DRAMATIC AND MUSICAL.

Free Lance, Volume IV, Issue 165, 29 August 1903, Page 7

DRAMATIC AND MUSICAL.

By Footlight.

DIX'S Gaiety Company, at the Theatre Royal, departed from their usual fun routine on Saturday night by the introduction of a gay and festive musical novelty, "The Brook." The scene, which is eminently picturesque and natural looking, represents a spot whereon are gathered a holidaymaking theatrical crowd of picnickers. \ll Mr. Dixs best-known artistes appear in the caste, and, while there is a pleasing little plot redolent of humour, the chief interest centres in the charming items of songs and dances with which it is liberally interspersed. * * * That sweet and dainty singer, Miss Emmie Smith, was at her best as "principal girl " and it is not necessary to remark that the winsome Ida Roslyn filled with credit her apportioned place m song and dance, and gayly-spoken lines The ballet, picturesquely dressed and beautifully danced, was one of the most charming features ot "The Brook," which also provided pood work for the popular favourites, Miss Beattie and Ida Gallexdi, who are once more with their old company. * * * George Dean, who is a tower of strength in this kind of entertainment, was, of course perfectly at home as the manager of the gay troupe of holidaymakers, and Mr. Ernest Hill, as a jolly naval officer brought that fine voice to bear on good material. The humours of the piece had good men to handle them, for Jack Kearns is once more on the Gaiety bill, and Jas. Marion hasn t left yet. Also, that r-uaint comedian, Alf Sherwin, as musical director is "out of sight." Mr. Geo. Tarr shows flashes of native talent. * * * The second part is built on the popular Dix plan. The tuneful voice of Miss Nellie Yohe is once more uplifted in song. "The Song I Love Best is an artistic triumph. Her charming appearance and winning style is "Just What's Wanted " Alf. Sherwin, the "concertina king," alias "the Mad Musician," is crivino- some excellent samples of the kind of melody that may he forced out of a "Coster's piano." Mr. Ernest Hill, always careful to select songs of the blackest baseness, is tunefully trifling with "The Vagabond at time of writing. One always wonders where Ernie stores so much voice. * * Tod Callaway is a facetious fellow, whose faculties tun to fun. His budget of songs is large and varied, and of prime, fresh quality, guaranteed not blended with cheap or inferior jokes. The Williams girls are giving their bike act again this week. People tire but slowly of so much dainty grace and wheel mastery, or should I say misstery? "Tranquil Apartments" is the misleading title given to the wind-up piece. As a matter of fact, I'd rather five in "The Mansions." Fuller's Entertainers at the Choral Hall, do not deteriorate with age. On the contrary. I give the present bill at the house first place since the return of the Fullers to their "earth." Miss Annie Kinnaud has a soprano voice of much beauty, and is able to infuse into heir well-chosen ballads great feeling. She sprang into instant popularity for the singing of her first song. Nothing she does is more acceptable or more tunefully rendered than the good old "Comin' thro' the Rye." * * * Big Bob Bell is between two and three yards long, and has a sense of humour to match. Bob has no set turn in the programe, and, after I had counted six songs I gave up. I'm poor at arithmetic. There is no doubt he fills a very large place in the bill, and is, perhaps, the best "corne.r"-man the company has had. Mr. Joe Watts and Miss Madge Lucas are not only wits of the first water, but contortionists of much merit. They call their limb-an-tics "legmania."' Miss Madge is particularly pliant and graceful, and the "turn" is really clever. * * * The Clare sisters, charmingly costumed and good to look on, have a chic little society sketch without a name. It is wholesome and humorous, and, of course, has to be repeated. The Droll Driscolls still keep their place in the

