THE THEATRE.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2001, 7 March 1914, Page 9

THE THEATRE.

[Bi Sr&vrcs.] I'hfl World's ii, theatre; the Earth a stagi'.—Hcywood. Mr. Beaumont Smith's Enterprises, Mr. Beamuent Smith is jast now paying Now Zealand a hurried visit, rio lias arranged to produce" his Jyricscep© play, "The Miracle,'' in wmjtijMti-on with Messrs. i'utlcr and. Hayward, in tlio Dominion; opening b Auckland en Mn«h 2.

The first, of Ills new attractions opens at the Adelplii Theatre, Sydney, on July 11. Thi» will bo the Beaumont Smith and Louis Meyer English Dramatic Company, playing Rex Weaehe's famous drama, "Tne Barrier," and another remarkable Chiire.so tragedy, -entitled "Air. Wn," which is new being produced at the. Strand Theatre, t-joiufon, by Mr. Smith's partner, Mr. L<mia Meyer, ami is oho of the n-ew season's successes. The Now Zealand tour will commence late in August, flip second Louis Smith Company «iil opei-i in Melbourne at the .Princess Theatre on Angiist 22. This will bo an imported farce-conicrty company with a, _ repertoire- of ' four fine comedies, produced -in London during the pa,st three years, uaniely, "The Glad Eye," "Who"? the Lady?", "The Chaperon," and "The Real Thing." ....Mr.- Smith has seeur-cd the Princess ■ theatre, Melbourne, from Messrs. Gflorgo Willoug-liby, Ltd., from August to December, and the plays will bo presented by arrangement with that firm..

Harry Laudsf Comifig-, Mr. Harry Lauder was given an enthusiastic send-off •at Liverpool last mouth, on hia departure by the Ounard liner Carmanin tor Now fork, on his Way tp . Australia and New Zeahmd. Accompanied by his wife, who-was carrying a large bouquet presented by members of the- Liverpool St. Andrew's Society, the comedian entered a motorcar at the hotel, and drove to the landingstage. The members -of tlio 10th Battalion Liverpool Scottish • Territorials, wearing kilts, preceded the car, playing Highland airs oft the pipes, and * large crowd followed. At the landing-stage there were animate! scenes, pliotograpllers and ki-uema men being busy snapshotting the party. In'an interMew, Mr, Lauder said that, he was lookfog forward with great pleasure to his coining .tout' in. the United States, Australia, and New Zealand, and hoped to mate a host of new fcieiids at the Ai> tipodeSj because he. felt he .was going to hring. tl.ie.ni a breeze from the Scottish hills, and "make them, feel at hame." His Australian tour woiiM open at-Mel-bourne in April, and he hoped to re* turn to Now York, via Vancouver, Winnipeg, and Chicago hi time to be Some for Chris-Unas, Ho had r-e* ceived requests from ministers at New -York, Toronto, and Buffalo that lie should -preach in their eliuteh.es, hut he was doubtful" if he would he able to fed time' to do -so.:

Maud Allen and the Olrarnlavsky trio. As has been alr-eaqy announced, Maud Alien, the great classical dancer, will be accompanied, on her Australasian tour by the Utterniavsky trio, who made sua: a success oft their former season in Australasia. These three young artists, who., are now .grown up, and are more ■matured players than When tttoy fttst played in t.l» CoiHnjoliweaitdij are tire brilliant sous of a. former conductor of the St. Petersburg Opera, and are tho special proteges ■&( ttie Imperial Hus-■s-iau. Gov.erriuient. Leo, the eldest, who 'is;; twenty;£wo; n. genius, ■tfiidlus violin pfeyiugkas earned -from

no less an authority than A'snyo the compl'finoiiMry eomtftent that titera was ■no one li'isa h:iffl> -Jan, tho second boy, is. ; t'hft'i'iioious if-ifliiist, aud Misritel, ,the youngest is a 'feltist wiij is hegiiinirig to ait.raet wide atteirtiott. B:o is eiilyninoteeß, ■ bitt yet is already regarded as ut'ing in the trout rank. of.the- world's musicians. Mere Amateur Opera. "Paul Jones" has been selected as the nest opera for pfod.uetioii by the Wellington Aimiteur Operatic Society. Tlie'opera is by K.o.b.ert but hardly represents that -writer, at his best, though it u.itmistafci.b!y 'iliustratt.s bis gift of fillelnt mciody. 1 should say "Les Cloehos de Coraeviflo" or "lip Vim, Wiuklo" represent I'lamiu'ctto lit liis best, .and the - -kpet is ' distinctly better suited to is, assumiug ,that the operii: is to bo 'performed ou anything lifeo the scale which wo ha.vo been used to. / "Paul Jones" has always beeii -deemed to. bo a "tights" opera, and: it is aft that, score i.u 0110. respetst that the choice of the society is ■fegrottii.hli?. Of course this feature may be eliminated, but then the -cftseiuhle loses wheu measured by eompafeau xvitf'i 'pasfc performaiiees. iU-afeovor, "I'a-Ul Jones" "is luoior fa uoiistructiott ami lias not- the dramatic grip oi either of tho otto operas uieirfkiiad. Still, it is pictures* §w awl is Weil furnished wilh eoniedy parts, s ■AVcUitigteu's first acquaihtaitce with. "Pfttil Jones" catoe thwiigh Mr. Tom Palkrd,' who will probably b'B .called Upon to stago-fna.hage the opera in '\Vol-lii-rgtoh. Old p'la;y.goe.ts will ftmemher a • (airly ftood perforiHaiico by the Pollard yOTiigS'ters {'now plasters) some twenty years ago. On that -uceasioii Jiaud 13rf;itty was Paul JaufiSj May Beatt,v VvoimOj Mr. W. S. Percy, Ijoii Tfosadoro, Mr, A4f. Stephßiis ijouillabaise, aiul jlr. Charles Albert Tho lu.ssct. Later v.'o were. given a very line pprrennaiico of the > same work with Wallace Bfowniow as Pawl ,I'oiieSj NcN ho B'kH-vavt as Yvonne, • JJsrietta Nash as Chffi'iiiipttej Air. Gopr«e Lauri as Boui-liahaisOj ami Howard V?mtsn as' Dou Trociidfrp. Sufch a i-aS'f we sre not likely to see j again it' the i>ersonnrf of the apera I tcmipanics sent round Nvw Zealand iioffadaysaro the best uraeuraWe, What a iallin«-nff! There was, 100, a very 'notable production 'of "Paid Jones'' jy'vcH tn Australia with Marian .Hurio.u as Paid, Nellie Stewart as Ywmno, George LaU;i i.is Bouillabaise, and tlt'prgo. Loitnh as The Insect. All these .uiftcd folk have vanished from the operatic seciw, but the opera rtauains. The amateurs are to he eoujiratiibtfed ou their courage in selecting "Paul Jones." May they'so in and win.

