DRAMATIC GOSSIP.

Press, Volume XLV, Issue 7214, 27 November 1888, Page 3

DRAMATIC GOSSIP.

[By "Obpheus."] During the si*ene with Lady Anne at the bier-side of Henry VI. in the terrible tragedy of "Richard III.," Mr Geo. C. Miln had one night recently at Her Majesty's, Sydney, an opportunity of displaying a quick-wittednesi* which is somewhat rare in actors accustomed to repeat only that which is "writ " for them. Gloster, after vainly inviting the distressed widow of Edward of Lancaster to plunge his sword into his lying heart, tells of his love, and the bewildered lady drops the blade. This night the hilt, becoming unfastened, dropped off. Miss Louise Jordan, who played Lady Anne, became greatly confused, but Richard immediately struck in with the line :— Thy beauty hath destroyed the sword. And in a subsequent passage made the text read: — Say but the word: Marred though the weapon be I'll slay myself. Of course the critics who object to interpolations had a fine opportunity here of earning the wagers for alterations of the text offered by Mr Miln in the Sydney Commenting on the performance of " The Lights o' London by George Rignold and company, the Bulletin says that" Mr Jewett appears to run a dead-heat with the tank for public appreciation. ? In our opinion he will shortly get ahead." The Brisbane Boomerang says that the Port Darwin people wanted Harding to put up "Pinafore," but the want of a chorus of sailors and marines seemed to stand in the way of such production. However, the British Navy turned up in the shape of H.M.S. Myrmidon, and Charlie thereupon loaned part of the crew, and produced Gilbert and Sullivan's nautical farce. _ "The Mikado" was revived on Saturday night November 3rd. Ac the Melbourne Princess's, with, of necessity, some modification of the previous cast. Thus Mr Benham played the Mikado with tolerable success, and Mr Leumane appeared as Nanki-poo to the well-under-stood satisfaction of the house;and Mr Grundy was seen and heard with moderate satisfaction as Pish-Tush ; and Miss Aggie Kelton made quite a delicious Pitti-Sing ; and Miss May Pollard, if just a little less delicious as Peep-80, was delicious enough to satisfy exacting requirements; and Miss Liddiard, if not more than about half the size of Miss Barnett, played the part very nearly as well. Of Mr Woodfield and Mr Vernon respectively as Pooh-Pah and KoKo, ie is only necessary to say that they were quite up to their customary form, than which nothing can surely be much better. Lastly, Miss Nellie Stewart again appeared as Yum-Yum, and of her there is nothing to say, but that she was perfect when first she played the character, and that, notwithstanding, she has improved npon her perfections. As an example of what an accomplished actress can do in representations of this kind it is something to serve as a model for the guidance of all others who essay the like. '•The World Against Her was produced by Alfred Dampier at the Alexandra Theatre on the 3rd instant. In the jealous husband Dampier has a congenial part which be makes a good dpal of, but Miss Lily Dampier does not score a successes Ms wife, being decidedly too lachrymose. Mr Chas. Warner is filling the Royal niebtly with the sensational drama of "Hands Across the Sea." "Never too Late to Meod," is in rehearsal. tUddon Chambers' play, "Captain Swift," now being playedeaccessfully in London, will also be shortly produced. " Sophia* «eutinues to draw good houses afc Mr e W?°£'HoUoway has taken his departure for London in the hope that his health, wijch has suffered from arduous work, may be restored by the voyage. He was not accompanied By Mis* Essie Jenyns, contrary to anticipations. This clever little lady, ifc Iβ rumored, proposes to retire from the stage to accept an engagement of a more permanent and tender nature. Everyone, says the Leader, who knows Mlae Jenyns, personally or professionally, will wish her joy in her new sphere, and regret that 00© so talented should be lost to the stage. The members of the English Opera Company brought out by Martin bimonsen in conjunction with his Italian Opera Company made their first appearance in Balfe's "Rose of Castile/ The new prima donna. Miss Lilian Tree, has a good soprano voice of extended compass in the upper register, and a fair amount of flexibility, and may be credited with having made a successful debut. Miss Flora Graupner is also favourably men t oaed. as showing considerable improvement, both as a vocalist and actress. The three gentlemen who were seen and heard for the first time on this occasion cannot he spoken of in terms of commendation. Mr Atkinson, says a local critic, has a fair tenor voice, but is evidently totally inexperienced as a public performer, and Messrs Sinclair and Webb fell considerably snort of the