THE THEATRE.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1587, 2 November 1912, Page 9

THE THEATRE.

.(Br Syr/noa.) The World's a theatre; tho Earth a stage.—Heywood. ■ » The Frailty of Asche, . Tho recent action of'.Mr. Oscar Asche in attempting to misinterpret a criticism of his "Othello" into on attack on his company and himself in' particular,, is ono of the very oldest dovie'es known.to the profession to gain sympathy (of-a theatrical character) from the .public, and no one, I venture to say,-will be more sorry that he Was led to maW the ridiculous oharge than Mr. Asche' himself—in a week or two. , •The eimple. contention was that .Mr. Asche was not a tragedian iu the true sense of-the, word; Anyone, of course, can play a tragedy part—Dan Leno once attempted "Hamlet," it/' is said, but Mr, i Asche intends,to persist • that he .is' -a great tragedian, a claim to which thoseof matured judgment and critical sense cannot subscribe. • : Within his .powers, Mr.. Asche . plays Othello'very well—looks magnificent, and has "the yoico to command,", but these are not the'only qualities, though they are necessary to constitute the equipment' of a, tragedian. To succeed in' the big tragic roles.an,actor must.havo that magnetism, emotioaal out-reach; and mental dominance to. hold aft. audience enthralled. ■It used to be Edmund .Item's pride that the effects -which -he was able to produce onhis audience were such that at certain points/its' he]said,-."th6'pit rose at me." The same tribute was .paid"to G. V. Brooke. At tho end of Othello's great speech,; beginning: . . "Think'st thou. I'd .make, a life of jealousy to .follow still the changes of the moon•withfresh suspicions?" At the 4 Olympic Theatre, where he acted in' London,' the ■ Whole' audience rose to its feet'and wayed hats, and-handker-chiefs-and cheered so loudly that the people passing in the streets were actually startled. And so it was with Charles I.Kean, and' Booth ahd'Salvini.'and numbers of real, tragedians.. '.It. is the "'moving-power" that Mr. Asche .lacks.' .He'is hard and. unemotional,'and,' the biggest of his'curtains left'the ■ audiences unstirred.' Mr. Asche need'.nQt/Be-.so perturbed at being/told the,honest truth by one who admires him as a sound, virile actor, with, a fine sense oThumour and- an .excellent producer, for the late Sir- Henry Irving., whoi 1 bewas. a tragedian, failed as Othello. . Irving's Othelio was possibly more reviled by the! critics.than almost any of Ms other parts,'.and Miss Terrjv in spite of admiration for him, admits that he "sfreained, .ranted, .and raved" in it, but it : is recorded .'that, during his ■whole speech' to the Senate.he beamed,on Desdemona, and she writes: "The gallantry of the thing was indescribable," which indicates that frying must have brought Desdoriiona -on before,- and • not, imraedia'tely'after the big'speedi. ' ".'.'"' I am afraid that Hot even the members of Mr. Asche's company subscribe to his, opinion that "Othello" isLtheir "finest Shakespearean achievement," Mr. Herbert Grimwood, another sound actor, given overmuch to. clipping and. biting his words, was a clever, .-dexterous lago, and Miss Brayton made- a pretty pleader as Desdemona, but her performance, did not approach either her, Portia or her Mistress Ford.' Mh'-Hignett, who was' so excellent as Slender,'.was quite'ineffective, as Ca'ssib..-, The. ■: Roderigo was -fair, but none "others stand out as above the mediocre. My belief is that "The Merry Wives" was by far the best all-round performance given by! the company—"Othello" the. least memorable. . ~-.-:-. "Puss-in-Boots.'V With the' arrival in' Melbourne of Frank Dix, the well'known London producer, !,who is-to stage tho'J;'C. 'Williarnsori pan--.tomime this, year, preparations for. tho big ..Christmas show have, taken a. concrete forni, and Mr. Dix is now hard .at' wprk : ,. getting,things: into shape' for the ! commeiicem'ept'.qf,-.preliminaries,,' leading up to the of details and. the opening of 'rehearsals. Meanwhile,. Violet Lbrajno' (principal boy), Alice Russon 'girl.)',''• and • others of the portaht artists are nearihg > Australia, and from England, America, and 'the Continent.are coming a-'host:,of,attractions and novelties which will-go to make this , year's', pantomime "the hest. ever." Apart from tho spectacular side' of "PuSs-in-Bcots," one of;.its most important features will be a bright, snappy,' and clever' "book," crowded with smart gags and original humour. : ' Jansen, Jansen, master'trickster, makes his reappearance at. the Opera House this evening, after a;, brief absence from New Ztealand.rWellington has cause to remember Jensen. 1 : ■ Some, 4000 or 5000 people tried to find him—arid also =£10—in a/crowd, before : the General- Pest';-Office'.a;:, few-' months "ago,','but so ■•,Well' was' the' wily 'one- dis-KTiised■■■'that-l(j..'lad.s&me/little trouble in; finding' himself, 'and. was'three minutes late .with,the perfPrrnarice;-'- Next evening -there, was.more:Jansen and. more money to'ba found for the. trying,'but, this time, Jansen, waxed. .careless,,_,'and . i;be',' Court crier (who '.had, nojtfoubt taken a course of "Sherloct'Holmes" fromsome member of the detective, force), found:, the man and the! money.' .....;.... ' As.a'n enteftajner, Jansen "makes., you laugh as he'mystifies you, "His magic is veined" with humour. \ " . ■ ' , "On Our: Selection.. 1 ' ,', .At the.conclusion of its successful Meli bourne" seaipii, the Bert Bailey Dramatic Company will co'rnmehcß a. tour'o.f' Sew Zealand, leaving Sydney oniNovember 13 and openiiig. in HiS' ■ Majesty's : Theatre, Auckland, on the following Monday. 'Theseason • will. continue' until' November 30, after which New. Plymouth,- Stratford, Hawera, Wanganui,,. Palmersfcoh' North, Hastings, : Napier, Masterton, Wellington, and Christ'chu.rch will -be. visited, the season' in tlie last-named city being timed to open on the. night of Boxing Day, and conclude, in .January. ..- Timaru, Oainarii, Dunedin, and Invercargill,will'be visited from January 1} to January 25...after, yhicli 'the, comp'any will leave for , Tasmania, . opening in .Hobart on.February I.', The company's piece. de. resistance is "On Our Selection." ' . Candid .Criticism,' , j, While, praising, Miss, Jose Collins and two other, members of the Shubert Company, the New. York ''Dramatic .Mirror" roughly" criticised, the recent' production of' "The Merry Countess" at the Casino;' In Sydney:a ■few montnsback, the Jdharin Strauss comic opera was. performed as "Nightbirds." ' : •'•. " : . -This is, what the "New ' York critic wrote:— ' ' As a version of "Die Fledermaus," it is desecration, pure and simple, As a spectacular production,. as a massing of colours and lights, as a,matter of costum>ing and'ensenibleT-in.short,' as an entertainment of miscellaneous Clements making their appeal to the eye and picturesque to a of-bewilderment,, it is a distinct achievement. But it is regrettable that probably the best of the German operettas should have its virtues ■obscured in order that.'the Dolly Twins may luminously shine as dancers. The enchanting music was relegated to, a subordinate- rank, and what -was offered us w ; as a - Wintprgardenised version. : of Strauss's masterwork, .'with Mile. Dazie ; and the Dolly Twins ■ and the ; corps de ballet: aiid that sort of thing carrying off the' honours.' The dancers were ten times',more' applauded-than the .singers. Only now and then one''.of; those insidious waltz movements—scored.in. the best of .'taste and giving the Strauss waltz of nobility—provoked loud applause. The real spirit of the comedy to Which Strauss adjusted' his '. music' is lost. It-takes German opera bouffe actors to denote that element in all its unctuotis fullness. The Germans in the audience wept over the sacrifice of their Strauss; but Broadway applauded'to t]ie echo. Playhouse Applause. '. Some critics of tho modern stage particularly unfriendly, critics, of whom there' are many—declare that the. decline in applause is due, to ineffective plays and 'poor acting. Yet if there is ni- stimulus, an intoxication about applause,- the power of an actor or ah actress may bo shown in the tension of feeling which brings a hush upon, the-whole audience. That kind of silence is perhaps the highest form of admiration;. As "The Stage," London, points out, there' is silence nnd silence. Mr. Forbiw Robertson once spoke about the "beautiful silence''- of an audience. The term will serve. It is to he preferred to tho "Wagner hush," Tho Biloaco c£ disapDoiattncnt or contempt u

