RICKARDS' VAUDEVILLE CO.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1507, 1 August 1912, Page 7

RICKARDS' VAUDEVILLE CO.

AN. ATTRACTIVE COMBINATION. , Quality is what tho lato Mr. 'Harry Eickards insisted upon wlnen engaging talent for his vaudeville enterprises, and judging by the company which appeared at the Opera -House-last eyeniug, his successors intend to ,follow tho track blazed by the late lamented pioneer of this class of lighter entertainment. Good vaudeville will always command audiences, but the experienco .of , years , has demonstrated that 'if a~cert!iiii'-staiidard is not maintained by the engagement of really gifted performers, patronage is likely to slump.' - '."The.'Jirl&nt-'BiekardS' Company is certainly «nct deficient in good turns, and in two or three,cases the talent soars, very high. Rinaldo, for example,' billed'as "thfe- wandering' ''violinist." is a revelation of what can be done with the most difficult of all musical instrument!). With tho typical worn vuivct trousers; stuff shirt, and neckerchief of - the strolling Italian fiddler, so well known at Home and on the Continent, but hardly so familiar in the colonies, this' gifted artist tears, hacks, and rips «t the instrument with nervous, fiery force, double-stops, and treble-stops, with ease and certitude, and withal makes appallingly sympathetic music. Shaking off | the. trammels oE tradition, he selected' Von Suppa's familiar orchestral 'Toot and Peasant," the initial medium for his urioua talent, and in his - vigorous hands tho instrument became a little orchestra. 1 The andante passage was most sweetly and smoothly played,; and in the finale, working with feverish force. Obtained a Tfially amazing effect. Thunderous applause followed, and the artist played liillnrney" and "Annie .Laurie' (nitlv embellishments) very prettily. A second encore introduced tho audience to the "Rinaldo R-as," a delieiously comic triffe with u bacchanalian bearing which induced spontaneous laughter, and again ho had to respond, finally, with a transcription, of tho "My Hero" sblo from I'The Chocolate Soldier. Another "star" is Mr. Will-H. Fox, a clever ! American trick pianist, with a facility for telling keenly pointed; stories in quaintly formal 'language. Mr. Fox has a shrewd humour, and a manner as dapper and precise as his "all red" attire. He plays Schubert with his eyes doubly blindfolded, his hands gloved, and n cloth over the keys. His three-part playlet was delightful, and his "chemist shop" gags and stories' were as fresh as paint and as full of colour. Comedy sketches by capable players aro always in favour, <ind the one tendered by Mr. .Gus W. l?lake and Miss Maud Granby kept the audience rippling with laughter all through. Mr. Ronald George is a player .of many instruments—the cornet, zylophone, and an elaborate arrangement of brazen appendages On a stand which produced doubtful music in a Tathcr laboured fyr-hion. Mr. George's operatic medley on the zylophone, in which were included excerpts from "Carmen" and "Faust," was his best effort, musically. Walker and Sturm are a brilliantly clever (inn of rackec jugglers and acrobats. Tho deftness and speed with which tlioy jugglo with gaily-tinfoil-ed rackets is amazing. One of tho performers brightens the act with some clever foolery, which did not'appear to affect, his wondor-ra.isihg arts. The Tossing Teslros are not new to Wellington, and their juggling, balancing, and hatspinning is as clever and diverting ■ as ever. The male performer cohclildes the turn by balancing a full-sized 'rickshaw on his head. Monie Mine's songs were hardly delectable in tone, a fact quickly appreciated by. the audience. . Mr. Marshall Crosby, a baritone with a powerful, vibrant, and at times somewhat strident, voice ' sang "The Star of Bethlehem" athletically, and a soldier ditty which found favour. Melrose and Menzies. song and patter comedians, are funny fellows on conventional lines, and the Bright Sisters dance brightly in dazzling costumes. A capable orehcsti'a responded effectively to the direction of Mr. James Stewart. . .