A Favourite Topip, In one dfc-ssing-rasffl at The King's Theatre, Melbourne, where "The Land of Nod" is boiug played, are located (worse Wliitchead, Tom Canuaiii-, a»d liafoid Bt-ovos. Their piiiicipat amusement duriiij» the evening sftenis to ije j taunting each other as to i.ltyjr : alteg(>d , old age. Dun us a heated discussion . recantly, Arihtir ©oil, who dresses rooxt dcor to tiniin, wandered in, and, after protesting about t-ho noise tliey hkicJc in their arguments, said iwnfi k iWn.i had a«y claims to being young. Tom ' Clnimam, he Said, was a'jMJwdiii'-nionkeJ - ' b-;i Ixmi'd the Victory when Nelson was hilled,. Ksevca v;as atlvauec agent iW Captain Cook, while Ck-org'.' Wisitehead 1 war, priiiciiml selo.i-.it in tho. Pilgrim Fatbers' choir. At all events, he- said, they were «!t! enough to know better than to make so uiiieh nois-fi w-ltile ho and Tom Armstrong were engaged in a heated discission as to i\v>' respeetivo merits of Australia iinrj AiiKinVa.

"Joseph'srid i'ia Brethren."' The Biblical play, "Joseph and IJis . Brer.hr«i),". Invy hum produced «n a sj.ifc of great splendour by i.iu> 'Williaiasun roaiiagwnont. in .AfeSbcunte.

"As v'rittaii fiy Louis N, Parker (says tfc "AustraJusiiiß")» Use stiipfrmal »a'i-

rs'tivo varies in som* important .particulars, lJu> first set intffidJiei.ug ■ Jacob, ■ KaeheJ, and their sons,, .JosejMfs tioniwigof -age, and tho presentation, o'f Hie eoa*t »f litany colours tvy tho patriarch; l>!j ; i ■ the t)o*eph of the "stag©'is tioiil by.Ms'brethren to Zvtleikfl, wiio sftcnv.artls'.becomes tho wife of Potipha-r, and hero,' <jf course, there is a departure torn tho Hibhcal text. Tho story of tlio teinpta* iioii, of. Zn'leika'a visit to Joseph in : prison., the iviterjiratatieft «f the dreatus, and Joseph's acquirement, of'power, tlio : rea.ppearaHte «f iiis'brethren in ligypi, and tire exaltation of the JMtviatoh J-acsb by }«8 ieng-kist sols, a*o folteived as nearly as tho requirements -of an act* ab.l* play will permit. If thfiro is a i'a/tUt it may be that tho author lias conceded overmuch to.those who ase interl- - in tlio story because it is scrip* tural, has never rt.n. the risk of being considered over-bold either in tret'Vcrlring or .adapting tlio Bible narrativd « hero tta dramatic end ivould, pofliaps, have been bettor served i>y dating vavfa* Mott. It is rather a delicate- sKujer,t for a dramatist to handle., because he -knows, that every departure from the text will, whatever tho -gain to. art, be resented by audiences attracted largely by the title and subtest of bis play, absolutely familiar with the Scri|>tiires, equally ■iins.kJiled-.iii the rofyitrrcrae.nts of di'an'Mj and making no aliowaace for. the mart who darei bring his own rd.easj hoWwer '' valuable, into conflict with the I'ejttatoucli. As a dramatic episode the finest part of tho play is tho tein.pfatJOii, though, it has the- f auit that for a climax it ijceurs much too -caylyi Tho first act is mainly a preface, an. introduction to the characters \ m tho second is centred nil the dramatic -worth; while the, third is mainly a panorama, -a procession of people Vnd patriarchs, clironolo.gically correct in costume, speaking the- sonorous and diatifi.ed lauguag© .of Holy Writ, As living pictures ©f a laijd wliichs lacking much in itself, has yet influenced a world the am.pjitu.de of which not oven a Joseph amongst, their soothsayers foresaw in Visioii, it is very infe-restim*. indeed." The outstanding characterisation was the Zulcvk (Fotiphar's wju) of .-Jliss Ethel Warwick.' MK Malcolm Teario is Joseph, »nd iff. Hodgson Taylor makes Bit impressive Jaeoh.