Song, Stage, and Story.

Auckland Star, Volume XXVI, Issue 268, 9 November 1895, Page 3 (Supplement)

Song, Stage, and Story.

The Greenwood Family concluded their season of drama at the Opera House on Tuesday lasb. 'The Flowers of the Forest,' a story in which an unusual complement of gypsies play an important part, was played on Saturday and Monday. On Tuesday it was replaced by * Romeo and Juliet,' in which Misa Maribel Greenwood was Juliet, Mr John Gourlay, Mercutio, and Mr Clement Wakefield, Romeo. In the acting of these three the success of the representation of course in a very large measure depended, and there is no doubt all three did exceedingly well. Mr Gourlay's Mercutio, in particular, waa tbe result of a fine pieoe of acting, and one which will long remain as perbapß the beat of thab parb ever given here.

The « Bulletin' says the Dean din upset a lot of people's calculations. A not unknown Sydney writer had a tivo-act drama on the subject, which had been favourably reviewed by a couple of theatre managers. The play waa to have been produced at a Sydney houae by a apocial company, and the scenery—Tasmania in tbe early days, Riley-atreeb. Sydney, Circular Quay, Deon'a Kitchen at North Sydney, the condemmed cell at Darlinghurßt, and Circular Quay once more—was actually being painted. A novel on the same topic, to have been published as a 2s yellow back in Englaud shortly, will now moßb likely find its way into the W.P.B.

Mr and Mra A.E. Greenaway, the former the defendant in a caße heard ab Sydney the other week, in which he waa charged with the larceny of £3 from bhe Groenwod Family, bub which was dismissed on aocounb of bhe money having beon advanced as parb payment of salary, lefb Sydney lasb week for Cape Town, to join the W. J. Holloway Company. Sydney papers say * The Land of tho Moa' is attracting largo houses at tho Theatre Royal

The programmes supplied in connection with the Fitzgerald Bros.'circus, announce • ten minutes' repose 'in place of the customary 'interval of 10 minutes.'

On the opening night of Bland Holt's eeason in Christchurch, a crowd assembled in fronb of the Theatre Royal, completely blocking the street. The doora were opened scarcely more that a few minutes when the building waa full in every part. Bland's great pioc9B this time are ' The Span of Life,' ' A Prodigal Daughter,' and * A Life of Pleasure.'

Sir Henry Irving basacted close upon 700 parts in his life. Mark Twain, after touring Australia and Maonland, will run across to Ceylon, aud than visib Mauritius and South Africa. This tour will take a year, and ab Its closo he will retire to 'Murka to write a eeoond volume of his 'Tramp Abroad.' He was offered £2,000 for ten lectures in London, bub bhab is 'off' until after the book ie finished.

From documents produced in the Bankruptcy Courb, ib appears bhat while 'The Importance of Being Earnesb' was running Oscar Wilde received 10 per cenb. of the gross weekly receipts up to £1,000, and 15 per cent, of any sum in excess of thab amount. For ' Lady Windermere's Fan ' the amount was nob so largo. Ab to ' A Woman of No Imporbance' and 'An Ideal Husband,' he received 5 per cent, on the weekly receipts over £600 and under £800, 74 per cenb. over £800 and under £1,000, and 10 per cenb. for anything over £1,000.

Our London correspondent writes—

Mr Courtice Pounde, the leading tenor at the Savoy, who starts on a six months' tour of your part of the world almost at once, is a conscientious and painstaking artist who haa improved vastly since he joined the Gitberb-Sullivan team.

Mias Mario Elster, who haa been playing ' Mar-tana' with bho Carl Rosa Company in Dublin, is in private lite Mra Donald Larnacb, and only recently arrived from New Zealand.

Ada Crosaley has returned from the provinces, after a moat srucceaeful tour. There can be email doubt thia lady has a great future before hor.