standard required for representing the parts undertaken by them. The nextoperaproducedwae''Carmen, which was a great improvement on its predecessor. It served to introduce tor the lirst time to the Melbourne public Mdlle. Louise Lablache, a granddaughter of the great basso singer, who, over 30 yeara ago, used to be the pride of Her Majesty s Theatre, in London. Mdlle. Labjache is young, graceful, vivacious, good-ioolving, well-voiced, and highly intelligent. Her mother is a favourite in the courts ol Kussia, Austria, and Spain, and was also irt that of France under the third Xepoleon, and Mdlle. Lablache i» her mother's pupil. She entere into the part of Carmen with genuine ardour and siicn clear grasp of character as speafc 01 enlightened and reflective study. Her movements on the stage and shangemi

play of features bespeak the accomplished actress and mistress of her art, although only three years before the public. The quality of her voice is that of a truly fine mezzo-soprano, of easy range from B to C in alt, and all of rich and resonant tone. The Australasian pronounces her success throughout the most pronounced on the operatic stage for many years past. She was twice recalled amidst enthusiastic cheers at the end of the first act, and again during the progress of the play, and finally after it terminated, although it did not end until a late hour. Miss Graupner added greatly to her rapidly-growing reputation by her sympathetic and most prettily interesting performance of the role of Micaela. The music, which is written for the soprano voice, is rather exacting on her vocal resources, but her intelligence and selfreliance carried her triumphantly through the work allotted to her, and she shared in full measure the honours showered upon the other principals. Signor Dimitresco sang and acted well as Don Jose. Sianor Pimazzoni was not so Rood as the Toreador. After the first performance Signor Mancini played Zuniga with much success. "The Bohemian Girl" is to be the next production, Signor Verdi having been specially engaged. Miss Marion Llewellyn, is to make her debut as Arline. " The Butler," a comedy in which Mr J. L. Toole scored a great success in London, is being played at 'Sydney under the Brough and Bouctcault management, and arrangements are made for producing it shortly at the Melbourne Bijou. At Her Majesty's, Sydney, George Rignold and company, including Miss Kate Bishop, are now playing " The Rajah, or the Colliers' Strike, a comedy drama of the present day. The company also includes Miss Watts-Phillips and Messrs H. Jewett, J. R. Greville, Joe Tolano, and Edward Funston. Miss Carrie Swain is endangering her popularity by resurrecting that old drama "Uncle Tom's Cabin." Personally I would rather pay a man to go and see the piece than see it myself, even though the cheerful Carrie does sing •' Way down theSwanee River," " Massa's in the Cold, Cold Ground," and in the duet " Fairy Wand " from " Maritana," which latter piece has no earthly business in such a play. Everybody is not alike though, and the Royal is satisfactorily filled. Another minstrel company, in the {shape of Moynham and Sullivan's Minstrel and Burlesque Company, have struck Sydney and are now holding forth to from fair to middling business at the Academy of Music. Miss Adelaide Detchcn commenced a short season in Sydney on the 10th inst, and in spite of the enthusiastic notices of her performances in Melbourne, which made Sydney people somewhat critical, she took them by storm. The Telegraph went into raptures over her, and from all accounts she must be a most remarkably clever and fascinating young lady. As her company only consists of herself and Mr Edward Bending, organist, pianist, and tenor, I hope we may some day see her round this way. Mr Chas. Arnold is back in Brisbane with " Hans the Boatman," where also is the American tragedian Mr Geo. C. Miln, whose Hamlet and Richelieu are finding favour in the eyes of the public. Herr Richter was so much delighted with Mme. Albani's singing at the Birmingham Festival that he insisted upon her acceptance of the part of Eva in Wagners " Meistersinger," which is to be given under his conductorship at the Bayreuth Festival in 18M. Mme. Albani leaves England in January for a concert tour in Canada and the United States. The World delivers itself as follows concerning the spectacular drama "The Armada," which was produced at Drury Lane in September:— '*' The Armada' is a puppet-show on a gigantic scale; nothing else could be made of the subject. But a puppet-show may be far more entertaining than many serious plays, and that ' The Armada " certainly is. It presents a series of stirring pictures. . . . The picture of Elizabeth and her court is curious and original. Most playwrights would have made her the