ENTERTAINMENTS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 165, 6 April 1908, Page 10

ENTERTAINMENTS.

'OPERA HOUSE. .A.crowded house witnessed tlie last perform* ance of "Peter's Mother" at the Opera 1 Houso : onSaturday night. "The Red Lamp" will.be ' produced for the first time in Wellington to- ■ night. "The Bed Lamp" is, of course, a familiar play in Eugland, where is was originally produced at the Comedy. Theatre, in 1887. It was subsequently given at the Haymarkei, and was from the very start recognised, as affording an admirable , opportunity for Mr. Tree's talented impersonation of Paul Demetrius (the character to be taken by Mr. Herbert Flemming). He is described as a shabby old man, whose coat is tpo small for him, whoso shoulders are up to his. ears, and whoso wicked little' eyes twinkle behind their spectacles, and is a wonderful creation'of histrionic ingenuity. He has a way, of listening at all. keyholes, of interrupting every conversation, of sidling up to everyone whom he suspects, and overhearing what they are saying. He is an adept, also,' at bribing servants, at suspecting the. most in- . nocent actions, and weaving theories out of the most improbable conjectures. "The Bed Lamp" will bo staged for. to-night andto- i 1 morrow night only, and .on Wednesday night "The Morals of Marcus" will be staged hero for the first time, j - .. •• : , ; . THEATRE ROYAL. , ■ Punctuality is useless at Fuller's if the ob. ject of- the patron is to get a seat. He must reserve it, or arrive twenty minutes:before the rise of the curtain.- True as this is 011 most nights, it is most conspicuously tind emphatically true on Saturday nights.. Then is ready cash was abundant and leisure j most widely enjoyed. - Also, it is on that night that ; the weekly change of programme occurs. Tho night before last was no exception, for though there were ■ 110 new artists,' there ivero new items,'and all the other primary and secondary causes of ;d full, house were present.. The biograph led off with a little story s : of condoilences and congratulations. that had got into the wrong envelopes. It came from : France, • though, the missives had been re-written in English. .The French, nation have "been; evolved, it would appear, on purpose to biograph and be biographed, for'they* excel in;-making this kind of picture, and they "-quarrel, explain, and apologise so as to be understood without words. These pictures were good. 'Even,better were the series of films ■ showing bird lifa ' . as.it is .lived .among the reeds and grasses, ' , the forest-and-garden trees of rural; England. Such pictures tell one more about the'birds than any number of. stuffed specimens. 1 Later in the.evening a very clever,trick-film, . "The ; Artist's, Dream," was presented-. ' Mr. . James Opie, whose season here'is drawing. ,to a close, was in excellent vein, in' his songs, - "Mother" and "A Song Without, a iName. The Harmonious Iluxhams again justified their title, and won unstinted applause in their . three-part song "Silvery Congo," and in other ' ! numbers in which humour and comed t TvWere , successfully blended. Mr. Jack, Willis,, the kilted' comedian, let the audience into' the secret of getting a sixpenny drink for twb T -' pence—if the barmaid does not know, the trick. He also rendered soinijjncongruities of- • song and'■ speech, which were.-'simply jir-. , , resistible laughter provokers.' It was to •:> ; hear Master Rupert. Christie, the sweetrvdiced ( % ! boy soprano, in "Honej Boy" and "\Yhen .you . know you're not forgotten." ; The impossible, but not the less amusing, home of ono "Flatii- t I gan" was laid open to the public gaze by Mrl- . Frank Melvin and Miss Vi Frawley. Miss '- ' Lavinia Tyson, the talented contralto, had an ' appreciative hearing for her solos. But the v most popular turn of all was that of Miss Eva Lee and her two picaninnies, : with. their ' prettily comical bout of boxing. There was a small shower of pennies on- the .stage ( during their performance... ~ HIS.MAJESTY'S THEATRE. , The management' of the 'Royal Pictures Syndicate has scored a distinct success with . the new programme of kinematograph; films, which is being tendered nightly to large, audiences at His . Majesty's Theatre, Courtenay. Place. . Among the star items, tho "Incendiary Foreman," "The "Haunted House," and "Tho Shipowner's Daughter " are deserving, of mention. Tho children's prize matinee perform- - : ance was well attended on Saturday aitornoon. The limerick competition closed on Saturday night, and the results will be announced at • the Theatre this evening. . : ' . In connection " with the performance of the ' play, "Facing the Music," in the Town Hall" Concert Hall, on Wednesday and Thursday of this week; file -following telegram has been received'from Mr. Waterfield, secretary to His Excellency the Governor: "Their Excellencies have much .pleasure in . giving ; patronage to performances' on.-Bth. and 9th. inst., for- tha benefit of College Gymnasium; ,the Governor trusts performances may be most successful in every, way." The success. of-the performance is being' further'assisted by a committee of influential citizens, who are determined: that the hall will be crowded .on both nights. Eyervthing-is now ready for the production of , tlie price, and the final re hearsals are proving 1 « in, .every, way-satisfactory. The .box plan is open at the. Dresden. .. . ■■ • This week's organ recital will be given , tomorrow .evening in the Town Hall. Hollin's " Spring - Song," Lemare's popular " Andan^ tino," and the. lively " Aragonaise," -by Mas-'-senet, will■ be- included in. the ;programma Other items-will bo selected;.from works by ■Mendelssohn;. Handel, and Wely. "