A SUCCESSFUL REVIVAL

Press, Volume LXX, Issue 21087, 12 February 1934, Page 15

A SUCCESSFUL REVIVAL

* "THE MERRY WIDOW" AN OLD FAVOURITE WELL RECEIVED . J "Old friends are best." The rccep-1! tion given by a crowded house to the j. established favourite, "The Merry , Widow," presented by the J. C. wii- , liamson Comic Opera Company, at the , Theatre Royal on Saturday evening, was reassuring to those who, prefer- . ring the colour, life, and festival at- , mosphere of the living stage to the , vocal shadows of the screen, have m recent years feared that musical comedy was a thing of the past. A revival , of "The Merry Widow" was a courageous undertaking for any company touring Australia and New Zealand, but the excellence of the production in every way must leave little doubt as . to the eventual success of the tour. , "The Merry Widow" depends almost ■ entirely on its music and its comedy. The mot is slender, the situations are ; nofamvLinVin themselves and there is no attempt at subtlety m the charac , terisation. Everything is left to the actors and to the but their . opportunities are by no meam re . stricted. The music, by Franz Lehai, has been well known for nearly 30 years and the persistence of its popuSrity can well be understood in the light of Saturday's performance The company must be one of the best the Williamson firm has ever brought to this country. The principals, headed by Miss Romola Hansen, are all outstanding and the choruses have the depth and liveliness to be found only in well-trained and experienced singers. The staging is good and the settings el M?ss a Romola Hansen, whc.plays the title role in "The Merry Widow,' finds ner true method of expression in musical comedy such as this. Her singing voice ™ clear, sweet, and powerful, her speech is bright, her appearance is attractive and her good humour is nrepressi'ble. She simply bubbles forth happiness and gaiety, and, in the part of the wealthy widow, she appeals to move through comedy, song, and love drama as though she enjoyed it all. Her gaiety is infectious; it is impossible to hear her and remain unaffected. Her singing of "Villia," on Saturday, was perhaps her most outstanding performance, but her dancing lwith Mi Eric Bush) to the music of the Meny Widow waltz was at least as attrac--1 Mr Phil Smith, as Baron Popoff, the Marsovian ambassador in Pans, and Mr Don Nicol, as Nisch, messenger to tne , legation, bore the chief burden and . shared the honours of the comedy | work. It would be difficult to say j which was the principal comedian and which was the foil, so perfectly did! they fit each other and so masterly was \ their clowning. Mr Smith was surely ( intended for Gilbert and Sulivan—, what a wonderful Colonel Calverley ; he would make! As the peppery little | "diplomat" with a wayward wife and j a wayward tongue, carrying the dig-, nity of all Marsovia in his bustling, little person, he was excellent. He, gained the sympathy of everyone in j the audience, and when a comedian does that it follows that he is a good comedian. It would be untrue to say lhat he was well supported by Mr Nicol, j for Mr Nicol was just a.s mdisuens-, able and just as successful '"lf 1 may j say so. vour Excellency"'. A suscept-1 ibJc young man, with a face like a caricature and a "fig-u-are" like a heron, | is an acquisition to any musical com- j edy. Mr Nicol, his features decorated skilfully with paint-pot, and his trunk twisted into shapes which were happily not exaggerated, played round to his heart's content, and to the minute content of the audience-. I Mr Eric Bush, the leading baritone of the company, played the part of | Prince Danilo, the ultimately success- [ ful lover of the widow. An inipres- : sive appearance, a rich voice, and the I ability to dance well made him a j popular leading man, while his sense of humour and sense of drama (on | which demands were made at times) ; enabled him to round off what was decidedly a polished performance. His singing and playfulness in the I "Cavalier" duet with Madame Soma I made that song one of the most enjoyable of the piece. | Mr Herbert Browne, a handsome \ young man with a pleasing tenor i voice was cast as the Vicomle Camilla , do Jolidon. In his love scenes witn Natalie, ttie ambassador's wife, he cut, a dashing figure, and their duets, "A; Dutiful Wife" and "Love in My j Heart." were received with insistent demands for encores. Natalie was played by Miss Stella Collier, an actress and singer of accomplishment. She carried through a somewhat thankless part with delightful suavity and becoming dignity. ~«,,,, The minor roles were all well filled by the following:—Mr Oliver Peacock (Marquis de Cascada), Mr Charles Albert (General Movikovich), Mr David Graham (M. dc St. Brioche), Mr Hori Thomas (M. Khadja), Miss Dora Lightfoot (Olga), Miss Phyllis Curnow (Sylvaine), Miss Doris Hopkins (Praskovia), Miss Lois Green (I-rou-Frou), Miss Leah Miller (Fi-Fi), Misb Eunice Goodberg (Lo-Lo), Miss Daphne Lowe (Do-Do), Miss Lesle Crane (Jou-Jou). Miss Nancy Lowe (Clo-Clo), Miss Mona Zeppell (Zu-Z.o), and Miss Cecily Viles (MargoU. At the conclusion of the peiiormance Mr Phil Smith, replying to an ovation, expressed the appreciation ot the company at the enthusiastic reception accorded it on the first night m Christchurch. He said that the .). _C Williamson Company had taken pains to present "The Merry Widow m Australia and New Zealand with as good a caste as possible, and that it was gratifying to have this acknowledged by a Christchurch audience. "The Merry Widow" will be re-j peated this evening. \