THEATRE ROYAL.

Press, Volume LXV, Issue 19734, 26 September 1929, Page 7

THEATRE ROYAL.

As Stephen Leacock has already hinted, ] il was not long before Shakespeare, with one ! eye on the box office and the other casting around for a system of painless dramatic manufacture, realised that he had struck a good thing when he had embarked on the King Henry plays. In Leacock'a words, ha had found something good and was going to stick to it. The titling was easy, too. And something similar is the ease with the management of the Theatre Eoyal, where "The Broadway Melody" is still attracting crowded andiences. There has not been a centre at which "The Broadway Melody" has been shown that did not demand an extended season. The variety which the producers have crowded into the film is staggering, and the singing, talking, and dancing are all of an exceptionally high standard. In many respects "The Broadway Melody" may be said to resemble a first-class revue, rapid in action, full of tunefulness, and full of charm and variety. Bessie Love and Anita Page make of the Mahoney sisters a very human and charming pair. ( One of the outstanding scenes is The Wedding of the Painted Doll," in colour, and this is only a single episode in a dazzling combination of entertaining jequences. The settings »re magnificent, and some in colour demonstrate the strides made in photography. No sub-titles are used, except for the purpose of explaining lapses of time, the film being m dialogue throughout. In support of the big picture are heard and seen William O'Neal, a tenor, in "Lolita," "Duna," and "Until," and "The Revellers," an excellent male quartet, in "Nola," "The Gospel Train," and "I'm in Love Again.'' George Lyons, the singing harpist, presents four good numbers, and a negro song-and-danee act, also a Pathe Audio Review, and • piece of seascape make up aa entertaining terie* •* '•*<**."