THE THEATRE

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2848, 12 August 1916, Page 6

THE THEATRE

(By "Sylvius.")

"San Toy." On Saturday next the Wellington 'Ama» tour Operatic Society, which lias given, some admirable performances in the past, is to produce Sydney Crrundy's melodious musioal cOmedj - , "San Toy," a pretty and :laughablo sample of its genre that met ■with huge success some twenty years ago, and. which has been revived ovor and in England and the colonies. Whoa it was last produced in Wellington, professionally, the cast included Freddy Graham, Miss Roso Musgrovo, and other clovotfolk., For the coming porformaiico at the Grand Opera House th© society has been successful in getting together what 011 paper looks to be a very strong cast. Onco more they have- been fortunate in securing the services of Miss Helen Gard'ner, of Dnnedin, who will figure as San Toy, and once more we are to 6ee our own picturesque baritone, Mr. V. It. Meredith, this timo as Bobby Preston. His gay old dad, Sir Bingo Preston, will bo played by that experienced mummer, and Mr. W. Crawford will figuro humorously as the Emperor of China. The bulk of the low comedy will fall upon that ■ volatile pomedian, Mr. A. W. Newton as Li, and Mr. Herbert Woods will be heard for the first time in ■opera in the tenor role. Responsible parts will also bo played by .Miss Isobel Wilford, Miss Marie Fix, Miss Auuio Sullivan, Mies Saunders, whilst the Emperor will, be attended by six of tho duckiest littlo wives. Mr. Tom Pollard is directing and Mr. B. Pago will wield the baton. Submarine Pictures. The Williamson Bros.'.Submarine Motion' Pictures are recognised as a_triumph of cinematography. These are the first pictures to be takon under the sea, and they revoal all tho mysteries of the hitherto unknown world whioli lies beneath the ;mighty ocean. Bymeans of a specially-consn-ucted travelling submarine photograph chamber, an : under-water journey of ono hundred miles is depicted on the screen; submarine forests are visited, tho curious inhabitants 'of tho deep aro shown among the -coral caverns, and vrocks which up to the present have, been denied the sight of mankind. Extraordinary scenes are unfolded by means of the submarine camera, including weird under sea vegetables growths, natives diving for and picking up coins from tho bottom of the sea, myriads of fish, harmless and dangerous, and an exciting combat between a man. -and a shark, resulting in. the death of tho latter. Strindberg. Madam Strindberg, widow of August Strindberg* the famous dramatist, was m America in April last. Her mission was to endeavour to tqiuovo tlio impression that her late husband was a semi-insane pessimist and woman-hater, and to that she intended to lecture, and produce his plays. She rebuts the idea that lie was either a pessimist or a woman-hater, and states that her ninrried life-was quite a happy one, though her husband was generally immersed* in his work. His first wife, however, was a suffragette, and he loathed the mannish woman with all his soul." In the course of an interview given -to a New -York paper, Madam Strindberg said:— : "Toward' the end of his life his reason was impaired. But who can wonder at that? He worked for thirteen hours every day. He suffered many privations, much soul sickness. But recognition of his great work was coming to him at last. He became the greatest Scandinavian. Ibsen was a man of detail. He remained the infinite analyst. They called liim 'The Chemist,' for he had been a chemist bofore 110 began writing. But when Brandes called upon him shortly before lie died and paid him compliments, Ibsen shook his head. He waved his hand toward a picture of my husband that was always on his table. 'There,' said he,. 'is a man who is greater tbau T." A Whirlwind Magician. ■ Horace Goldin, the renowned magician, who commences a season in Wellington on August 30, is an American, who was born in Russia, where he spent tho first fifteen years of his life. Having a penchant for sleight-of-hand ' tricks as a youth", lie used to ontertain his friends by deceiving them, and so successful was tie in this adventure into tho quondam mystortaus that he pursued his studies by purchasing tricks wherever ho could, but always found the bought goods in"erior to those ho himself could make. At the present .time he employs more staff, an" carries more gear than any Stiier illusionist living. He works with lightning speed, without any talk, and performs from 900 to 100 tricks in fifty minutes, and in that respect no other performer has been able to imitate him. Goldin is versatilo, too. One of his bte acts is quite a drama. It is entitled "The Tiger God," and in it the leading parts are played by himself and a fullgrown tiger. In this drama his quick changes, jugglery, shadowgraphy, and impersonations, are simply bewildering. Godlin speaks 110 fewer than five languages, and is in his tastes and inclinations as gifted as he is clever at the art of deceiving the quickest eye and keenest comprehension. Hall Caine, Dramatist. Hall Caine, who has not in recent years reproduced the form he showed in his very interesting early stories of Manx life, is trying all sorts of ventures away from his metier. Early in the present year a -play from his pen entitled "Margaret Schiller," was produced in New York, but critics generally concluded that he was a better novelist than a dramatist. It was remarkable, too, that "his play should revolve round the affairs of a German family resident in London— a family which lias been deprived of its means of livelihood, yet were forbidden to leave the country. It also relates that Margaret Schiller's father has died in prison through applied cruelty (something quite un-Lritisli). Mar»aTot plans to revenge her father's death, and becomes a governess in tho Prime Minister's household, but, falling in love with him. foregoes her revenge. Her brother is "then deputed to do the deed, but shoots his own sister instead of tho Prime Minister, in whose arms, the German girl dies. The play did not succeed 111 convincing the critics, nor in magnetising the public. Unfortunate. The altered Saturday time-table for the Wellmgton-Lyttelton ferry steamers is going to make matters a little awkward for theatrical managements. Saturday is tho best show nigiit in the week in almost every town and city, and particularly is it" the case in Wellington. Therefore 'every manager booking dates enduavours to get in as many Saturdays in the centres as possible. Jn the past they have been able to make Saturday the last night of the season, and leave after tho performance for Lyttelton, arriving in Christcliurch on the Sunday, and opening there on the Monday; but now that there is 110 late boat from here on a. Saturday night, and none at all on a Sunday, companies working southward will probably still play the Saturday night in Wellington, and leave on the Monday evening. This will mean the loss of a night's performance to the management, and a uight's salary to the players (who are, as a rule, paid on the no-play-no-pay system in Australasia)so it is unfortunate all round. In the caso of companies working northward, tho situation s is just as bad, as playing Christcliurch on the Saturday night will moan cutting out Wellington 011 the Monday, unless a steamer other than those of the Union S.S. Co.'s fleet, can bs -picked up that is leaving Lyttelton late on Saturday night on Sunday. A Griffiths Triumph. That amazing historical panorama, "Tho Birth of a Nation," which is io be shown at tho Town Hall at ilio end of the month, mado its producer, Mr. D. W. Griffiths, world famous. Mr. Griffiths, besides being enamoured of his subject ■ for art's 6ake, is a Southerner and had argued that the case for the Southern States of America against the Northern was seldom fairly put before tho world. So, in this great picture is given an indication of the trials the Southerners had to put up with, the outrages of the negroes, which had to be dealt with by a great secret army, called the Ku Klux Klan (whose doings have formed the subject of many a storv and play). Then there are the great battles between the North and South, through

