THE THEATRE.

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2641, 11 December 1915, Page 9

THE THEATRE.

■ — The World's a theatre; the Earth' a stage.—Heywood. TBi SrMiwi.l Cast of ','Mother Coose." It is the privilege of a theatrical management to change their mind, like anybody else, but up to the present the cast of the J. C. Williamson ''Mother Goose" pantomime will include the following, making up an exceedingly strong and attractive organisation : — Mother Goose (dame), Harry Farrow; the Mayor of Moortown, Arthur Reynolds ; the Golden Goose, Albert Felino; the Donkeys, afterwards the horse, Billy Lo Brun, assisted by George Smith; Jack, Victor Kelly; Jill (principal girl), Maude Fane; Lady Ida, Dorothy Firmin; Eric (second boy), Queenie Paul; Gretchen, Maggie Dickinson; Malignan (demon), Charles Howard: Heartsease (fairy), Gladys Moncriefr; Colin (principal boy), Lilian De Vemiey- The pantomime will be produced by .Charles A. Wenman, and Victor Champion, who is composing the musio, will be musical director. Minnie Everett is again inventing and arranging tho ballets, marches, and groupings. Why jaok Cannot. Jack Cannot, the bright and breezy oomedian of the Tivoli Follies, is perhaps the most popular man in his line on the Australian stage to-day. He has (says the Sydney "Sunday Times") been in this country many years now, the majority of the time having been spont in musical comedy. Mr. Cannot possesses a natural and ready wit, which has stood him in good stead on many occasions. He has confessed that he never really knows what he is goiug to say when he walkß on to the stage. Of course he has his set lines and stock of gags, but, some happening in the audience repeatedly gives him the op-, portunity of turning it into a laugh-. One of his biggest Australian successes is the song which he has in the new edition of the Follies. It is entitled, "Are You Mr. Riley,'' and its catchy swing novcr fails to induce the audience to join in at bis suggestion. ' .. Increasing yalue of the Sohllllng. ' 'An amiable • correspondent • writes asking me to say who is . the most beautiful woman on the London stage today?" says- the editor of the "Pelican,'' in tho issue received by the .latest English mail. "The question is, of course, a most difficult one to answer, for wo are each of us possessed of our own ideas of what constitutes beauty; but, as I am asked, I should say. that Miss Ivy Schilling, of the Empire Theatre, is certainly in face and figure one of .the most beautiful women seen in , London on the stage for a good many years past-.' I have never.seen the lady, off,' hut 'on' sho is certainly very good to look at." ■A 3000-Mile Voice. Thomas A. Edison, the great inventor, • paid -Aiuia Case, the. noted soprano of the Metropolitan Opera Company, a, rare tribute on October 20, when he tallced on tlio telephone from California to Now Jersey $000 and asked to hear tho gifted artist sing.. It was "Edison Day" at the Panama Exposition, and Mr. Edison,; in San Francisco, was given, from his laboratories in West Orange, N.J., a demonstration of bis _ inventions, sucih as 1 carbon telephonic diaphragm, the telescribe, and others. : At his laboratory in West Orange, 165 well-known persons had gathered to take part in the surprise Mr. Edison experienced. By moans of a talking, machine; record, a speech already prepared was sent across the continent to the' inventor. -.After he'; had. replied aiid had talked with members of his family and the friends gathered there,, Mr. Edison.said: : "I should now like to hear a musical' record. If you have one handy, I wish you would play that Anna Case record from 'Louise.' " Tlie selection from "Louise" could not be found, but Anna Case's "Charm'ant Oiseau" from "The Pearl of Brazil" was played instead. Mr. Edison expressed great pleasure at the end. '■'That's .fine," he said. He was asked to play the reoord back from San. Francisco, and a machine at that end was started, . and- the West' Orange -audience heard the reoord repeated. While the music records were being played the telescribe was in operation, and later each person present received a cylinder on which the ivords sent back by Mr. Edison and sent to him were also recorded. Season of Revivals, Revivals have been the order of theuay in Australia,- but none of the plays lifted off Time's dusty shelf : seem to have hit the public fancy. ' In Adelaide a company 'under the' control of Mr. Hugh D. M'lritosh has been reviving such sterling plays as "The' Third Degree," "Raffles, and "The Hypocrites" with indifferent success. In Adelaide, "Trilby" has been revived, with Rutland Beckett as Svengali and Nellie Fergusou (at one time Baby Og™j, Trilby, and in Melbourne the Williamson management have been performing some old-timo operas, including "Paul Jones," which is said to have proved not : such a succoss as it might have been through a miscast. Little Phil Smith appeared as the great, lazy hulk Bouillabaise, and Charlie Albert Pot-it Pierre (fancy' a Petit Pierre head and shoulders taller than Bouillabaise 1) Leslie Holland was Don Trocadero; Miss Cadman was Yvonne, and Miss Florence Young sang the musio of Paul Jones gloriously. Now Julius Knight is to appear in a revival of The Three Musketeers" in Melbourne. Notes. |. The American drama, "Kick In," now being played in Sydney, is being staged m London under the. title of "Shell Out." It appears to be incumbent -on English managers to alter the titles of successful American play 6, and vice versa. Why? ' "The Three Musketeers" is -heirig revived at- the Princess Theatre, Melbourne, to-night with Mr. Julius Knight as D'Artagnan, and Miss Dorothy Gumming as Miladi. The drama is- being revived by Modern Amusements, Ltd., a company controlled by Mr. Hugli D. M'lntosh. Mr. Sam Howard, who was so bright and cheery a personality as Pasinsky in "Potash and Perlrmitter," was acting in pictures for some time for the Vitagraph Company before he oame to Australia'. Headlines in the New York daily papers say, _ "Caruso wants to lose his voice, calls it an 'unbearablo burden.'" We know of many, young men who would be glad to bear that .burden for a whilo if Caruso would kindly arrange to slnft it over.