ideal maiden Queen. . . . Messrs Hamilton and Harris have given her an unflinchingly auburn wig, an aquiline beak, and a temper, to match. Her wonderful dresses and her obstinate under-estimate of the national peril are taken from authentic documents of the period." " Pepita," a comic opera by Lecocq, in an English version, after having had a successful run of 700 performances in tte country, has now been brought out at Toole's Theatre. The music compares favourably with that of " Madame Angot." The scene is laid in the Canary Islands, and the plot is certainly mystifying. The vacant throne is competed for by Prince Guzman, whose pfetentions General Pataques favours, and the fair Inez,whose cause is advocated by General Bombardos. Inez has a friend, Pepita.and the two young girls, who are married, cause their simple-minded husbands immense anxiety By their constant unexplained absences from home, for they know nothing of the social position of Inez. The husbands follow them, and meet with strange adventures, finding their wives continually donning new disguises to escape their detection. The funniest instances are constantly occurring, and the amusement of the audience is maintained until the finish, when Inez becomes rightful Queen, much to the disgust of General Pataques. The rivalry between the two Generals is the funniest part of the piece. Some time since, says "Rapier," I remember an admirable and deservedly popular tenor giving mc his opinion, apropos of musical criticism, that according to his idea critics had no sort of business,to presume to express private ideas of their own about compositions and performances. They were sent to the theatre or to the concert hall, he told mc, to report the impressions made on the public; to say whether singers were applauded, whether encores were demanded, whetlier vocalists condescended to accept them, and so forth. For a critic to say that a piece was badly rendered if the public liked it was, my tenor save mc to understand, very near akin to impudence and inexcusable presumption. I differ from this censure of critics, and am rather confirmed in my own notions by what I read in " The Mapleson Memoirs " about the debut of Mme. Nilsson at Her Majesty's as Violetta in "La Traviata." Mr Mapleson wanted the evening to be successful, and he says: "I made an arrangement with the head boatman at Essex Stairs, pear where I resided, to supply mc with some twenty-five horny handed watermen, who were merely told that they should receive one shilling a piece provided not applaud Mme. Nilsson, tbe lady who would appear on the stage at the beginning of the opera wearing a pink dress;" that is to say, the watermen' were not to applaud her when she came on, before she had begun to sing; but " they w.ere informed that when the first act was over and the curtain down, they would be paid, a shilling a-piece for each time they cOuJdget it up again"—and they earned five or six shillines a head. The debut was the talk of London, Mr Mapleson says, and hefuUy recognises the.importance of. the service rendered by his boatmen. Knowing something of the operatic stage, lam not in the very faintest degree surprised by the candid confession of the impresArio. In the case of Mrae. Nilsson too much fchap was good could not be said; hut the boatmen were not discriminating—they would have applauded any singer with equal enthusiasm at the same prige, I know occasions, indeed, when they have so applauded debutantes who had ab* solutefy nothing to recommend them, and were never heard a second time; and if my teiar's theory of a critic's duties were to be accepted, a ten-pound note carefully distributed at the rate of a shilling a head would make the reputation of any etnger who could gain the opportunity of appearing. An American paper says: "Mr Duncan B. Harrison has presented the young man who. during a performance of " The Paymaster''at Baltimore, shouted that Mrs O'SuUivan Dimpfil was ' a Maryland rosebud,' with a watch. ' The Jersey Liiy,' was called so for the first time by the Prlaceof Wales, ana the name has stuck to her ever since, as will the ' Maryland Rosebud' to Mrs Dimpfil, although the sponsor was nothing more than a fourteen year old native American with a, lusty pair of lungs. It would be a melancholy proceeding if occupants of the gallery all tried their hands at inventing floral names for popular actresses and their lungs in shouting them out, hoping that the actress's manager would 49d approve, and send them a watch." jjjiss Mary Anderson is going back to America in' November. and will include in her repertoire two little plays by Tennyson, "The Cup" and > l The Falcon." The first was given by Henry Irvfng and Ellen Terry some years ago, and the second by Jtr§ Kendal, but neither achieved any success.