which is woven a very charming love story, with Lillian Gish as the heroino. Tko soason commences on AuguM; 29. Creating Atmosphere. The competition 111 pictures in Sydney is now at whits heat. During the past year soveral new and important agencies for films liavo been established in Australia, aiicl there is great jni6hing for business. The dame state of affaire exists in tho theatre line, owing the number of new theatres that have come into existence, and the recent invasion into picturedom of J. C. Williamson, Ltd. (working in with Waddington's). After a short dramatic seasou by the Julius Knight Company, the Theatre Boyal, Sydney, lias again been given over to pictures, and there the management (Williamson) is going a little farther than pther pcoplo in creating an atmosphere in the auditorium in harmony with the pictures on view. Ono of the latest programmes included two big star features with a Japanese flavour. A correspondent writes to me: "Went to tho Royal yesterday, best picture show I have ever soon, "i'lio Cheat,' featuring a Japanese actor who is 6imply great, is fine. This Jap actor is the best I have seen on the screen. Thero is. talk of tho picture be-' ing censored as it shows the Jap in a bad light. The second part was. 'Madame Butterfly,' with Mary Pickford as Clio Cho San. You'd swear that the picture was done in Japan. A great production. Big orchestra, under SlapofFski, playing Puccini' 3 music. Madame Slapoffski singing 'One Fine Day'; all girl ushers in kimonos; theatre hung with wistaria and lanterns. Absolute atmosphere attained." Town Hall Charges, It is time the Wellington City Council reviewed its rent tariff for the Town Hall. Mr. Roland Stanely. who is interested in the picturo business, informs we that the charge for the Sydney Town Hall (seating 4000) is now .£ls per night, less 10 per cent, for a season of three Highly or more, and .£lB for Saturday evenings, whilst in Wellington the ordinary charge to professionals is JJIB poi; aiight (less 10 per cent, for a season), and .£2O for Saturdays. As our Town Hall only seats about 2600 people, and showmen have only a 70,000 population to work on, compared with Sydney's 800,000, an anomaly which keeps our own Town Hall.vacant for half the year,, appears to exist. Mr. Staveley clinches his argument by mentioning that the best hall in Melbourne—Tait's Auditorium, which seats about 1800 people—can be rented for £Vi 10s. a night. But then Taits are bnsiness people, and not a City Corporation. It is seldom, very seldom, that a drnr matic critic is honoured by tho peoplo whoso work he had spent, his life in criticising—honestly and straightforwardly— yet such an honour was recently accorded Mr. Wm. Winter-, tho doyen, of American criticsA The testimonial was not only signed by leading actors and actresses,, ,but by eminent statesmen, musicians, poets, and dramatists.