Competition Comment

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 135, 29 August 1927, Page 9

Competition Comment

By

C SHARP.

Despite numerous counter-attrac-tions there was quite a satisfactory at- ; tendance at the Town Hall on Satur- ] day afternoon, when, in addition to j the listed items, several other recalls ; were disposed of. Owing to the ; Heifetz recital in the Town Hall there ; was no evening session. The two best classes at the matinee were the character recital in costume, under 10, and the toe dance, under 9. The operatic dance for girls from 12 to 15, also provided some interesting performances, the finalists, in the opinion of the judge, all showing great promise. * Each of the first ten performers were deserving of a first prize.” stated the judge, referring to the character recital under 10. The performance of the winning girl was exceptionally good. Costumes and mannerisms were excellent, the whole performance being worthy of a professional. ‘‘Trained and hardened listeners have lasted till 2 a.m.,” stated Mr. J. F. Montague, in replying to a complaint in these columns against the lateness of the hour at which the evening sessions generally conclude. Mr. Montague also instances the fact that at Greymouth the session usually concludes after midnight, and that at Gore they have been known to drag on until 12.45 a.m. As long as competition societies are content to cater merely for the “trained and hardened listeners” there is no objection to having the festivals converted into endurance tests, but the balance-sheets of many of the societies show that there is apparently a shortage of this class of patron. No undertakings of this description can succeed without the support of the general public, and it must be catered for. For the purpose of adjudication, a certain regularity has to be observed, and in fairness to the competitors judges cannot be asked to curtail the length of the interval that elapses be*tween items. The Auckland competitions cover a wide range, and as a result pleasing variety is generally obtainable at the evening sessions, at which a good attendance of the general public is particularly desired. The only fault at present is the excessive length of the programme, and this should easily be rectified by hearing more recalls, preferably in the juvenile classes, at the day sessions. This would obviate the continual procession homeward, which commences to set in at about 10 o’clock, and which is certainly hardly fair to the performers appearing later on the programme. It would also be fairer to the public, some of whom might be particularly interested in a late class, and who cannot wait until 11 o’clock or later. Although marks are allowed for characterisation, it should not be forgotten by competitors appearing in “song in character” classes that it is for vocalisation that the majority of the points are awarded. This morning several competitors in the class song in character for boys or girls under 12, fell into the error of thinking that what was required of them was a humorous number. The performances given by the recalled performers were of a good standard, their work also filling the requirements of the class.