AMUSEMENTS.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVII, Issue 158, 4 July 1916, Page 7

AMUSEMENTS.

OPERA HOUSE. The m.my Aucklanders who made the acquaintance of Miss l'earl Ladd and Mr Arnold \ i;iiprs on the occasion of the visit a few mouths ago of the Gilbert and Sullivan Operatic Company will welcome the reappearance of the pair In vaudeville. Ou their first appearance at the Auckland opera House last evening the soprano and baritone made a popular impression upontne audience. The stage-setting of the turn was not quite so effective as it might have been, nor did the choice of items appear to he of the best. Mr Villiere' acting and make-up in "Win o' the Wisp" greatly enhanced an excellent rendering of the piece, rtie selection was admirably suited to Mr V llliers' robust and flexible baritone, and he sang with fine dramatic effect. Miss made her appearance in a •charming rendering of "Love's Own Kiss." for which 1, w . as insistently encored. Subsequently Mr Villiers further demonstrated hi* aptitude for effective make-up in a Chinese song, and though this item possessed nothing of the testing qualities of his 3r«: number, it was an Attractively tuneful melody, of which Mr Villiers gave a very pleasing interpretation. He was joined in the last • horns by Miss Laud, also Orientally costumed, and the pair were given a good (•■end-off. I'robably many people, however, would have preferred to have heard the ; sing'-rs lv one or two popular gems from the j Gilbert aud Sullivan operas, and in any | case at least one duet would improve the ' tnru. Bstelle Wordette and Company, who ' a short time ago presented a series of entertaining sketches, made their first appearance in a return visit last night presenting a highly diverting comedy, "\Vhen a Cat's Away." The story is based on the confusing by a private detective of requests to locate an eccentric military man who wears a fur coat, and to and the missing Angora cat of a popular actress. The playlet is cleverly constructed, and Miss Wordette and Mr Thomas A. Miller extracted a full toll of boisterous fun from Its droll situations. Mte Wordette's acting Is Inclined to be ou the gushing side, and the piece was strongly flavoured with Americanisms, but it was heartily enjoyer by the audience. Another new turn was Chat of Jessie Howard and 1-lttle Stella. The former appeared a<? a male impersonator, while her diminutive partner came on as a pert little lady, of Dresden-china daintiness, who sang quaintly and danced with amusing dignity aud gracefulness. Later Little Stella set the house applauding by her clever acrobatic feats. Ray and (iray were also newcomers, putting ou that curious development of ragtime now! favoured by American comedy artists, and throwing in, some gags and dancing. Val and Lottie Newmau reappeared in a new programme, one or two of the jokes of which might be revised or eliminated. King and Thornton, assisted by Rupert Dium, put on a highly laughable" comedy, IVTwo of a Kind." Mons. I'oincare's mimicry of birds and animals again made . a successful appeal to the favours of the' audience. Kdule Hums again presented his lightning step-dance and burlesque walks, : and Marr and ©vans appeared in acrobatic feats. A new turn arrived by the Westralia. that of Freddy James, described as ■ the world's worst juggler, who will appear • to-night. ( STORY OF "CABIRIA." I Very many months were occupied in the 'm n ng J} f the Picture which has beeu i called "Cablria" after the heroine of the I i\ ory ,P' Anu «uzio contrived. D'Annunz'o himself superintended the whole of the ' work. An immense company of actors was > enrolled. Kvery one or them had to be , specially selected, for everyone had to look , the part he was to play. Then, they had to he trained and taught. One scene laid lv the temple of Moloch-the hideous god of ' Carthage. Into whose fiery vitals Infant . children were hurled alive as sacrifices— • could not be photographed for eight months. The actors were all rehearsed, . but they had to be long-haired Wigs were . tried, but they gave an unreal effect, and the final presentation of the scene was ' postponed till the actors' hair grew to the I proper length. One of the stupendous . features of the film Is the passage of the Alps by the Carthaginian army. The ; picture actors, with their armour, and 1 horses aud elephants and stores and bagi gage of all sorts, were actually made to struggle against the snows and avalanches ' of the Alps to reproduce this scene. In the course of it 48 of them were seriously > injured. Again. In carrying out the reprei sentatton of the famous attack upon Cirta, , 20 of the picture actors hurled from the walls by the defending forces were realty ; injured. This sort of reality cost the comi pauy a good deal, for every actor injured [ was amply compensated. A Roman hero— Fulvius Axilla—leaps 05ft down a cliff. Children are hurled into the fire of Moloch. • Mount Etna breaks out into fearful erup- • tion. However eager a producer may be •or reality, he caunot compass these things. TIVOLI FOLLIES. Next Monday evening will witness the opening of the return New Zealand tour of »Hugh D. Mcintosh's Tivoll Follies at His Majesty's Theatre, where they will appear for six nights and one Saturday matinee only. The 1016 Follies will he headed bj Vera Pearce. a ajid versatile artist who has made marvellous strides In her work since She last visited New Zealand. A new comedienne in Miss Thelma Raye, the ruddy-haired queen of vivacity, should, prove popular, while Jack Cannot returns with a budget of new songs, droll burlesques ami comedy specialities. Comedy predominates, and several new comedians will make their first New Zealand appearances. George Welch. England's "drunk" impersonator. Walter Weems, a dusky storyteller. Billy Rego, the quaint pantomftnist. all combine iv laughable work, while Mr Frank Greene, the fine baritone, Jean Keith, dainty dancer, and Peggy Peate; the chic ; i comedienne, all stand out prominently. Mr i Will Quintreill is in charge of a full operatic orchestra. Vaudeville a*ets are to take up ■ the first part of the programme, and wQI ■ inrltide Ella Caspcrs, the Australian con- , tralto. Short and Little, comedy acrobats, and the Belgian Orchestra, a combination ' of musicians who have fought for their i country and have been honourably disi charged as unfit for further service. The ■ box plan is to open to-morrow morning at Wildinan and Arey's. ! OTHER PICTURE ENTERTAINMENTS. ; The fascinating story called 'The Iron [ Strain," which is 'being shown at the , Lyric Theatre, is the best picture of a ' very attractive bill. At the King's and Everybody's Theatres 7 an unusual story called "Booties' Baby" . Is accounting for a large portion of the , popularity of the WU showing at those theatres. Cowboys, brigands, and. all- the paraphernalia of life in the Wild West figure largely in an exciting picture, called "The Yeikrw Streak," which is toeing sbown at the Queen's Theatre. "The Fruits of Desire," a remarkable dramatic prodnotion, adapted from- the ' book "The Ambition of Mark Trnltt," is - dra-wing crowded houses at the Princess 1 Theatre. j 1 The excellent bill which is" being shown at the Grafton Theatre includes a highly sensational story called "The Yellow Streak." i I Variety is the keynote of the bill at the , j King George Theatre, where the chief I item is an adaptation of the well known ptay "The Suburban."

Entirely new ground is covered by a. drama called ''The Actress and the Minister." which heads the list of good things at the Grand Theatre. A charming story called "Little Mademoiselle" is the best of an exceedingly good selection of films on the bill at the Arcadia Theatre. A distinctly good programme is being screened at the Globe Theatre, the principal attraction being a well constructed drama called "Two Women."