CHAUTAUQUA.

Taranaki Daily News, 8 February 1921, Page 6

CHAUTAUQUA.

NEW PLYMOUTH SEASON. THE OPENING DAY. The opening meeting of the third, annual session of the New Zealand Chautauqua took place at New Plymouth • yesterday afternoon, in the tent ejected by the organisation. A very representative and numerous gathering greeted the performers, who undoubtedly were at once favorably impressed by the attentive and expectant atmosphere displayed. At 3.45 the Mayor and Mayoress (Mr. and Mrs. F. E. Wilson) stepped on to the platform, and were supported by Mr. and Mrs. C. H. Burgess, Mr. P. J. White (chairman of the Education Board) and Mr. A. B. Gibson (the local secretary). Mr. Burgess, speaking first, apologised for Mr. 8. G. Smith, M.P.,| vrho vra.9 unable to be present, and conveyed i~ the audience a hearty welcome to the gatherings, expressing his conviction that the standard of previous speakers and performers would be fqlly maintained by those who were to come before the public on this occasion. The Mayor, in formally declaring the session open, laid just emphasis on the importance of the visits of persons from countries outside New Zealand, who, having studied the big questions of the day, and experienced much of the actual process of adjustment and settling down after the world disturbance, were able to speak on these problems from first-hand information, and bring to minds, which might otherwise get into nits, accurate first-hand information, as well as bringing artists to entertain. Mr. Wilson extended the party a hearty welcome. I The directress returned thanks, expressing pleasure at seeing so many old faces as well as many new ones. It was explained that the programmes were intended to bo on international lines, to contain at least one item to suit every possible present.

AFTERNOON SESSION. ! The programme opened with duets by a saxophone played skilfully by Mrs. E. Parnell and a piano aceordeon : plaved by Mr. E. Parnell. Time only will tell whether the former instrument will attain in New Zealand the popularity it has in the United States; but if anything should bring it about, then the display given yesterday afternoon should do so, and that quickly. The middle and lower registers were beautifully displayed, while there may have been a flattering tendency m the extremely high notes. The performance was very interesting. Mr. Parnell followed. with the well chosen solo Herodie”, and for encore gave The Song of the Bow”. He is worth hearing, having very clear enunciation, and a ™d Quality of voice, of fair power, well placed. Mrs. Parnell followed with some excellent child dialogues, of which the opening one. “The Carpenter Man , was a clever and telling impersonation of a little child describing the work, and the language when the hammer by accident struck the thumb of the operator instead of the nail. * After a concluding fantasia on many and varied airs, they were followed by Miss Sumayeh Attiye> a Syrian lady, who, speaking in a voice easy to follow and clear in enunciation, m well chosen words gave what she described as, not ■i lecture, but a’ general chat on the present condition of Syria, its cosmopolitan inhabitants, and some of the forces that have been Working foi the n--, 600 years, and the resulting conditions and hopes that have come owing to the freeing of Syria from Turkish misrule. Miss S. Attiyeh spoke for over half an hour, the attention of the audience being closely fixed for the whole time, flor word pictures of hei home in Tripoli-Syria gave ideas of much native beauty. She spoke on the ise of Turkish power in Europe, and ot the gross misrule of the late Sultan She spoke on Armenia, the charactei of its native people, and of .the influence of the surrounding peoples, and the results the late war has had and probably wil have in the development of a friigal and hard-working community.

THE EVENING SI ion.

Owing to the showery afternoon the management wisely transferred their auditorium to the Empire Theatre _ last night, which resulted in much comfort to the audience and far bettei opportunities of enjoying and appreciating an excellent programme. Mr Parnell sang in excellent style the Prologue to “Pagliaeci,” which was made doubly interesting to many present by a clear exposition of what a prologue means and its relation to the opera. The building materially helped the singer, whose variations of tone qualitv’and enunciation were much more effective than in the tent, and the soloist also seemed much more at his ease. By way of- encore Mr. Parnell sang two “Negro Spirituells,” having considerable variation in style, and may be considered quite characteristic of these purely ne“ro inventions. “Hard Trials,” the first one, and “Oh! Didn’t it Ram, the second one, will not be forgotten in New Plymouth. Mrs. Parnell followed with some of her excellent child impersonations. Nothing could be imagined more accurately to portray the sleepy child asking questions, or the small'boy in trouble over some peach tree. They were extremely clever, and excellently portrayed.

Mr. Parnell then gave two character sketches; the first, of an up-country village in the States, where the onlyevent is the passing of the one train a day, and the second, the overgrown schoolboy. Both were excellently done. The audience were frequently convulsed with laughter, and thoroughly entered into the spirit of the whole thing. The Parnells closed their part of the programme with some well executed duets between saxophone and piano-accordion.

As promised in the afternoon, in full costume of a Syrian princess, Miss Sumayeh Attiyeh gave her lecture on aspects of life as they have occurred to her in her travels and adventures. For more than an hour she held her audience riveted silence, as she portrayed Syrian. Turkish, or Jewish characteristics. She created much amusement hy reading a Syrian love letter recently sent out to her by the fair recipient, a tpvical illustration of their poetic and ‘imaginative style. Tn strongest possible contrast she also read a typical American epistle from “.Targe” to Muz.” which r-reated much amusement bv its racy, slangy dictation. Miss S. Attiyeh recounted and explained many native customs, sketched the rise of Mohammed, and gave some of the outstanding features of Mohammadism. In all her stories and anecdotes, in her portrayals of the people amongst whom hoA lived, and wLun she sefinxa

thoroughly to understand, their seemed to be an evident desire to place her audience en raport with tIA mental outlook of another and distant people. An entirely new progamme will be given this afternoon and this even-