The collaboration of Mr Barney Barnato with Mr C. Haddon Chambers is not, aa I more than half suspected, the audacious invention of an imaginative 'liner.' It ia Bolid, irrefragible fact. The pair are even now in retirement ab the Thames Hotel, Hampton Court. Occasionally they patronise the billiard - room, where the splendours of the millionaire's gorgeous silk and velveb smoking jacket are almoat as much admired aa his management of the balls. Mr Chambers (blee. his innocent young face !) plays a capital game of billiards. There are preciouß few amongat the many good playora at tbe St. George'a Club who can give him points. Miss Pabbie Browne haa become one of bhe chief nbbractiona in ' Cheer, Boys. Cheer,' ab Old Drury. This lady is, indeed, one of bhe very few colonial importations who have genuinely made a niche for themeelves over here. She wae not heralded wibh the usual flourishes of trumpets, and began in a comparatively email part in Pinero'a ' Amazone' at the Courb. Since then Bhe has been steadily on the 'up - grado,' and I'm glad to notice it. There has not apparently co far been a deadly struggle among London managers to secure Nelly Stewart's eervicee. Mr Tree seems to have 'struck ile' wibh • Trilby,' which ie doing bremendoua bueinese in bhe provinces, and can hardly fail to have a long run when produced ab the Haymarkeb in October. Tbe features of the piece appear to be, first. Tree's Svengali, and, secondly, Miss Dorothea Baird's Trilby. The latter exactly resembles Dv Maurier's original, having the foot as well a« the face of the model. Mr Patrick Evans, the original little Billee of the book, naturally looks the part, bub the playright gives bim little to do and he does bhat little amateurishly. Lionel Brough. too, is a square peg in a round hole ac the Laird, but the critics have, nobbing save prai.efor the resb of the cast. « Dr. and Mrs Neill,' produced ab the Grand Theatre this week, was also successfully ' tried on the dog' (aa the saying is) in the provinces. The play, which is really very touching, is by Clo. Graves, and may nob improbably succeed 'Romeo and Juliet' at bhe Lyceum.

'The Greatest of These,' the new piny written by Sydney Grundy for theKendals, waß produced ab Hull lately, and will probably see light somewhere in London before winter. Therein bhe mabron of the drama figures as a 'woman with.a past' and a casbiron husband. Years ago Mrs K. (I forgeb ber stage name) was, through X.'s coldness and lack of amiability, led into an intrigue with a fascinating cousin. K. found them out, and for hie children's sake overlooked the indiscretion. But he leads his luckless spouse a dreadful life, nagging ab and suspecting her, even after 20 yeara of unbroken good behaviour, in a disgusting fashion. Presenbly—needless bo cay—Mrs K. appears bo give K. reason for his suspicions. She has promised never to communicate with X (aa we'll call the lover) again, yet K. aeea her hide a letter in his handwriting. As a matter of fact ehe returns it to hor old lover unopened. For three acts misunderstandings arise out of thia letter. Then the jealouß K. opena it at X.'s requeab, and finds —a cheque. X.'a son haa been 'going bhe pace,'and in an absonb momenb forged hia parent's name. X. obtained posaession of the incriminating document to save him, and sent ft to the mother bo give ber a hint to look after the lad. When Mr Kendal discovers how he has wronged his wife and every one else, he becomes penitent, quotes the XIII* of Corinthians, and brings down the curtain with a shower of self accusing texbe.

