MERRY MAYFAIR.

Auckland Star, Volume LXII, Issue 38, 14 February 1931, Page 13 (Supplement)

MERRY MAYFAIR.

CABARET NIGHTS.

OLD HAUNTS AND NEW.

ALL FOR A BRIGHTER LONDON.

(By HORACE WYNDHAM.)

The modern cabaret is a natural development of the old " free and easy," for which Dickens and Thackeray had such a fondness. With, however, the passage of time, considerable changes have been introduced into the programmes. The majority of these changes are certainly very much for the better. . But it is in number more than in quality of actual entertainment offered that cabarets have increased within the last year or two. Nowadays (or rather now-o'-night«) practically every hocel and restaurant that ranks above a pub. adds one to its supper menu as a matter of course. Also, a matter of cost. It must, however, be admitted that most of them give a good programme as a pet-off to the bill. ' Cabaret entertainments are private as well as public. Mayfair has realised their possibilities, and "At Home" cards often resemble music hall programmes. Here, as elsewhere, dollars count. American hostesses among us do this sort of thing on a positively lavish scale. Opera stars of the first magnitude, and a contingent from the Russian ballet, are provided by them as a matter of course to help down the champagne and truffles. It means a brighter London; also, a successful evening. George Robey and Billy Merson lure dowagers anywhere, and eligible bachelors, whom nothing would drag to a theatre or music hall, will always emerge from their torpor to get a close-up of the Dolly Sisters.' At one of these Mayfair " cabaret parties" to which I was hospitably bidden (it subsequently turned out I was mistaken for somebody else) the special attraction was Maud Allan. On the programme, however she was billed as Maud Royden. But printers do this sort of thing. I fancy too they are not above doing it deliberately. Good Fare and Food. In respect of good class cabarets to which the public are admitted without being required to go through the formality of taking up membership (as has to be done with those that call themselves "clubs"), London offers plenty of choice. Thus, there are the "'Midnight Fo-Ilies" at the Metropole, the "Revels" at Prince's, "Playtime" at the Piccadilly, and "Supper-time" at the Trocadero, as well as half a dozen others. The first programme of this description was that submitted by the "Follies" in 1922. But their virgin path was not easy, for the London County Council, in accordance with the best "slap-you-and-, put-you-to-bed" tradition of the period,! looked askance at the venture. None!

the less, the "Follies" stopped where they were, and have done good work in contributing towards a brighter London. At Prince's things are done on a larger scale. Thus, the management give two separate cabaret performances there on. the same evening, one at 10 o'clock, and another at midnight. The result is enthusiasts can get a double allotment. By working overtime they can even squeeze in an extra 20 minutes by slipping across the road to the Piccadilly, where tho nightly revels begin at 11.40. The Trocadero cabaret (which Charles Cochran directs, in addition to all his other numerous activites) is aa popular as any in London. More popular than many. There are two main reasons for this. One is, it is always a first-class show, and another is, it is given in the grill-room, and thus does not demand of its patrons that they shall array themselves in purple and fine linen. People sup there in plus fours (and plus fives), tweed suits, and flannels, without encountering indignant glances from shocked head waiters. Further, there is no separate charge for the cabaret itself. It is thrown,in, as it were, with whatever one orders to eat and drink. The Call of the River. The call of the river becomes more and more insistent every cummer; and nowadays dance and cabaret clubs combined are always springing up at intervals along the banks of Father Thames. Of course, the season for them is short; still, it is none the less merry while it lasts. Foremost amongst different riverside resorts catering for Londoners who like to combine fresh air with pleasure is Palm Beach. This, which is established at Hampton Court, was first opened in the summer of 1926. Still, it is more venerable than it sounds, for it is really a rebirth of a long popular haunt that used to be known as "Tho Karsino"; and, before that, it was endeared to the memories of generations of Cockneys as Tagg's Island. What ii vas called when Henry VIII. used to wander there, whispering soft nothings into the receptive ears of a succession of Anne Boleyns, does not seem to have been officially chronicled. Despite • its name, I doubt if Palm Beach has any close connection with Florida. However, it does have one with Piccadilly, for it is managed by the directorate of Princes' Restaurant. Hence, the fare is much the same, viz., luncheons and for tbe early birds, and dinners and suppers and cabaret for those who do not put in an appearance until the shades of night have begun to fall. Palm Beach "features" real sand, tons of it. To complete the illusion, there ought, of course, to be a few Luskers and itinerant concert parties scattered about the lawns. Still, one cannot have everything in this world; and as it if, the management give quite a lot for one's money. Thus, a mere guinea a head covers dinner and cabaret and motor from Piccadilly and back. Hampton Court has rivals. Chief among them, perhaps, is Murray's River Club, at Maidenhead. There you dance in a blue-ceilinged "Japanese" ballroom, or, alternatively, on a crystal floor in the open air. Maidenhead is within easy distance of half the stage doori.

The result is, on fine summer evenings the club always attracts a big theatrical contingent. A thoroughly representative cue. tins, too, with its stars of the musical comedy world, leading members of beauty choruses, and originals of picture postcards. Heads of "big business," too; stockbrokers in striped trousers; undergraduates in loose ones; and Guards subalterns by the dozen. Nor is Twickenham left but as the requirements of pleasure seekers in this part of the world are now catered for by the Monte Carlo Sports Club, which has just been established at Poulett Lodge. Plus dancing and dining, etc., this newoomer offers in return for a subscription of a guinea a year, such amenities as tennis and croquet, and boating and bridge, etc. Also, there is golf near at hand, just a "drive and a putt," as it were, from the clubhouse door. "Further to the above" (as is the approved formula of all the leading business colleges) mention must also be made of the Cafe de Paris, at Bray. This, however, is not really a club, but a riverside annexe of the Coventry Street cabaret which bears the same name. It is a pleasant haunt, with fairy lamps winking in an old-world garden, and a dancing platform built round a venerable walnut tree. Music and lights and laughter, and the soft lap-lapping of the Thames. A lot bettor than the hectic-hurry and' scurry >of Soho. . A typical "cabaret programme at any of these resorts is very similar. Thus, tlie management seldom gets beyond "exhibition dancing by the Sisters Bareback," "Mr. Bertie Scoop's syncopated £1000 a week orchestra,' "Cross talk by Sweedle and Swank," and "Mi3s Lily Lipstick, Diseuse." Any way, something uncommonly like it. ' ' "London is a roost for every bird,'' said Disraeli in Lothair. At some of the less. important cabarets and night club 3 a strict, and rigid propriety is. not always the long suit of the ladies who foregather there. Nor do they claim that it is. Still, they conduct themselves outwardly with average decorum; and men who regard them as fair prey for their overtures are apt to get as good as they give, if not more. Here, a,3 elsewhere, a penalty is incurred for dropping bricks. Another point. With reference to matters sartbrial, customs vary. Thus, at some cabarets, there is a 6tern rule, "Evening dress compulsory"; at others, it is "optional"; and at others, again, even a "Ready for service" dinner jacket would be considered vulgar ostentation.