MUSIC and DRAMA

Grey River Argus, 26 February 1927, Page 3 (Supplement)

MUSIC and DRAMA

(Bp

"Old Pro.”)

. COMING ATTRACTIONS. H OVERA HOUSE. . i>l (' .•> nintj.uin. English t'oniedj <’ov.. to night. Humph rev Bishop Com pan v, Apru iMh. Ihe I nfair Sex.” a modern farce comedy, will be presented by tin Joseph Cunningham English Comedy Company at the Opera House this even nig. As this clever combination has been gloriously welcomed in all the cities of the Dominion it is needless to >ay that the Company will be greeted with bumper houses in Grey mouth. -Miss Zillah Bateman, the leading lady, is acclaimed by the press throughout the world as one of the finest actresses <»t the English stage. This talented lady is brilliantly supported by Miss Henrietta Cavendish, Mi Campbell Copidin, Mr Frank Bradley, Miss Sylvia Clifton, Mr Reginald Newson, Mr Charles .McCallum, Mi •> V< in John, Mr Norman ( alter, .Miss Beryl Barra clough, Mr Jack Phillips and others. “White Cargo’’ has finished its third season in Sydney, ami the company is J eturning to America. The Frank Neil Comedy Company, after a highly successful season in Melb'burm , will open at Sydney on March 2 in “The Nervous Wreck.’’ Mdlle. de Vriso, a Continental artist, will play the title role in “Madam* Pompadour “ when it is produced in Australia shortly by J. C. William-on. The only existing copy < f the! * Stabat of Alessandro Scarlatti has been discovered at Siena by Count Chigi. It is said that Judith And-r-on, th'* Australian girl who returned to Sydney, to star in her New York success. | “Cobra,” may’ be seen in Michael Ar I lun’s “The Green Hat” shortly. Miss Maseotte Ralst in (daughter of Mr John Rai ton) ittxl Mr Mayne Lyn i fen, both Well known in New Zealand, are in the cart of the new mystery plav. •‘The Ghost ’train." ill Mel bourne. Harry Green opened a London sea son with ‘‘Give and Take,” which ho flayed in New Zealand Inst year, on j\- ir»rv 25. Edward de Tistie is an ondon production, playing the par Ik took here. Mis\\\ vane Kiehmond, an English girl, tdlr plav the had in “Sunny.” tin music I) ■omedy with which the new Empire Ttieatre in Sydney wi’l bo opened this month. The Midnight Frolics, headed by Erie E.lgelv and Clem Dawe, are still | drawing crowded houses at Fuller’s Theatre at Wellington. They have been in the Empire City since Boxing Day. The To Kuiti Operatic Society gave two performances of “The Mikado last week. The comedy company headed by Miss Renee Kelly, playing “The Last of Mrs Cheyncy” in Melbourne, has. been so successful .in Australia that i- will not come to Now Zealand nnti’i June. It has I playing for L'. months in Australia. Change the Bill! Actor: “Can you lend me tuppence.’ guvnor ” . ! Manager: ‘What do you want it Actor: “A shave. I can’t play Ham lei tonight with a beard.” Manager: “I’m as liar lup ns you, are. “ We'll play King Lear instead.’ i * Bernard Shaw and Tunney. Gene Tanney, the heavy v.< .gt , boxing cha:‘ipioi> °t the .voihl, a* ..ounces his refusal Io ’ star” in th-, proposed him version of Mr Georg.'. Bernard Shaw’s novel, “Cashel By , ron's Profession. ” : An American producer has recently cabled an offer of £15,090 for th. | cinema lights of the novel, coupled ■with the statement that the champion had been east for the chief character. Mr Shaw is reported to have replied with a demand for £20,000, and the suggestion that the part of the villain should be assigned to Jack Dempsey, whom Tunney recently defeatel. Tunney declares that after caret'ill,'| reading the work he considers it silly,, adding: “When Mr Shaw conceived the idea of writing a novel around a boxer' he had a splendid opportunity, but he missed it. He understands neither, the temperament nor the psychology ol a profe-sional boxer, with the result | that Byron is made to appear a: uo| more than a blundering vulgarian. Iha.i the girl in the book, reared in an at ■mosphere of culture and refinement,, should fall in love with n man whose only appeal is his magnificent, body i: absurd. ” Tunney paid a tVilmte to Mr Shaw's mentality, but declared that the novel must be regarded as the proLinet of his immature years. When Mr Shaw was ’old of Gene Tnunev’s refusal to appear in a film version of “Cashel Byron’s Profession,” he said: “Tunney ought to know more about it than I do. If he thinks ho can rewrite the book and improve it he had better do so. Tunney 'is quite right in describing the work as immature, but I am not quite sure if he knows what the boxers in the nineteenth century were like. Cashel Byron would be glad to get one guinea w.'.r a tight, while Tunney might want k >.OOO dollars for it. If the book 1,- to be modernised for the film, would upset its character a good Al. It would be rather amusing. Gilugh. to bring it up to date, and to „Jke the fight in it that between H.mpsey and Tunney. I Eave not go time to do it now. but. I might do it gome time.”