regard of the audience by the enthusiasm they bring to bear on the subjects with which they deal, which are mostly ol the bizarre order. "Liza Johnson s Ball" details a series of humorisms that would look cold on paper, but which, infused with Dnscoll fire, wake up, and make laughter. Mr. Chas. Waite, who has a vogue as a singer of Coster songs, sw ays his audience and touches their hearts with such pathetac items as "I saw 'er steal 'er apron to 'er eye" and "The Coster's Muvver," both of which are good of their kind. There are ten other "turns," excluding a couple of farces. Mr. Fuller is enlarging the- Choral Hall, as he finds its all too small to cope with the crowds of patrons. * * * Mr. John F. Sheridan's merry people, whose successful season has just come to a close, put on that high-ly-sensationaJ and brightly-humorous, production, "When the Lamps Are Lighted," at the beginning of the week. It is one of Mr. George R. Sims' most skilfully constructed comedydramas. The plot is too well known to need re-telling. Its most notable essential is that it gives the nimble John magnificent opportunities to display his versatility in six character "arts, in. all of which he rises to the emergency. * * * That always-bright lady, Miss Ceha Mavis, as the wife of the many-charac-tered Irish showman, manages to help veiy effectively in frustrating the villains with whom the piece faarly leeks. She also is required to give piquancy to four characters, and manages effectively. As the dreadfully down-trodden Paul Way land, Mr. Curran is sufficiently intense, and Mr. Fred Wentworth misses no points as Step lien Lyle. * ♦ * Miss Heba Barlow, w T ho is always pleasing, invests the part of Ruth, an heiress, who isn't quite sure who she is, with, much life and, as a burglar's assistant who would much rather be good than not, she shows dramatic power of much merit. The very long cast is admirably filled, and it is only necessary to remind you that the show is Sheridan to convince you that the detail, scenery, effects, and incidental songs and dances are excellently done. On Wednesday the company put on the last piece of the season, ' Mrs. Dooleys Little Joke" has to be seen to be believed. Suffice it to say that Mrs. Dooley is John F. Sheridan, and that it is one of the brightest among his repertoire of female narts. Audiences have been excellent during the season. * * * The opening of Musgrove's Comic Opera Company, in ''The Fortune Teller," at Auckland, appears to have fallen very flat. The "Obseiver," speaking of the first night, says '"From an artistic point of view, the performance was a thorough disappointment, while as a spectacular display it was scarcely up to the average. For weeks past the company has been persistently boomed as one of the finest operatic combinations that have ever

VLSited Auckland. In point of musical talent and resource it pioves to be one of the poorest and most unsatisfactory. Indeed, the music of "The Fortune Teller" Mas wholly beyond the capacity of the company, with the solitary exception, perhaps, of Mr. Prnigle. "To add to the popular disappointment, Madame Slapoffski, who was prima donna in Melbourne, did not appear with the company. As a matter of fact, she is no longer associated with it, having severed her connection with Mr. Musgrove in Australia. Instead of frankly communicating this fact fco the public the management has, for several weeks, billed Madame Slapoffski m shop windows and on hoardings as the pnma donna, and the large audience present at the opening was due in no small measure to her name and reputation. Miss May Beatty is the best vocalist with the company. The choruses are w eak. and badly balanced, while taken as a whole, the performance is distinctly disappointms. and will not bear comparison even with the average of those given by the Pollard Company a year or two back." •*■ * * On Saturday next, Miss Maggie Moore, supported b3' a strong and talented company, is to make hea* re^appearance at the Opera House, after seveial years' absence. The piece chosen for the opening performance is to be the Irish comedy-drama, ' Killarne~ " winch drama Miss Moore has played throughout Australia w ith great success. "Killarney" is saad to be a well-constructed drama, and Miss Maggie Moore, as Kathleen O'Connor, is as bright and lively as of yore, and has lost nothing of the brisk pert., and youthful manner which has ever characterised her*. Needless to add her songs are received with delight. * * * Miss Moore is supported by John F. Forde, J. P. West, S. A, Fitgerald, Vincent Scully Misses Osgood Moore, Ethel Bashford Madge Herlick, Abbie Taylor and others The box-plan is at Kolliday's, and day sales are proceeding at Abel's. * # * A remarkably accommodating composer is Leoncavallo, the author of "Paghacci." He has just composed two finales for his opera of "Poland," which has been w ritten for the Kaiser. The termination of one is tragic, the other happ y and he has asked his Imperial patron to choose the one he prefers. * * * Bland Holt recently presented Miss Annette KeHermann, the champion swimimst in "The Breaking of the Drought," with a greenstone, life-belt mounted in gold. (Continued on pttgc 20 )

