ENTERTAINMENTS.

Taranaki Daily News, 21 October 1915, Page 7

ENTERTAINMENTS.

"THE MIKADO." The Theatre Royal ia built to seat about 1000 people, which ia quite enough for ordinary purposes; but next Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday it should be found to be far too small, when "The Mikado" is to be staged. If the demand for tickets is anything to judge by, bumper houses are assured, and the New Plymouth Operatic Society are thoroughly deserving of it. They have gone to a lot of trouble in preparing this production, so that the management may .hand over to the Patriotic Committee a handsome cheque in aid of the Wounded Soldiers' Fund. "The Mikado" is at once one of the most successful and entertaining of all comic operas, and, gauged by the good work put in at the rehearsals, it will lose nothing in its interpretation by the Society. Such numbers as "Tit Willow," "A Wandering Minstrel," "Three Little Maids," "Flowers that Woom in the Spring," and the Madrigal are worthy of any setting. Quite a feature of the performance, and one that will bef perhaps, the most popular item of the evening's entertainment, is the ballet introduced between Act 1 and Act 2, and skilfully executed by seven young ladies. The opera is lavishly dressed, and the acenery will fee as fine as any hitherto seen in New Plymouth. Box plans will be open at Collier's Music Warehouse on Saturday next, at 8 am. A queue will foe formed at 7 a.m. ■EMPIRE PICTURES. The Reliance Company's drama, "The Slave Girl," is the star item on to-night's new programme. Here is a stirring drama of unusual character. A white girl is left an orphan; a human brute makes her impersonate a dead mulatto child, and she is sold into slavery with its inevitable cruelties. Her rescue and subsequent life is throbbing with power and humanity. "Love Will Out'' is a conspicuously good drama. "The Image of the Past" is a strong family drama. '*Up in the Air, u "Cleaning Time" and "Ambrose's (Keystone) are the comedies, while the latest Budget supplies excellent news of topical interest. ROYAL PICTURES. "(Droppington's Family Tree" bears a queer assortment of fruit for Droppington, otherwise known as Chester Conklin. A good many of the seenes in this picture were taken iu a cabaret, where Droppington and his son fall in love with the same girl, but that's not all. Mrs. Droppington drops in and incidentally Droppington drops out, but he finds it's a rough passage out. The film is 2000 ft long and is exceedingly funny. An excellent drama is Reliance's "Hearts United." It is a story of love and jealousy and lives made happy by a little child. Others are: "On the Banks of the Sea of Marmora" (of special interest), "McQuade of the Traffic Squad" (Edison drama), ITwo by Two" (Vita, comedy), and tho newest Topical Budget.