GOSSIP BY "PROMPTER."

Evening Star, Issue 3311, 30 September 1873, Page 2

GOSSIP BY "PROMPTER."

My news from the Provinces is hardly worth retailing; and that from by the Albion is unusually meagre. At Christchurch Miss Stephenson’s company is played out; and in a few days leave for Dunedin, doing Timaru and the inland towns en route. The Carandinis remain at Wellington till the session is over; and at Auckland Mr Fairclough is ‘ ‘starring” it. The papers there go into ecstacies over his various assumptions. I copld recognise the merits of his Richelieu and Hamlet, but for the life of me was unable to see any? thing in his lago or Othello to justify me designating it either as “grand or unmatchable,” like the Auckland papers do. At Melbourne Mrs Bates’s engagement is drawing to a close, and she gives place to the latest importations by the Royal management—Mr and Mrs Dampier. The Royal, the Opera, and the Emersons are the ordy amusements in Melbourne just now. The Minstrels are doing excellently, notwithstanding that the Argus wrote them down persistently, till finding that that game would not answer, now recommends them to the public for support. The Italian Opera Company performed “ Mostl in Egitto” in the Town Hall before proceeding to Sydney. The hall was crowded, the company including a large percentage whose scruples prevented them witnessing the representation of the opera at the Opera House. The Italians are at present in Sydney; and I am glad to learn from there of the complete recovery of Signora Coy, who has suflered much of late from sciatica.

Madame Goddard is now delighting the people of Adelaide. She does not appear to have left very favorable impressions in Victoria. She arranged to visit Sandhurst, where every preparation was made to receive her, and at the last moment declined to go. So at Geelong she left very hurriedly, the shortness of her stay being due to a curious incident. The first concert was given before one of the largest and most fashionable attendances that has been seen in Geelong for eighteen years, and musically as well as financially it was a complete success. But one of the papers damned the whole company with- faint praise, Madame excepted. Mr Smythe (whom Dunedinites will remember from his connection with Holler), her agent, thought this rather good of the paper, to be even with which he adopted a novel system of warfare. He selected the passages from the Geelong Advertiser's critique on the first performance of the company which told most against the singers, alid,' without either introduction or explanation, placed them in a conspicuous pfart of the programme of the'second concert, thuk;— OPINIONS or THE PRESS. "The defeat of pjodulatiofi' Mrs Smythe must overcome before she oim become an effective vocalist,”— Geelong Advertiser, 28th August, 1873. “ Mrs Cutter was not in her best mood, and perhaps that may account for her feeble rendering of the Wanderer.”—Hid. “ Signor Susini should take example from the beautiful pianoforte player who is now with us, and moderate the tone of his voice. ” -Ibid.

The public were at first surprised, and hardly knew Ivhat to make’of tho' “ opinions of the Press,” but the general opinion when the surprise had subsided was ’ that the company printed' the extracts in' satire and defiance of tie critic, but whatever they thought they went ip crgwijn to the second concert, and filled the Hall at the highest prices ever obtained at the Meohauios’ Institute for admission to a concert. What happened is thus told in the Aye : -Things went on very well for a tune, Mrs Cutter sang splendidly; Susini the same; Mrs Smythe trilled her song charmingly, and Madame rc eeived a marked ovation on appearing. With a grand duo between Mrs Smythe and Susini the first part concluded ; and immediately afterwards it became apparent there was something wrong behind the scenes. Mr Wheatland (the secretary) entered the dress-circle, and after a few hurried words with Dr Day, the latter proceeded to the ‘-green-room,” where he found Madame Goddard in a great state of nervous excitement’, and decidedly ill, Buffering from

fainting and hysteria to such an extent as to preclude the possibility of her re-»pp«armg_ on the stage that evening. Dr Day'BMn after came before the curtain, and begged the indulgence of the audience under the circumstances. No marks of disapprobation greeted the doctor’s announcement, the andience evidently sympathising with Madame Goddard. There are a thousand versions of the contretemps, the true one being that Mrs Cutter and did not feel much flattered by “ the opinions of the Press.” They said they were no doubt immensely funny and highly satrical; but they failed to see the point of their being published in their own programme, and without their authority ; in short, they “ wanted to know you know” how the offensive matter came into the programme at all. Madame Goddard stated she knew nothing of the matter, and it was too late to mend it under any circumstances. Her agent, who had acted on his own responsibility, had left the town, and there was an end of it.

“Call Boy,” in the Amtralasian, writes : A letter received by last mail from Salt Lake City, Utah, under date May 31, 1873, has the following : —“ The New York and New Orleans Zoological and Equestrian Exposition, under the management and proprietorship of Mr W. W. Cole, have just closed a short season of four days. It was the first large show ever here, and the only menagerie that had been exhibited in Salt Lake City. The 4 Expositions’s’ 4 biz’ at Denver, where a menagerie was also seen for the first time, was immense, it being reported that the receipts from five shows amounted to over 12,000d01. They are on their way to California, with the largest menagerie that ever visited that State. The concern has sixteen large cages, and includes amongst the animals four lions, one lioness and litter of cubs, Bengal tigers, jaguars, elephants, a South African hippopotamus, llamas, camels, gazelles, chimpanzees, zebras, vultures, porcupines, peacocks, Sec., in all over 200 specimens. The equestrian company includes Mr Harry Welby Cooke, Miss Kate Cooke, and Madame De Berg. Mr William Worrell is the principal clown, and a complete company of male and female trapezists, gymnasts, tumblers, leapers, and trick horses. The men employed in the show number 140, the horses 160, and the waggons 20. It is stated that they pay the Union Pacific Railway Company some 10,000dols for transportation to San Francisco, and they will use twenty-five cars. They will take in all California, thence to Oregon, returning to San Francisco, and from thence in October to Australia, and exhibit in the large towns during the winter of 1873-4, returning to San Francisco for the tenting season of 1874.”