quite another 'thing.ln America, for instance, sileuco of this sort is full uf Hut when it grows from attention, appreciation, and sympathy, al ence may bo a greater tribute to all • a n 11 ' the louilc s l applause. . uj ,"? ol;uel ' haß 3. ii: must be acknowledged that a silent audience may have a depressing effect on a performance. Ssßmetim.es- the actor is • helped'and stimulated by a generous- atmosphere.' Reserro chills him, coldness unnerves- him. Ao ono wants the semi-hypnotised playgoer, who in his momentary infatuation tries to get from his scat to the stage; nor the excited galleryite who. supplies interjeetional remarks from his lofty perch; nor the audience, or sections of on audience, whose indiscriminate plaudits disconcert the actors. The impulse to applause is a good and .genial one. •. The actor should bo the last person to discountenance anything but the ackdrop demonstration. That anplause gives him little stimulus, and it Wis itself to absurdity ' and incongruity. For. special act-drop applaiifo the whole,company are paraded.vOfton on a principle, which leaves the leading artists to tho last, To stifle ;aii audienco into silence during an act and.,permit it in an illusian-shattering procession at the close is not logical.. Neither ; to .'.incite nor to .check applause daring (the dramatic action and •to acknowledge applause at the end of the act by ringing up on the situation or a tableau development is the better course. The London Season, ' With the opening of the London musical season, the stjvrs are- preparing to shine anew. When Madame Molba arrived iii Paris' from ■Australia in the first week in September it was announoed .that she would reappear iii Londpn.at the Albert Hall on -Saturday afternoon. October 3, with Ysaye, Wiihelm Backhaus, and Edmund Burke, afterwards,going with these artists on a provincial tour, which is to. terminate in December. The appearance of Mr. John M'Cormack at a'concert this month at the Queen's Hall -with Miss Maggie Tcyte, the, well-known soprano, was also announced just before the English mail left London. Later on in the year Madame Carreno will return from the Continent to give a recital at Queen's Hall on November 6, and will then proceed on an' autumn tour -'of-. England; The famous pianist next season will celebrate the jubilee of her first professional appearance in publican infant prodigy of eight years! The hand of Time has dealt lightly with her, and'she isj nowlooking forward with. enthusiasm 'to a two years' round Of engagements in America. Miss Marie Hall and Mr. 'Mark Hambourg have been arranghisr provincial tours, for the present month. Miss Hall intends to go in December to India, and thence to Tientsin, Kobe, Yokohama, Tokio, and other places in the Far East, but ' the. London Ballad Concerts will claim. her again in March. Messrs, H. Primmer and Allan Hamilton have purchased for Australasia {by cable) the latest.- George Alexander success, a play entitled. "The Turning Point," which was produced at St. James's Theatre, London, in succession to "Bella Donna." The sew play is said to havo made an instantaneous impression.