ENTERTAINMENTS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 200, 3 May 1912, Page 4

ENTERTAINMENTS

EMPIRE PICTURES. There -was a large audience at the Empire Picture last night. "The Three •• 1 is a magnificent representation of Alexander Dumas' (listorical novel. The Nordisk drama, "The Dead Man's Child," also came in for great applause. Besides these, there was a full programme of the best star dramas and (scenic pictures.

"THE NORWOODS AND VON ARX." The risible faculties of the audience in the Theatre Royal last night wer« given such play that the building almost rocked with laughter. It was also an intensely interested gathering that witnessed the performances of the . .orwoods and Von Arx, for the entertain-, ment was well calculated to amuse, myatify and instruct. Professor Norwood came with a much-heralded reputation, for his exposition of the arts of hypnotis! ing and hypnotic suggestion, and he did not fall below expectations. Aided hy several members of the audience and his own company, lie demonstrated how subjects, when "under the influence," cm perform all manner of things which, in their ordinary senses, they would b« either physically incapable of or, as ia many instances, mentally opposed to. Putting about a dozen of his subject# to sleep was child's play compared to what followed. Illustrating the seemingly wonderful powers of the c&talypti* trance, Prof. Norwood suspended one oi his subjects, who was temporarily dead to the world, on two chairs by his neck and heels . There "were horrified feminine gasps, when the professor calmly proceeded to order four of his subjects to simultaneously rest their entire weight on the unsupported body of the man, who, with muscles and limbs as stiff a« a frozen polar bear, remained motionless throughout. To the uninitiated this would appear a Herculean feat of strength, but Professor Norwood clearly showed that, provided he was in a state of catalepsy, it was an achievement with- ,

in the scope of any mortal. The "star" act of the evening was provided by one of his lady .«iibjwts—a member of his company. After being hypnotised anil securely blindfolded, she threaded lier way through tlie audience and did anything which they had previously told Professor Norwood (who never onee spoke to her) that they were desirous of seeing performed. In this manner, she extracted from one a sovereign and placed it in the purse of his companion, relieved another of his hat, and transferred it. as he had previously asked of the professor, to the head of one whom it did not fit; unbuttoned, and took out, the great coat of a still more astonished young man and replaced it; and performed twelve other feats, equally .as extraordinary. Conoluding, the professor hypnotised a number of those on the stage, into believing that they were Spanish dancing girls. The antics they cut, and their astonishment when they "cam# round," were ludicrous in the extreme. Professor's Norwood's demonstrations were preceded by an exposition of the Black Art, by Von Arx, including .themystifying cabinet tricks, somewhat on the lines of his previous performances at New Plymouth. Some excellent patte*juggling turns were gone through by the versatile Murphy, who was received with prolonged outbursts of applause. "The Norwoods and Von Arx" will appear again this evening, when a change of programme will be given. A dense crowd of spectators witnessed th« marvellous feat of Professor Norwood yesterday afternoon. By 4 o'clock, the time of commencing the hypnotic drive, the paths and roadway were packed; in fact the words uttered by the men of the law to "Move on, please!" proved of no avail to the onlookers. The nature of the performance was for <i committee of four well-known business people to drive round the town, and, while on their drive, to hide an article somewhere in the main street, whilst two citizens would watch the professor very closely, and on the committee's return the professor would drive blindfolded over the same route and find the hidden article. The drive was successfully accomplished by Professor Norwood, and the dexterity with which he handled the pair of horses attached to the cab, and the way in which he cut in close to the kerbings of some of the footpaths without upsets, was admirable. Arriving back at his starting place he set out (still blindfolded) on the task of finding the article that had been secreted bv the committee. In the course of a few minutes he found the article (a pen knife) in a local business man's shop front.

Another interesting 'hypnotic feat will take place to-day. Professor Norwood will hypnotise Miss Paulino Ford, the human pianola. She will then play on a Brinsmead piano in Messrs. Collier's music warehouse window from 1 a.m. till 7.80 p.m., entirely under hypnotic influence, during which time she will play 600 of the most popular songs of the day. After she has accomplished this she will be taken to the Theatre Royal, restored to consciousness, and will play the accompaniments to the performance.