match, using this ammunition, made eighteen kills each. Mr. E. P. Graham, who won the championship, made twenty-one kills without a miss, and Messrs. H. Price and A. W. Barnard tied for second place with nineteen kills each. Mr. A. W. Eales, using the Colonial Ammunition Company's "Blue Rock" cartridges, with patent concave wadding, distinguished himself during the meeting of the New South, Wales Gun Club, on August 7th. He divided! two sweeps running. * * ♦ Great interest is being taken in the ladies' hockey tournament, which commences at Day's Bay, next Friday afternoon. There will be teams from tke various towns in the colony taking part, and in addition to the trophies presented bv Mr. Herbert Rawson. the Wellington Steam Ferry Company have kmdlv donated five guineas towards the championship. Given fine weather, the girls should attract a. large number of Johnnies. ■* ♦ * That popular institution at the corner of Elizabeth and Bathurststreets, Sydney, known as "The Freeman and Wallace Electro-Medical and Surgical Institute," is at present undergoing a conspicuous change in its interior and exterior aspects. Large and commodious adjoining premises have been secured by the firm as an addition to the Institute, for correspondence and electric-bath rvtirposes, the specialists finding it necessary, with the growth of public patronage, to supplement their literary and correspondence staffs. * * * According to the latest methods in vogue in European and London Hospitals, such diseases as sciatica, epilepsy, rheumatism, etc., will be treated by various forms of heat-radiating and electric baths, special chambers for which are in course of preparation. Visitors from New Zealand, distant States, or the country districts, should pay a visit to the new premises, which w ill be both interesting and instructive. One day last week two ladies were wending their way homewards, in the vicinity of the Parliamentary Buildings — presumably discussing the "ser-vant-girl question" — one of them dragging behind her a "pram." Presently, they were accosted by a gruff voice, "Beg pardon, mum, but ye 'aye dropped yer parcel'" The astonished females started, and looked behind them, where, sure enough, they observed the bundle lying about twenty yards away. Of course, a rush was made to retrieve it, and the parcel was at once secured. It didn't complain much, although only a three-weeks-old baby, and must have had something of a shoek — and so must have had the ladies.

A young fellow called Sandow , who goes around lifting things and bulging muscles, recently lefused the challenge of a Leicester publican to meet him in feats of strength on a public platform. * * * Charlie Faning, of the comprehensive smile, is spoken of by the London theatrical papers as one of the finest operatic burlesquers in the great metropolis. As Charlie is ours, this is ingThe triumphal march of Mdlle Doloies over the American Continent has been extended to Canada, where sihe has been enthusiastically received Mr Piouse comes m for unstinted praise for his voice ■> They are denjing the oft-repeated assertion on the other side that Miss Lillian Digges is a New Zeafander. She is Irish. She was over here recently with the Musical Comedy Company, and was a favourite with the "gods." *• * -tMrs. Howie (Te Rangi Pai) and the "great" Maori tenor, Rangiuia, aie doing the English provinces on a concert tour. Rangiuia's special claim to fame, from an English point of view, is that he is copper-coloured. * * ' The Chinese Honeymoon" has been produced at Berlin, where the Germans take it for granted that the eccentricities of the English tourist party are drawn from the life. In fact, it is accepted as serious. Hence, the Germans hate us ' * * * Miss Ethel Knight-Mollison, who, as actress, dresser, dramatist, and owner of historic jewels, is being heard quite a lot of lately asserts emphatically that when her part requires tears she cries in real earnest. Also that she is quite prostrated after playing a "touching" part. ■* # * The Auckland "Observer" takes a fiim stand in deprecating the untruths told by the press about the alleged fact that "Auckland's capacity for amusement is unlimited." It says excellent performances are given nightly to indifferent houses. It also points out the cruelty of the assertions, which naturally attract other companies to share in. the marvellous theatrical prosperity that doesn't exist. * # * While the Charles Hollow ay Dramatic Company was playing to a packed house in one of the northern towns of Queensland, and iust as the leading lady was acting a heavy tragic part, a jackcroo from the back-blocks, well primed with whisky, staggered down the centre of the hall and stood, hat in hand, near the orchestra, watching the actress intently, so much so that she caught his eyes several times. At last, when she pronounced the words, "I can never learn to love you " he bowed profoundly, donned his hat and left the hall muttering, "That settles it. Just my luck '" * * * At the farewell performance of Musgrove's English Comedy Company, in Sydney, Miss Nellie Stewart was presented with a harp of violets Thanking the audience. Miss Stewart said ' I don't know w hat to say ' I've only pot to thank you. You have always been so good to me, and that's why I wish to go away and visit England and America — in order that I may learn more fully to deserve your generous encouragement. But I shan't be away more than ten months , I couldn't stay away longer than that' And now it is not 'Good-bye ' but 'Au Revoir,' and let me add that 'Memory will be my happiness,' for you are enshrined there." * * * Beerbohm Tree raised £2100 for Guv's Hospital, London, last month, by a first matinee, at the Haymarket, of a new play in verse, by Alfred Austin, the Poet Laureate, entitled "Flodden Field," which was produced on the occasion. It was described by the critics in this way — "It would be hard to find anything more stupid, so utterly inept or ineffective, than this expansion into melodrama of a fragment of English history. There is no plot, no drama, in the true sense of the word, for the puzzled spectator to grasp or follow. The bald truth is that Alfred Austin, if he is to be iudged by this specimen of his work, is no more successful in writing dramatic than he :s in writing lyric poetry."