The will of Maria Marsia Alboni Sieger (Madame Alboni), who died near Ville d'Avray in June of laeb year, has jusb been proved (says a London dispatoh, October 12bh), and its contents have attracted much attention in and out of the world of music. It is quite a remarkable document. After leaving her jewellery and snug suma of money to her Bisters, brother, and brother-in-law, nephews and nieces, and remembering her butler, cook, linen woman, and chambermaid, and providing for her funeral, she gives an oil portrait of Rossini to tho town of Lago in Italy. She bequeaths to the City of Paris 100,000 francs of three per cent, rentes ih the French State, which will go to form savings bank books 'of 250 francs each. These booka shall be inscribed and distributed annually by way of encouragement to work to the pupils of both eexes having attained the age of 13 yeara (without disbincbion of nabionaliby or religion), who abtend bhe claaaoa of bbc public and gratuitous schools maintained by tbe city of Paris, ab the rate of two books for each district—one for the boys and one for the girls. Tho will also gives to the charity department of Paris the sum of 100,000 france, to found and maintain in the name of Alboni in one of the hospitals of the city of Paris two beds (or more if the sum should permit), which shall be set apart exclusively for persona of Italian nationality, withoub dietinction of occupation or religion. Thia seneible and broad-natured woman appointed her husband universal legatee. Literary Notes. Dr. Conan Doyle's 'Stark Munro Letters Sb a disappointing book. When bbc brilliant and erratic Cullingworth entered the atory during its serial publication, one fully expected a maeterpiece. Thia character sketch is, indeed, ab once original, true, closely observed and skilfully pourbrayed with a vigorous vi.ality s aud a human interest truly admirable. It is, however, exasperating to discover that Cullingworth, the. exuberant and extraordinary, with hie reatleaa energy, his amusing schemes, his savage temper and his queer blend of treachery, meanness and good fellowship, fills merely an incidental place in the othatwise unexcitiDg adventures of Dr. Stark Munro. Jusb when bho narrative .of his doings seema about to culminate in a thrilling aituation, there is an anti-climax of a paltry quarrel between Cullingworth and Munro, and the former disappears from the story. We could much easier have spared Munro. After this the book fizzles off into commonplace. There ie, however, some consolation in tho reflection that though at the end of the story Dr. Stark Munro gets killed, Cullingworth i's still alive nnd may bo reeuacibated. The book haa been issued in Longman's Colonial Library, and we have to acknowledge receipt of a copy bhrough Upton and Co. From bhe facb that Chattos finds it worth while to produce a freeh edition of Charles Reade's novels ab 3s 6d apiece, 'da apparent he has still a considerable public. Reade wrobe oighteon books altogether, but only a-third of them will live. Swinburn places «The Cloister and the Hearth ' amongeb the ' very greatest masterpieces of narrative,' and ' It's Never Too Lato to Mend ' will no doubb always find readerß in Philistia, The mosb valuable of Reade's blended facb and fiction novels is. however, • Put Youraolf in His Place,' a singularly powerful and true picture of Sheffield in the early days of tho tradeß union struggle. It appeared originally in the ' Cornhill,' and created a great to do, being followed from month bo month wibh a breabbleas inbereab bhe novel of today Beldom excites. Twice as many copiea of' Trilb y' were sold in Auguab as of any other one volume novel ab six ehillinga. Apropos of bhe alleged impoeeibiliby of Svengali's hypnotic influence over Trilby, a case has been discovered in Mr James Braid's ' Observations on France,' where a young, absolutely deaf girl, on being hypnotised, Bang in unison wibh Jenny Lind, and although ehe could not, owing to her deafness, have had vocal instruction, ehe eang perfectly in tune, and \ with remarkable Bweetneea.

Among the illuatrated volumea of the forthcoming season the most important will undoubtedly be that of the lifo and works of Alma Tadema. Besides a biography, the book will contain more than twenty photoengravings, after Mr Tadema'a historical and other works.

Turner'a picture, * The Trout Stream,' was purchased, September 28bh, by a Mnncheeter (England) collector for 4,800 guineas. Mesers MacMillan's announcements include a People's Tennyson in 23 one shilling volumes issued at intervals of a fortnighb j a posthumous volume of poema by Christina Rosetti; 'The Second Jungle Book,' by Kipling ; a new edition of Matthew Arnold'a worke in aix five chilling vols, uniform with the Eversley aeries: Mrs Olipbant'a ' Makera of Rome,' and Captain Younghuaband's ' Siege of Chitral.'

Measre Longmana promise a lengbhy Hat of ascientific works including ' The Life and Letters of Geo. John Romanes, F.R.S.,' written and edited by his wife, and also tbe deceased savant'a second parb of 4 Darwin after Darwin,' bo be entibled, 4 Poab Darwinian Quesbiona : Heredity and Utility.'

Kipling has given terribfe offence this time on returning to America, by again flatly declining to be ' interviewed.' Being himself an ex-pressman, and well aware that the reporter'e vocation ia nob all curry and cocktails, bhis per. ietent refusal to help hia brothers of the pen causes greab irritation. The minor papers paid him oub by ' guying' him offensively. Some years ago, according to a London dispatch, Octobor sth, Henry Irving waa dining with George Auguatus Sala, when the latter allowed him an invaluable scrapbook, extending over the whole period of his journalistic career. Irving remarked that euch a treasure of reminiscence ehould be carefully preserved, and on the following day sent ac a present to Mr Sala a handsome iron cafe with the motto, ' Safe bind, cafe find ' upon its doors. At the recent sale of Sala's effects this safe, afber a spirited bidding, was sold for 22 guineas. Among the picture, sold at the same sale was a water-colour drawing which was preBen ted to Mr Sala'by the Bohemian Club of San Francieco. It wae a cartoon preeenbed bo him on bhe occasion of s banqueb given to him by tbe club. It fetched £1 ,ss.