• Mr Harold Whittle, the well-known pianist, returned to Wellington this week from a holiday in Sydney. * * * So successful was Miss BhylluLett’s season in Wellington that an I extra concert was arranged for toI night. * * * I During the voyage of the Na Id-ora to | Australia Dame Nellie Melba organised ju concert which raised £2OO lor tin . seamen’s charities. * * * During his visit to Australia and s New Zealand Afrem Zimbalist, th* ’ Russian violinist, will be i<-c»mp!iiiH >i ,by his wife, Alma Gluck, the Roii- , manian soprano. Madame, however, will not, appear publicly 'luring tintour. , Miss Lorna Helms, who arrived in London from Australia recently, will ‘understudy Miss Dorothy Heacombe in Harry Green’s production “Give and Take.” says the “Daily Sketch.” Anton Dolin—an Irishman, by 11nway, who adopted a foreign name when he joined the Russian Ballot — was recently stricken by blindness as a result of being filmed under powerful lights. Fortunately the blindness so produced is not permanent, and a lew days’ rest in a darkened room restores to the retina its former sensitiveness and to the patient his sight. * * * Mr Campbell Copelin, juvenile lead • of the English Comedy Company, was 'admitted to a private hospital at Naj :er I this week suffering from pleurisy. It iis reported that he is making good progress towards recovery. Mr Joseph ; < ’iiniHiiglmiii, manager of the company, i stepped into the breach caused bv the I sudden illness of Mr Copelin. | Guv Bates Post is staying on In South Africa for an extra three months, and placing “Leah Klcsehria,’’ with ’ Dorothy Brunton as Leah, to fill in the time. This plav was produced here I with Tittell Brune as Leah. Miiritd Starr and Harvey Adams I’avt* arrived ’hack in Sydney. At present their future movements are indefin I it.’. but if a Iheitre can be engaged here lhev may produce John Galsworthy’s comedy, “Windows.” Has the Romance Ended? An American paper says that, the romance between Bebe Daniels and Charles Paddock, champion runner, has ended. The same reports state that Miss Daniels is again seen with .T.:ch Pickford. ♦ * * “Rose Marie” Finishing in Sydney. The recofd-byeaking run of “Rose Marie” at Sydney will terminate on I’eliruary 2Rth with its 320th performIt will then go to Melbourne. * * * Annette Kellerman, the Australian swimmer, has been appearing in London. She will shortly sail for Europe, end after a season in Germany will go to France, where she will play a five months’ engagement in the French

It is cheering to hear a good luck story of a British dramatist unknown 'to fame a year or so ago. He is Arnold Ridley, of Bath, who has been, during his thiity years, school teacher, ! private in the war, a<-tot with tin , Birmingham Repertory Company, and i finally manager of a boot business. I There he wrote the thrilling “Ghost '’Plain, ” which has been running for a year in London, stopping at five <uf i ferent theatres in its journey, and >s going along at express sped through Germany, Holland, Italy, and Scandinavia. Ridley confesses that his royalties from the play have comfortably provided for the rest of his life. “The Ghost Train” recently opened at Melbourne. * * * Because she says she wants “!u.c life” and prefers a career as a business woman to the stage, Dorothy Hathaway, 19-year-old girl, turned down an engagement as a principal in one of the Shubert’s Broadway musical shows at a liberal salary, and took instead a £2 a week job in the shipping room of Vtore at Minneapolis. She bus appeared recently as a soloist dancer with the Howards.in “Sky High ’ and in the “Greenwich Village Follies,’ and was believed to have a promising theatrical future. In her new picture, “ Why Girls Go Back Home,’’ due for early release, Patsy Ruth Miller plays the part of a dancing girl of the most up-toldate vintage.

