, are embalmed in our. m'amory, tho first-' > named artist for. tlie. splendid, note of ;<; tragedy she conveyed, ,and the "Victorian, singer for her limpid vocalism. In eome'''<■■■ respects the.ca6t. ivas weak. The work of tlie Australian and New Zealand members . : of the company was y.surprisingly. •. good: .Miss-Bookman, in particular, .wast. .. artistically satisfying in all- she did—the : ?\ future should hold something for •' her. ;■ After "Butterfly'' and "La Boheme," "Carmen" struck on the ear as thin and' old-fashibned. ; The cast iiras distinctly disappointing! in Bizefs work. Other Wil- . V liamson'shows were the; New ' .Comic , Opera Company in. "The King, of Ca-'' donia," "Havana," and "A. Country; ■ Girl" "(in January and February last),'. the "Aladdin" pantomime, a note higher :■ in ' the ascending, scale of- gorgeousness which marks the *Tirm's" efforts in tliia direction;' Miss Nellie Stewart—who iins the secret of "eternal youth—in . "When;. Knighthood . was in Mower," , ".Trilby,". and "Sweet Nell," and last, but certainly. not least, the New Comic Oncra.Company . , again, which is at present delighting huge audiences with a capital performance of ■ : Leo. Fall's brilliant light opera, ' The : v Dollar Princess." This company is also . to introduce Oscar Strauss's .beautiful :. "Waltz Dream," which has lots of musi--cal merit, apart from its 20-bar kiss; that livelv bit of nonsense-' A Knightior a. Day!", and will. Tevivo The .Merry ~ r Widow" and "The Belle of New, York. .. Clarke and Meynell, the new firm which , has just been floated into, a and. which, is" establishing itself '■ firmly m Australia, does not seem to conrern ltSelf^ much, about New Zealand, which is to. - be regretted) Still, it; is. understood that wo aro to see "The Arcadians .jpt-,yeaT.- i;; - :r; The only visiting companies, to which, . . -this firm's name has .been,attached durtogtte year-has beeirGeo WiUoughWs. Comedy in "The Night of - ■ and the company, headed by Mr. HarryRoberts" and Mi»/Beatna> Day, nmduced "Pete" and "The Case of- Ke. • , Luiffiis-'Sffiiin" in- July last-vo*y?tady«. >. , mirable productions they were, too. .

A -Remarkable Play. : > __ . One of tho most remarkable and" inter. :»f ; 'ost-compelling plays - produced, m Wei- ..• lington during -year was, Jerome : Jeromo's '"Passin" of- the. Third Floor, i Back," a very well-written morality com- .. .. edv,' instinct with mystery and alive -with .. . beautiful thoughts. It was one 01.-M# , plays of the year, and was -by , a new management, Messrs. H.'Plimmer, Reynolds, Benniston, and Allan Hamilton in a- manner that augurs well for the 'success of the firm. 'The same, company- - 'also produced ."Lover 9. Lane, a.brightcorJedy of manners, very .prettily . staged., Since -leaving the,.. .: company has'revived The Second Mrs. . ~ - Tanqueray" (with Mrs. Bobert Brough in-. '... her old part), and "A Message, tarn Mars" (now being successfully cloyed m ~.. Auckland); ' • :

An Incident of Great Note. One of the most, remarkable incidents. o£ - the y-eR-r attaohes to, the name of Mr. Hn*h Ward, the- popular actor-manager, who has since bc2ii admitted a partner (in prospect) to the firm of J. C. "Williamson, Ltd. The "incident" originated m an- : attack on the morals of the comedy, The Girl fTora Rector's," ft racy. American. 5 farce, which took no greater liberties with, the moralities than fifty other farces or musical comedies. So strong, however, was, tho attack, and so lively was Mr. Wards response that tho entire community be- ■ . 'came interested, and fortune flowed in a . colden stream.into Mr. Wards treasury, > •not only in Wellington, but m every town . that v,*as subsequently visited. Mr.. \V ard also made good'use of the incident by_in" •, augurating a- fund for the Children s Hospital, for which' over JCIG,OOO (including tho' Government subsidy) was raised. - Other visits to be recorded are those rc • the "Max Maxwell Company • playing a series of Bland Holt . melodramas, -'and Fred. Graham's. Comedy Company;whichgave a smart performance of. The bin from Ostend." • > The Insidious. Picture Show. , Picture shows have flourished,through-• out the year. Indeed, they are so numer-. :. ous and persistent, not only in the .. but in every town of any size.in New Zealand' that they more than threaten to . be a serious menaco to theatrical art. ln.i. Acme instances municipalities with. . theatres have lent their countenances to permanent picture shows, with the result that the visits of' travelling theatrical companies are not-welcomed as they r.sed to be, and the; public: of these smaller; , communities getting used to paying i.ot more than lb. and 6cll admission, are be v cinnins to look.askance at tho show which. demanSs 3s. or 4s. for the test seats. The picture business, witllin bounds, is all very -well, but the shows can be run so cheai;]y oil a circuit that the theatrical businr«s proper is being .undermined to a great ■_ extent in this country. 'Managers stats. , that where they coul(V formerly reckon on . £id ami -£S0 houses in some of the provincial towns the houses have dropped to half the value. The reason-picture • shows!- To what they may descend is ' quoted by a visiting actor, who states that there is a picture shown ltrar Bondi, tlio .admission to which is one pickle or beer bottle. It is run by a bottle merchant, who is making a fortune with his new idea. ; : ■ •