Vivian's Dramatic Company.

Manawatu Herald, Volume III, Issue III, 3 June 1890, Page 2

Vivian's Dramatic Company.

In another column it will be seen that the above company are. advertised to play here on Thursd ty, Friday and Saturday next. An Auckland paper thus describes a performance of this company in that city : — There was a crowded house to criticise the opening p rformance of the Vivian Company, and if enthusiastic applause and hearty aud eontinuouslaughterbe a safe criterion j the ordeal wan passed through trr nrnph intly. Only one result was possible with regard to the audience the utmost satisfaction ; and without doubt, a sea of pleased faces had a similar effect upon the performers. " Lady Audley's Secret " was one of the earliest productions of that most pro'ific of sensational novelists, Miss Braddoa, otherwise Mrs Maxwell* in its dramitised form it had a long run as one of the most popular dramas of the day, Lady Audiey is the the wife of George Talboys, but ambitious, she desires to marry an elderly love-striken Baronet, Sir Mi-hael Audlej' who has no suspicion that she is bound iv matrimonial bonds In an interview with her husband she enticee him to a ; wel', and taking him by surprise ! pushes him into it. She congratu \ lates herself upon the deed being un known, but Luke Marks, an old servant of 'he family, had witnessed the tragedy unobserved. She marries the tarouet, whom she cajo es and turns at hor pleasure. Her step* daughter, however, Alice Audiey. observes that she is not at her eitse, and seems to have a suspicion that h«r beautiful, but fiendish a'ep mother is playing a part. Luke Marks now ta ked to her with coir teraptous freedom for he knew her secret and had come to levy back mail for keeping it. That haughty lady promised to bring him £100 that evening. Hut there was no rest for . he wicked, and scar ely had Luke gone when another accuser, Robert Audiey the baronets nephew, appeared, and charged her with being the wife of his friend George Talboys. He insisted on her leaving the rnaoor, but she persuaded the baronet that Robert Au<Hey entertained a guilty passion for her, and that misguided old gentleman at once banised his nephew without a-iy explanation. Going to Luke's house he be^au to auß'OCt that he had Lady Audiey in his power. Lady Audiey came, as Luku fell a? leep, ?nd Robert had re. tired t • bed ; she sent Luke's wiie on a fictitious errand and set fire to the house, hoping l>y one grand coup to destroy all proof of her <^uilt. But Rob-M-t had not gone to bed and h>carried Liike out. Tho play concludes with a grand climax in which Lady A'ldley becomes mad, after being confronted by George Talboys, who had been rescued by Luke from the we'l. All the characters were pxcl'ently pourravt-d, Miss Helen Vivian personated the varying phases of Ladj r Andley's changeful moods wi'li'marvtfllnuh skill and dra* maticnbiiity while Mr Arthur Vivian kept the audience amused by the nat«niilno!-s of las Luke Marks. Mr Voss in Robert Audiey performed the part with •.•.iltuirable skill and Miss Hazlewood pei'sonatfd Alicia with great credit. Mrs Voss who looked very nearly n« Luke's wife, did very well indeed, considevincr she is quite a novice to the stoge. The excellent comedy of Sara, in which man of the loibles of the day were hit off, kept, the audionca in a continuous roar of laughter.