No Money in Racehorses. Fred Astire, the American dancer and musical comedy star in London, has arrived at the decision that there is no profit in horse-racing, after a long series of experimentation in an effort to back winners, reinforced by information which purports to come direct from the horses’ mouths. Freddie has found the only money in racing is his money. The horse he purchased a few months ago has gone lame, and is spending its time in the stable eating its head off.

A Melba Story.., Dame Nellie Melba’s return !g Australia recalls a story of her appearance in an oratorio in a cathedral at Melbourne. In order to keep the crowd within reasonable limits, it was decided to make a charge for admission to the cathedral. This greatly incensed a regular lady worshipper, who protested to one of the . clergy. “I should not expect to be charged admission io the Kingdom of Heaven!” vns her parting shot. “Possibly not, my dear madam,” was the soothing reply of the cleric, “but you would scarcely expect to hear Melba there, would you?”

String of Theatres in N.Z. Some weeks ago the ,1. Williamson Company purchased a section of land at Kilbirnie, Wellington. Plans have now been drawn for a substantial thctiwe to lie built on the site. One of the Williamson directorate, Mr J. N. Tait, has arrived in New Zealand to extend the firm’s operations. In conjunction with Sir Joseph Ward the firili is contemplating the building of a theatre for Invercargill, which is to cost somewhere about £40,000.’ This will be on de luxe lines and will have a seating capacity of 1600 people. In addition to the Invercargill' venture, there is a possibility of a chain of theatres, on the lines of the Regent in Wellington, the chain to include Wanganui and Nelson. It is almost certain that Christchurch and Dunedin will have their Regents, under the control of the Williamson Company, in the near future. Dame Melba in Australia. When Dame Melba arrived at Adelaide by the Naldera she was walking with a slight limp, having hurt a toe. Dame Melba will give the first concert of her farewell tour at Melbourne on March 2. She says she will rcHirn to England in January. Mamie Watson, here with “The A’Brien Gi(rl” and Mona Magnet, who came out /in “The Peep Show,” arc playing ivi “Yvonne” in the Fnglis ■

Wardc Morgan in New Zealand. Among the passengers who arrive in Wellington from Sydney by tli Llimaroa last week was Mr , Ware Morgan, the English actor, who wi severely injured in the railway acc dent in Australia in June last. Th happened when the “Katja” Compan was travelling to Brisbane from Sy< ney. Mr Morgan was so badly ii jured that for some weeks his life wl despaired of, but. thanks to a fine coi stit’ition, he was able to put up a grer fight, and has made a phenomenal n covery. New Zealand should con

plnte the cure. Mr Morgan was imported specially to play the Prince in ‘‘Katja,” ami may be fit enough in a few weeks to r" sume his engagement with J. C. Williamson, Lt.il. Grand Opera for New Zealand. In Wellington Mr Charles Wenman, producer to J. C. Williamson, referred to a new grand opera organisation that will play seasons in Australia and New Zealand. Mr Wenman said that Messrs Nevin and Frank Tait were in Italy at present on business in connection with the formation of that company, but whether it would bi

arranged for this year was still problematical; but if not this year there was sure to be a company for next year. The success of the last grand opera company had proved that the publie was prepared to pay if they were given really high-class performances. The present intention, too, was that the company would come to New Zealand at the conclusion ol’ its season in Australia. Normafi Allin in Lighter Vein. Popular Norman Allin serves up much lighter fare than is his wont in a new Columbia disc (D 1541 whieii •couples “Off to Philadelphia,” with “A West Country Courting.” His powerful yet wonderfully well restrained bass is well shown off by this type of song, and the new recording gives a fine realism to his sonorous tone quality. William Heseltine is the original singer of the lovely “Immortal Hour .” and in a new Columbia disc gives as two of its most beautiful nump e r R —‘‘The Song of Creation” and “The Luring Song” (3976). His tenor voice is nicely suited to delicate music of this sort and is splendidly reproduced by this Company’s new rocording process. * * * “Abie’s Irish Rose” is at present in Newcastle. Later it will open in Adelaide, and then some of the small towns of Victoria. The New Zealand season will not start until 29th March in Auckland.